Jazz, Art, and Memory

VBKI visits the James Simon Gallery with David Hermlin, the Swing Dance Orchestra, and actor Jens Harzer

Text by Undine Kugler | Event Management

On Wednesday, August 26, we joined forces with the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation and the Sukkat Schalom Synagogue Congregation to host a special cultural evening at the James Simon Gallery on Museum Island. Titled “A Celebration of the Arts,” the evening brought together music, literature, and the visual arts and was dedicated to Berlin’s rich Jewish cultural heritage.

For us, engaging with Jewish history and culture holds special significance. Even among the Berlin merchants who founded the association in 1879 were Jewish entrepreneurs who helped shape both the VBKI and Berlin’s development into a modern economic metropolis. We view it as our enduring responsibility to build on this history, highlight Jewish life, and foster dialogue.

The evening focused on Paul Cassirer, one of the most important art dealers and publishers of his time and a defining figure in Berlin’s cultural scene around 1900. Cassirer recognized the significance of the French Impressionists early on, was actively involved in the Berlin Secession, and, with entrepreneurial courage, championed artists whose works were by no means universally recognized at the time.

Actor Jens Harzer brought Cassirer’s personality and outlook to life in a compelling reading. Texts by Cassirer himself, as well as memories and tributes from his contemporaries, painted a picture of a passionate educator, a combative art entrepreneur, and a visionary Berliner.

David Hermlin and his Swing Dance Orchestra took the audience on a musical journey into the world of 1920s and 1930s jazz with a selection from the “Jews in Jazz” program. The concert served as a reminder of the significant contribution Jewish musicians and composers made to the development of jazz and of their commitment to fighting social exclusion. Through music by Benny Goodman, George and Ira Gershwin, Kurt Weill, and Jerome Kern, this history came to life with both great ease and energy.

The result was an evening at the James Simon Gallery that brought together memory and the present, art and entrepreneurship, thereby echoing in a special way Paul Cassirer’s vision of a Berlin that confidently showcases its cultural diversity and creative energy.

We would like to thank the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation and the Sukkat Schalom Synagogue Congregation for their trusting collaboration, as well as METEOR Bau GmbH, SAMMLER&USINGER, and Berolina Hotel GmbH for their generous support of the evening.