Deutsche Welle (English edition)
German culture commissioner Grütters: 'I was going through withdrawal'
Aid during the pandemic secured, looted art debate organized, Humboldt Forum opened: Culture commissioner Monika Grütters takes stock in a DW interview.
Monika Grütters speaks about her nearly eight years in office with satisfaction. Since 2013, the moderate politician representing the center-right Christian Democratic Party (CDU) has defined the direction of German cultural policy "with enthusiasm and passion," she says.
In the run-up to the German parliament (Bundestag) election in September, Grütters sees many of her goals achieved. Will she continue? "That will be decided by the voters," she says.
Grütters, who was born in 1962, herself notes that she is Europe's longest-serving culture commissioner. It is especially noteworthy in a country like Germany that does "a great deal for its culture compared to other countries."
"For that," says Grütters, "I am grateful to Angela Merkel" —
the longest-serving incumbent head of government in the European Union.
COVID pandemic was a stress test
That sounds like relief. After all, the coronavirus pandemic has proved to be the greatest challenge during Grütters' time in office: Museums, theaters, concert halls and cinemas had to close down all over the country — despite sophisticated prevention concepts. Nothing was operating anymore, and an entire industry went into a tailspin.
"What affected me most was
the real, genuine, recognizable and also literally palpable distress of the artists," Grütters told DW. "Those working in the arts struggled so hard for visibility, for fear that their importance to society as a whole would not be properly seen." But then, they didn't know Monika Grütters very well.
As a "culture" politician she has always seen herself as a "lobbyist" for the cultural sector, which is Germany's secondstrongest economic sector in terms of GDP. That is why she has lobbied for billions of euros in COVID pandemic aid, she explains.
"I had to fight and say: Please pay attention to the creative sector as well ... as an economic sector," says Grütters. "It was also about the overall social recognition and importance."
Nevertheless, the prevailing notion was that "if we close the schools, then we can't explain to anyone why a theater is allowed to be open."
Debate over colonial looted art
But it has not only been the arts and artists that have had to make great sacrifices, the minister emphasizes. Audiences have also had to give up a lot.
"I myself felt like I was going through withdrawal, and I think many people felt the same way," she said.
During the pandemic, cultural stimulation and the opportunity for exchange of ideas and opinions has been lost. Important topics were no longer discussed on the public stage but in private spaces.
"It's not just about fun, it's not just entertainment, it's a very
important critical corrective in our community, important for democracy," says Grütters of the role of culture in society.
In the DW interview, Grütters welcomed the debate over colonial looted art, which has gained momentum during the pandemic, and which she says is long overdue.
"Germany's colonial past has long been a blind spot in our culture of remembrance," she says. She noted that Germany has been coming to terms with its more recent history, beginning with World War I and II. "But the period before that, Europe's colonial rule over Africa, is only now coming into perspective. That's good for us."
She says that Germany is will
ing — as in the case of the so-called Benin Bronzes — to return looted art. The valuable metal panels and sculptures had adorned the royal palace of the Kingdom of Benin, in what is now Nigeria, from the 16th century. They were then looted in their thousands by British colonial rulers and taken to Europe and the US in 1897.
Some of the stolen art found its way into the collections of German museums by way of the art market.
"The context of origin is a context of injustice," Grütters stresses. "And that's why we are ready for restitution." The first pieces could — "after a intense dialogue process" — be returned to Nigeria as early as next year.
Cosmopolitan and cooperative
The Benin bronzes were actually intended to be the main attraction of the new — and already much-criticized — Humboldt Forum, which is housed in the reconstructed Berlin Palace and is soon opening its doors.
Monika Grütters vehemently defends the Forum, which she says is a "new type of cultural house" and is "more than just a museum because it works in an interdisciplinary way." It is home to a movie theater, stages and conference spaces.
"People always claim that everything is so controversial and difficult, but no one has ever been inside yet," says Grütters.
Pieces from non-European collections are also on display in the 42,000 square meter (452,100 square foot) space.
A "culture nation" like Germany is embracing diversity at the beginning of the 21st century. "That makes me proud," says Grütters.
Few countries would have "resisted the temptation to gloriously place themselves and their own history at the center," she said. But Germany had decided differently.
"We said no, the non-European arts should have their place there in dialogue with the Museum Island across the street, where Mediterranean history has its place, and so too German history."
The Minister of State and Federal Commissioner for Culture and the Media wants to emphasize Germany's cosmopolitanism. "We want to recommend ourselves as partners in the world," Grütters says.
