Yesterday’s picture was two of me gels outside the Jewish Museum in Berlin. Today’s picture is one of the installations there. A really good one. Which had two oriental selfie-stickers walking on it, which you’re apparently allowed and encouraged to do. Even though you want to punch them and tell them to fuck off stop being so disrespectful. I liked this ‘thing’. It was rather impressive and quite moving. Like the Chinese walkers…

But its the building that is the real work of art. Designed by Daniel Libeskind it is so grotesquely ugly that it becomes a thing of beauty. As was the intention. But I couldn’t help but being disappointed with the content inside. There are countless memorials, museums and ‘things’ specifically about the holocaust. All credit to modern Germany for having such a genuinely remorseful and open attitude to ‘their worst moment in history’. So I thought that the ‘Jewish Museum of Berlin’ would use a different remit. Would perhaps go back to happier times when Berlin was a friendly place for Jews. When it was just about the only country in Europe that allowed them to own property, have normal jobs, to integrate. Unlike Spain and Italy and, yes, England, in which everything was restricted and money-lending was the only option work-wise. That was ‘pre-Germany’, as that nation didn’t exist until the end of the 19th century. Before that it had been Prussia and before that all manner of warring things.

But the museum focussed once again on the holocaust. And in fact the entire building, which is kind of ‘odd shaped’ is a model of the ‘voids’ to represent the void in Berlin society created by the Jews murdered in the war. So there are ‘voids’ everywhere in the building. Big ones. Massive empty spaces, great high ones that you can’t see to the top of, and they’re impressive. But ‘voids’ can only get you so far. You want a story. Well I did. And I didn’t get one that I hadn’t heard countless times before.

So if you find yourself in Berlin and think about going to the Judisches Museum, save the fiver and just look from the outside. Its worth the tube fare.

Better get to work then.

Happy Tuesday

A xxxx