The Internationales Congress Centrum Berlin (ICC Berlin) ranks among the biggest, most advanced and most successful congress venues in the world. It was built in just four years under the watchful eyes of architects Ralf Schüler and Ursulina Schüler-Witte. Since its opening the highly versatile communication complex - 320 metres long, 80 metres wide and 40 metres high, - ICC Berlin is one of the most outstanding landmarks of postwar German architecture and the model for many new congress centers all over the world.

With its 80 halls and rooms seating between 20 and 9,100, its versatile facilities, superb technical installations and comprehensive range of services, ICC Berlin is the perfect choice for any convention, show or concert. The complex is designed and equipped to cater for several events simultaneously. Spacious lobbies (5,500 m2) offer space for exhibitions, poster sessions and company presentations to accompany conventions. This is where the ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) communications system, based on a broadband optical fibre network, proves its worth: it ensures quick, safe and direct access to the Internet and Intranet. The complete building is equipped with Wireless LAN (WiFi) which can be accessed via HotSpots.

A three-storey walkway provides a direct link between ICC Berlin and the Berlin Exhibition Grounds (160,000 m2). Very few convention venues anywhere in the world can offer such an accommodating and well-appointed convention complex right alongside spacious exhibition grounds. There is no doubt that the outstanding facilities here can satisfy the growing demand for combined conventions and exhibitions in every respect.

ICC Berlin has many highlights to offer conference organizers and delegates alike. Take for example Hall 1, capable of seating 5,000 (by combining auditoriums 1 and 2 with the stage area up to 9,100 spectators can simultaneously follow the action), or Hall 6 that seats 200 in a circle. Hall 2 can seat 1,500 with its retractable grandstand lowered. With the grandstand raised, it is a spacious hall for an audience of 3,000. And bridging Halls 1 and 2 is one of the largest professional theatre stages anywhere in Europe. Berlin conference seating, designed specifically for ICC Berlin, is certainly worth a special mention, as are the internationally acclaimed, highly sophisticated lighting, sound and projection systems used for events of all kinds.

For Berlin's economy, ICC Berlin has proved to be a highly successful investment in the city's infrastructure. Spending by out-of-town delegates amounts to nearly 1006 million Euros each year. This in turn has a sustained impact on production, income and employment in the region.

The statistics of the International Congress & Convention Association ICCA in Amsterdam, place Berlin with its international conventions at ICC Berlin among the five leading convention venues in the world for years and by far the most popular convention city in Germany.

Part of the budget for any public building is earmarked for art. In the case of the ICC Berlin, it was spent on the following:

Light sculpture in the Central Lobby area

The large light sculpture in the central lobby area is the work of Berlin sculptor Frank Oehring. It was created in consultation with the husband and wife team of Ralf Schüler and Ursulina Schüler-Witte, the architects responsible for the ICC Berlin. The light sculpture penetrates through three floors of the building and was designed to connect with the structure of the main technical control centre, located in the entrance area. Its fluorescent lines and the chosen forms are intended to symbolize the nerve system of the various technical facilities, converging on the place from which the operation of all systems throughout the building is monitored and controlled.

Press Bar

The Berlin painter Kurt Mühlenhaupt, one of a number of artists invited to enter a competition for the purpose, won the commission to produce several panels for the press bar in the bridge structure. These paintings show characteristic scenes from the various Berlin districts. The depictions of his home town through the medium of art lend the press bar a distinctive flair which appeals in particular to out-of town visitors to the ICC Berlin.

Lobby of Hall 2

The jury at the same competition further recommended that the Krefeld artist Adolf Luther be commissioned to install his typical mirror elements in the side lobby of Hall 2. These reflect reality - sometimes laterally inverted and slightly blurred - and dramatically change the spatial effect, lending a more festive accent to the room.

Art in the ICC Berlin

The works described above were specifically included in the scope of the building contract, but the budget did not stretch to any additional purchases. In 1980 a spontaneous effort was mounted to persuade the parties involved in planning and building the ICC Berlin to supplement the interior decoration of the building by donating works from contemporary Berlin artists. With assistance from members of the original competition jury, works were selected which, although by no means complete, give nevertheless a more or less representative impression of Berlin's art scene today.

Photos of building workers

The Berlin architect and photographer Gerhard Ullmann spent some time in the company of the steel construction workers when they were piecing together the roof. The photographs he took are works of considerable artistic value and were acquired for display in the building.