Tacheles Berlin:
Alright, friends,
when I started thinking about the next topic, a thousand things went through my head.
Stories from my parents.
Things friends told me.
School memories.
My first party phase.
My first Jibbit.
My first real contact with actual artists.
As you can probably tell from the title, this is about Tacheles.
A place that many people today barely know anymore – or never really understood what it actually was.
And honestly, the best way to describe it is this:
It was a melting point of culture, cinema, music, drugs, positioning, art, parties, scene, memories, living, freedom and stories.
My first memories at Tacheles Berlin: chaos, freedom and real encounters
I was there for the first time around 2006.
That was also the first time I saw a 1UP live bombing – something that left a lasting impression on me.
→ You can find our graffiti blog here.
Later, around the age of 15, I started going there regularly.
That must have been around 2008/2009.
Strobe lights.
Techno.
Cheap beer.
No one cared about you.
No door policy.
No “you’re not getting in”.
You were just there.
And the feeling was unlike anything I had experienced in Berlin up to that point.
Magical.
Alternative.
Open.
But at the same time:
gritty,
unpolished,
raw.
A place that attracted people from all kinds of backgrounds –
including many from difficult circumstances.
And that’s exactly what made it so special.
My last memory: the closing party in 2012.
The history of Tacheles Berlin: from department store to ruin
Tacheles is like a cat with nine lives.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Friedrichstraßenpassage was built here – one of the largest shopping arcades in Berlin, with boutiques across five floors and a 48-meter-high dome above the main hall.
An architectural highlight.
Economically?
A disaster.
Not long after it opened, it was already over.
In 1928, AEG took over the building and turned it into the “House of Technology.”
Later, it was used by the National Socialists, and after that in the GDR by the FDGB and other institutions.
Although the building survived the Second World War relatively intact,
parts of it were demolished in the 1980s.
The dome – gone.
What remained was a mutilated ruin in the middle of Berlin.
Tacheles Berlin occupation in 1990: how it all began
February 1990.
Shortly before the final demolition, artists occupied the building.
A few people. A ruin. An idea.
They stopped the destruction.
And gave the place a name:
Tacheles.
Plain talk.
Speaking the truth.
No filters.
That wasn’t a coincidence.
The art space was a direct response to the suffocating silence in the GDR.
Suddenly, everything felt possible.
Artists moved in.
Lived there.
Worked there.
Experimented.
For many visitors, Tacheles was:
a labyrinth,
a chaos,
a place full of energy.
Or simply put:
the center of the world – at least for a moment.
Why Tacheles Berlin was so special
Visitors were welcomed with open arms.
You could walk through studios,
explore exhibitions,
watch a film at the “High End 54” cinema
or simply sit in the courtyard and have a drink.
For almost 15 years, Tacheles was a refuge for artists.
No clear rules.
No clean structure.
No concept.
And that’s exactly why it worked.
Another historically significant place in Berlin, by the way, is the Olympiastadion.
Tacheles Berlin as a textbook example of gentrification
And this is where it gets interesting.
Because Tacheles wasn’t just an art space.
It’s a textbook example of gentrification.
In 1997, the site was sold.
Plans for a massive new urban development emerged.
The artists were allowed to stay –
for a symbolic rent.
But the pressure kept growing.
2008: termination.
2009: insolvency.
Years of conflict, legal battles and uncertainty.
And then:
2012 – eviction.
For me, Tacheles was one of the first moments where I really experienced gentrification hitting hard.
Back then, I didn’t even know there was a word for it.
But I knew something was happening here that didn’t feel right.
Of course, I had always noticed the changes in Berlin:
- rising rents,
- a different feeling in the city,
- a different dialect,
- new gastronomy,
- new regulations,
- more complaints.
But this was the moment it really hit me.
Because it wasn’t just any place.
It was a place where everything was open.
No closed doors.
24/7.
You could buy art.
(And honestly, you could buy almost anything your heart desired there.)
Music.
The first DVDs from graffiti crews.
You could get inspired.
Talk to artists.
Lose yourself.
You could get lost a thousand times –
and that was exactly the point.
It was right in the middle of Berlin,
on Oranienburger Straße,
and yet it felt like a completely different world.
A feeling that barely existed back then –
and today, doesn’t really exist at all anymore.
And that feeling is exactly what defined Berlin.
If there had been a public referendum back then,
I would have actually been out there trying to get as many votes as possible to preserve it.
My first real referendum, by the way, was Tempelhof Airport.
→ You can read the blog here.
For me, one thing is certain:
if Tacheles had been historically reconstructed,
it would be one of the most beautiful places in Berlin today.
Tacheles Berlin today: what remains of the art space
Today, the Quartier AM TACHELES stands in its place.
Offices.
Apartments.
Shops.
Restaurants.
Parts of it have actually been done quite well.
Fotografiska brings some culture back in.
The café works — to some extent.
But everything around it?
Often empty.
Hardly any life.
Interchangeable.
And even though it’s right in the middle of Berlin, it often feels empty today.
Cafés sit half full — or completely empty — something that would have been unthinkable there in the past.
What has been lost from old Berlin
Back then, you could get lost.
Today, you find your way instantly.
Back then, you could talk to artists.
Today, you walk past storefronts.
Back then, everything was open.
Today, everything is planned.
Tacheles was a place
where Berlin experimented with itself.
Today, it’s a place
that works — for some.
Conclusion: Tacheles was more than just a place
My parents still remember the stories from 1990.
Friends spent entire nights there.
And I had some of my first defining experiences there.
That’s exactly why Tacheles is, for me, one of the most mysterious and at the same time most important buildings of my youth.
I could tell so many more stories about what I experienced there…
But my mum reads these blogs from time to time as well 😉
Berlin is not a tourist attraction. Berlin is a city.
See you in the real Berlin – or here in the next blog.
Take care 🖤
Sources: Book "Tacheles" by Michael Wolffsohn | Book "Tacheles" by Braus Verlag | Documentation "Tacheles in Berlin Mitte" by RBB | Contemporary witnesses from the family | Most images in this article are sample images and were not taken at the places featured.
Check out our blogs on insider tips for Berlin.
View all-
Spreewald More Than Boat Tours and Pickles
Spreewald is more than boat tours and pickles. In this blog, we show you which places are actually worth visiting, what to do beyond the water, whether a day trip is...
Spreewald More Than Boat Tours and Pickles
Spreewald is more than boat tours and pickles. In this blog, we show you which places are actually worth visiting, what to do beyond the water, whether a day trip is...
-
Berlin City Center: Tourists Look for the Cente...
Most tourists search for the center of Berlin. Many Berliners would simply name their own Kiez.In this blog, you'll learn why Berlin doesn't have one single city center, how Alexanderplatz, Ku’damm...
Berlin City Center: Tourists Look for the Cente...
Most tourists search for the center of Berlin. Many Berliners would simply name their own Kiez.In this blog, you'll learn why Berlin doesn't have one single city center, how Alexanderplatz, Ku’damm...
-
North Side Gallery Berlin: The More Honest Side...
While tourists crowd around the East Side Gallery, the North Side Gallery shows a completely different side of Berlin.Legal graffiti, half-finished pieces, skaters, spray paint and a city that constantly...
North Side Gallery Berlin: The More Honest Side...
While tourists crowd around the East Side Gallery, the North Side Gallery shows a completely different side of Berlin.Legal graffiti, half-finished pieces, skaters, spray paint and a city that constantly...
