Sven Marquardt - Berlin Club Culture Then and Now

"You go through this feeling to then be in freedom." The notorious photographer and bouncer talks about the ethos behind selecting the world's hardest door, early life in East Berlin and Berghain's 20th anniversary.
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Today's RA Exchange guest is Berghain's infamous figurehead and doorman Sven Marquardt, who was born and raised in German Democratic Republic (GDR)-era East Berlin. He lived a rebellious life as a queer punk in Prenzlauer Berg, which banned him from entering Berlin's central districts because of how he looked. It was during these years that he congregated with fellow East Berlin new wave kids and began documenting their relationships, and his own life, through photography. When the wall fell in 1989, electronic music and the exciting scene that arose in the GDR's vacuum became Marquardt's focus. He started partying at gay fetish parties and, alongside his brother, manning the door at new clubs.

In this interview, he talks to RA Exchange producer Chloe Lula about how Berlin has evolved from his adolescence in the post-war years, and contemplates the changes causing the erasure of institutions in today's clubbing landscape. He also reflects on the contemporary nightlife industry and how Berghain's policies have shifted with the times. Initially, he says, the club catered to an almost exclusively gay male crowd, but now welcomes a more diverse demographic representative of wider club culture. While German politics and the rise of the right wing have deeply affected him, he recognises the opportunities it enables for his community to use art and culture as a reactionary, countercultural force. Listen to the episode in full.