Founded in 1991 in a derelict former margarine factory, KW Institute for Contemporary Art has played a vital role in establishing Berlin as a global center for contemporary art in the years following the fall of the Berlin Wall.

KW’s mission is to engage with the central questions of our time through the production, presentation, and discussion of art. Attuned to the evolving needs of Berlin’s artists and practitioners, KW occupies a unique position as a transnational institution deeply rooted in our local context. Without a permanent collection, flexibility and openness lie at the heart of what makes KW special, as well as creating dynamic and timely programming that resonates with our times and audience.

Under the direction of Emma Enderby, the current program explores how both the city and KW’s building can serve as a framework for a program centered on artists and their processes, local production, community and partnerships, and the social, technological, and ecological present. The program unfolds through transdisciplinary and transgenerational practices, both local and international, always working in dialogue with the ecology of the building—both its interiors and exteriors as well as the spaces in between. The building complex includes exhibition halls, apartments, offices, and event spaces, including Café Bravo in the courtyard, designed by Dan Graham in 1999.

KW Institute for Contemporary Art is institutionally supported by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion. Parts of KW’s program are supported by the KW Friends.