On May 27, 2025, the long-time President of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, Hermann Parzinger, was bid farewell in a ceremony at the Neues Museum in Berlin. At the same time, Marion Ackermann was officially installed as his successor.
Minister of State for Culture Wolfram Weimer, Saxony's Minister President Michael Kretschmer, and Berlin's Senator for Culture Sahra Wedl-Wilson, representing the Governing Mayor, praised Parzinger's formative tenure. He revived the foundation, made the association of museums, libraries, archives, and research institutes future-proof, and decisively advanced the reform of the SPK (Museum Island).
In his speech, Hermann Parzinger reflected on an intense and eventful period: "Compared to the 200 years of Museum Island, which we are beginning to celebrate these days, 17 years are just a blink of an eye. But for me, they were exciting and stimulating years. And we accomplished a lot during this time – not just new buildings." He emphasized the open approach to debate, the importance of internationalization, and the shared goal of modernizing and keeping the foundation united: "We shouldn't separate what belongs together, but we must work together to make it fit for the future."
The new president, Marion Ackermann, thanked her predecessor for the three months of transition they had spent together and, in her inaugural speech, presented key themes of her future work. "In the future, it will be about how we can reimagine the SPK's role as a representative of Germany in a new and contemporary way – with all its artistic and cultural achievements, in all its diversity." She emphasized: "Strengthening education and outreach will be essential to the success of the coming years and crucial to the future viability of the foundation."
Main Image: (v.l.n.r.): Christoph Markschies, Sarah Wedl-Wilson, Wolfram Weimer, Marion Ackermann, Hermann Parzinger, Gero Dimter, Helen Müller, David Chipperfield, Michael Kretschmer; Foto: SPK/photothek/zahn.net/
Anna Melnykova, "Palace of Labor (palats praci), architector I. Pretro, 1916", shot with analog Canon camera, 35 mm Fuji film in March 2022.
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