After all, the name Humboldt stands for curiosity about the world.
"Alexander and Wilhelm von Humboldt really did advance intellectual history," she explains. "And it stands for great openness, for tolerance and for comparing one's own experience with what is possible in other regions of the world."
Grütters says she is working toward that goal "with great passion," adding that "I see no reason — other than an election — to stop."
the First World War broke out, and the decline of the luxury hotels began. At that time, the village discovered winter sports as a powerful tourist attraction, and decided to provide access to its highest local peak, Mount Titlis, using modern cable cars.
Nowadays, Engelberg is one of Switzerland's most popular tourist resorts in winter and summer alike. Surrounded by 3,000-meter peaks in a high mountain valley, the village with its 4,000 residents is easy to reach, located about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Lucerne and 80 from Zurich.
It has its own railway station as well as a well-developed, longstanding, independent infrastructure. In addition, it boasts 2,000 hotel beds, several hundred holiday apartments and houses as well as a camping site that's open all year.
In the early 1990s, tour operators from Asia discovered Engelberg as the ideal destination for day trips. Coach trips from Lucerne up to Mount Titlis became a fixed item on the agenda for tourists from overseas traveling in Europe. This turned into an important source of income for Engelberg.
COVID-19 has now made more than clear how great the dependence on that additional source of income actually was. Without visitors from Asia, the town's coffers remain empty. Deserted mountain summits and empty hotels cannot provide job security.
And because of that, Engelberg is now harking back to the qualities it's always been known for: the tradition of its spas and luxury hotels, and its proximity to nature.
Union with nature in high demand
With the flow of overseas tourists drying up, a fresh emphasis is now being placed on attracting families and vacationers who want to enjoy nature and the outdoors. A small cable car that seats eight people runs from the far end of Engelberg valley to the Fürenalp.
One cabin goes up, as another comes down. That's it. The operators have consistently dismissed proposals to install larger cabins, saying mass tourism is unsuitable for the region and that it would destroy the area's rustic character.
Once you reach the summit, it's a short hike to the nearest Alpine chalet, which offers cheese tastings - or you can stay and spend several days hiking there. Engelberg's Alpine Cheese Trail runs nearly 50 kilometers through the picturesque countryside, connecting seven cheese-making dairies.
André Wolfensberger from Engelberg Tourism calls the Surenental, a high mountain valley that winds all the way to the neighboring canton, "Little Patagonia." Four farmers and their families associated with the Surenen Alpine dairy cooperative graze their 120 cows here. They spend their summers up here, and also offer family accommodation.
To get an impression of work in the mountains, where hay is sometimes still turned and bundled by hand, anyone interested in the mountain farmers' strenuous daily routine can spend the night in mountain inns and take a Buiräbähnli Safari -a multi-day hike combined with a ride on the Buiräbähnli, the cable cars once used by local farmers to transport materials.
More individual fewer groups
tourists,
Tourism managing director Andres Lietha is convinced that "regardless of the pandemic, there will be a shift from group tours to individual travelers." The idea is to attract well-heeled city-dwellers from all over the world to the mountains. Much is being modernized and newly built in Engelberg to that end.
One showcase project is the "Kempinski Palace Engelberg Titlis Swiss Alps" hotel, a centrally-located and newly renovated grand hotel that used to be called the "Europäischer Hof." Even the abbot of the 900-yearold monastery has given it his blessing.
With sumptuous rooms and suites, it targets a wealthy, international clientele. Opening it during a pandemic is risky, but hotel director Andreas Magnus is taking a restrained approach: he plans a gradual start for the 5-star hotel with its 129 beds. He doesn't yet plan to run at full capacity. The bar, restaurant and winter garden will also be accessible to outside customers.
Where is this trip headed?
Engelberg, however, is also juggling to reconcile the differing needs of all its visitors: Some are concentrating on luxury and grandeur, while overseas tourists are used to seeing highlights at a lightning pace. Meanwhile, family holidaymakers from Europe want some peace, quiet and relaxation in the seclusion of the mountains.
The break from business-asusual enforced by the pandemic provides an opportunity for Engelberg to re-think its strategy for the future. The ultimate objective of Engelberg is to find the strength to become resilient to future changes and potential crises.
The question of whether tourist groups from Asia will once again start to travel to Mount Titlis for single day trips and then return to their hotels in Lucerne or Zurich, and whether this will be part of the mix of future success stories of the town, remains unanswered for now.
worth fighting for.
This article has been adapted