illycaffè presents galleria illy in KaDeWe Berlin experiental spaces

illycaffè presents galleria illy in KaDeWe Berlin experiental spaces, blending coffee and culture,
to feature major new installations by Leone d´Oro winner

Tobias Rehberger
 
BERLIN – This year, Italian premium coffee producer illycaffè presents Galleria illy in the impressive foyer of the famous department store KaDeWe. The focal point is the installation by the German artist Tobias Rehberger, who created a unique spatial experience exclusively for Galleria illy 2010. The work is a further development of Rehberger’s espresso bar, which he created for the 2009 Venice Biennale. Both installations feature specially designed geometrical shapes that obliterate the borders between reality and optical illusion. At the centre of this unusual space is an espresso bar, blending culture and coffee in perfect harmony. Inside the installation visitors can enjoy espresso or cappuccino and meanwhile get an impression of illycaffè dedication for art and culture.
 
Galleria illy is a platform which connects international stars from art, literature, science, design and nutrition (works in German) by exposing them to a wide audience for four weeks at KaDeWe. Also, illy baristas from the Università del Caffè provide courses focusing on coffee culture, teaching participants the fine art of preparing the perfect espresso. All the topics express a profound view of the world of illycaffè and have their roots in the brand philosophy. After Berlin Galleria, illy will open its gates in the prestigious Galleria Isik Tesvikiye in Istanbul from the 1st to the 24th of October.
 
During the four weeks of Galleria illy there will be world famous personalities featured, like the Spanish food designer Martí Guixé, architect and designer Matteo Thun, the German author and winner of the famous Ingeborg-Bachmann prize Tillmann Ramstedt, Moritz Rinke, the chef Norbert Niederkofler and the food writer Roberta Corradin. The programme will be completed by an exhibition by Sebastiao Salgado featuring black and white images from “In Principio“ (TN: in the beginning). The photos show the conditions under which coffee farmers live and work in their growing areas.
 
Galleria illy
Galleria illy is a true cultural salon — a physical expression of illy’s personality and philosophy, presenting internationally renowned personalities from the worlds of art, literature, science, design, food and wine. Coffee is prepared by top baristas under the auspices of Università del Caffè, illycaffe’s global program bringing coffee education to leaders in fine cuisine, hospitality, coffee farmers and consumers who care.
 
Galleria illy was created in 2005 in New York City. Throughout its three-month run in Soho, Marina Abramovic, Julian Schnabel and Sebastião Salgado were among cultural icons who created and participated in programming and helping create a singularly illy experience for guests.
 
Galleria illy was hosted by Moroso in Milan in 2006, in the heart of Brera.
Among the events held in the space: a grand opening with artist Michael Lin, performances by the students of the Michelangelo Pistoletto foundation and of Marina Abramovic, and appearances by writers Maraini Dacia and Giuseppe Cederna, designers Ron Arad, Patricia Urquiola and Ross Lovegrove, and the director Peter Greenaway.
In 2008, a Galleria illy in the ex-Pescheria Fish Market, Salone degli Incanti, in Trieste celebrated illy’s 75th anniversary. Among the guests: director Peter Greenaway, designers Patricia Urquiola and Jonathan Levine, writers Flavio Soriga and Davide Longo, journalist and writer Roberta Corradin, writer Giuseppe Cederna, journalist Paolo Rumiz, Sicilian pastry maestro Corrado Assenza.
 
About Tobias Rehberger
Tobias Rehberger (Esslingen, 1966) is among today’s most successful young German artists. He achieved initial success in the ‘90s, reinterpreting internal and external spaces through the language of design, light, and architecture, yielding new forms and new ways of realization. Rehberger’s work has been presented at the Biennale di Venezia (where he was awarded the Leone d’Oro in 2009), in Berlin, at Manifesta in Luxemburg, at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, among other renowned venues.
 
KaDeWe
KaDeWe, like Harrod’s in London and the Galeries Lafayette in Paris, is one of the most important department stores in the world. A sensibility for emerging trends, window displays famed for their elegance, thematic areas and a selection of products and services are hallmarks that distinguish the iconic store. Transformation as a distinctive element is the core of the store’s personality, expressed on all eight floors. Anything that’s the latest craze can be found first at KaDeWe. Innovative design, cosmopolitan lifestyle, international fashion styles – KaDeWe is inspiration and zeitgeist on every floor. KaDeWe, Tauentzienstraße 21-24. 10789 Berlin. www.kadewe.de