Tacheles: artist squat or trendy business front?

When I was told about Tacheles, it was described to me as a place of artist squatters, and a chance to see urban art and German underground culture. With the proprietor charging such a low price to the residents against the desires of the city and community, I felt like I’d be walking into a place of rebellion. Even the governments that had resided here could almost be considered squatters as so many went in and out.When I first went in, I kept that feeling. It was covered in trash and graffiti, people went in and out freely, walls were caving in and there was clear damage left over from the bombings. It seemed like quite the exciting place to have finally found after seeing the same touristy Berlin day after day.

Unfortunately, that feeling left me as I started looking from room to room. The artists were well dressed, their rooms quite clean with furniture and framed art on the walls complete with ‘DO NOT TOUCH’ signs. Most notably, they had racks of cleanly printed and mass produced post cards in nearly every shop. In fact, other than the building itself and the style of the art which quite a bit more grungey, I’d have trouble discerning it as anything special. Certainly not a center of urban art rebellion and a generation of young people looking for an identity. Many of the residents weren’t even German. That’s not to say that any of this is bad of course, simply that the building and atmosphere has changed greatly from what it has been touted to be.

The grounds behind the building were very impressive- covered in some spectacular metal sculptures and other 3d works, but they too didn’t feel like much more than a local gallery. Prices here soared up to over $1000. Again, not the feeling of a poor artist who scrapes by with other locals. I can only assume that the popularity that the place had received had made it a bit more capitalist over the years. At some point, I had to wonder if all the artists even lived here, or if they just used it as an inexpensive yet very trendy business front.

When I got over the great difference in what I saw against what I expected, I did enjoyed myself. There was a nice beach bar, music, and a lot of art in a style that I have not had much exposure to. However, when people say that they are saddened that the building and the culture might not exist anymore in the future, it does not seem as big of a deal anymore. It seems like it is so far changed from what it used to be, that it is mostly gone anyway.