7hours

7hours is an independent exhibition and performance centre for contemporary art and contemporary music based in Berlin-Mitte, Germany. It was founded by Christiane Grüß and has operated since 1999–2001, initially as 7hoursTURM in the Märkisches Museum from 2001 to 2004, and from 2005 as 7hours HAUS 19 in Berlin. The organisation describes itself as an art and artists' space that seeks to give independent thinkers room and care, producing accumulations of works in collaboration with artists and performers that aim at a transcendental quality. Its programming deliberately mixes periods and disciplines — Perotin alongside Chris Newman, Mussorgsky alongside Russ Meyer — and its pursuit of modernity is explicitly not tied to contemporaneity. 7hours presents exhibitions, concerts, performances, readings and occasional collaborations with guests. Since 2010 it has also run Study Groups: a first group of laypeople, autodidacts and professionally trained artists studied Jakob Ullmann's "voice, books and FIRE III" over two years, and further Study Groups have followed. The programme has featured a wide range of artists since 1999, including improvisation musician Cornelius Cardew, painter Jårg Geismar, writer Reinhard Jirgl, performance artist Chris Newman, painter, graphic artist and sculptor Norbert Prangenberg, Bill Dietz (all media), Pia Maria Martin (video and 16 mm, also a musician), composers Jakob Ullmann, Howard Skempton, Wolfgang von Schweinitz, Perotin, Klaus Lang and Chiyoko Szlavnics, sculptor Till Hohn and painter Albert Wigand. 7hours has been supported by the Earle Brown Foundation, the British Council, the Freundeskreis 7hours, the Hauptstadtkulturfonds, IASPIS, Initiative Neue Musik and the Deutscher Musikrat. According to its own account, support from private individuals exceeds institutional funding. The venue has been located at Haus 19 on the Campus Nord of Humboldt-Universität Berlin; that location was terminated by the university at the end of 2024, and 7hours left Haus 19. The organisation continues to present projects, including 7hours at LUISENKIRCHE in 2025 and a 7hours KINO programme, and maintains an online presence at 7hours.com.

7hours was founded by Christiane Grüß and has operated in Berlin since 1999–2001. Its first major venue was 7hoursTURM in the Märkisches Museum, where it ran from 2001 to 2004. In 2005 it moved to 7hours HAUS 19 in Berlin, which became its long-term home. The organisation describes itself as an art and artists' space that seeks to give independent thinkers room and care, producing accumulations in collaboration with artists or performers that aim at a transcendental quality. Its curatorial approach deliberately juxtaposes different eras and genres — Perotin next to Chris Newman, Mussorgsky next to Russ Meyer — and its pursuit of modernity is explicitly not equated with contemporaneity. Since 1999, numerous artists have appeared at 7hours with exhibitions, concerts or installations, including improvisation musician Cornelius Cardew, painter Jårg Geismar, writer Reinhard Jirgl, performance artist Chris Newman, painter, graphic artist and sculptor Norbert Prangenberg, Bill Dietz (all media), Pia Maria Martin (video and 16 mm, also a musician), composers Jakob Ullmann, Howard Skempton, Wolfgang von Schweinitz, Perotin, Klaus Lang and Chiyoko Szlavnics, sculptor Till Hohn and painter Albert Wigand. The programme includes exhibitions, concerts, performances, readings and occasional collaborations with guests. From 2010, 7hours added Study Groups: a first group of laypeople, autodidacts and professionally trained artists studied Jakob Ullmann's "voice, books and FIRE III" over two years, and further Study Groups have followed. The organisation has been supported by the Earle Brown Foundation, the British Council, the Freundeskreis 7hours, the Hauptstadtkulturfonds, IASPIS, Initiative Neue Musik and the Deutscher Musikrat; according to its own account, private support exceeds institutional funding. 7hours HAUS 19 was located on the Campus Nord of Humboldt-Universität Berlin. That location was terminated by the university at the end of 2024, and 7hours left Haus 19. The organisation has continued to present projects, including 7hours at LUISENKIRCHE in 2025 and a 7hours KINO programme, and maintains its online presence at 7hours.com.

• 2025

  7hours at LUISENKIRCHE

• 2024

  Haus 19 terminated by Humboldt-Universität Berlin at the end of 2024; 7hours leaves Haus 19

• 2010

  First Study Group begins, studying Jakob Ullmann's "voice, books and FIRE III" over two years

• 2005

  7hours moves to 7hours HAUS 19 in Berlin

• 2004

  7hoursTURM period ends

• 2001

  7hoursTURM opens in the Märkisches Museum, Berlin

• 1999

  7hours founded by Christiane Grüß; operations begin 1999–2001

Independent, non-commercial art and contemporary music venue in Berlin that gives space and care to independent thinkers, mixing periods and disciplines rather than following contemporaneity.

• Exhibitions

• Concerts

• Performances

• Readings

• Study Groups

• Installations

• 7hours KINO

1. 17hours official website7hours.com
2. 27hours – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org
3. 37hours – Wikidatawikidata.org