Berlin, Berlin

Berlin, once considered cheap and trendy, is undergoing a gentrification process that is pushing up the cost of living. But that has not deterred creative types from continuing to flock to the city and perpetuating its reputation as Germany's artistic capital.

Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit famously said in 2004 that the city was "poor but sexy". But it appears that despite becoming more affluent, there are still abundant spaces for creativity.

Former German culture secretary Michael Naumann says the city is a "thriving and lively" hub for artists from all over the world who come to "create their own Berlin".

"Tourists do not come here for the vanished wall," Naumann says, in reference to the former division between East and West Berlin. They come here because it is a "transitory oasis, a capital of itself".

For US indie band The Drums, Berlin has always been a favourite gig destination. "There is something electric about the city and the people." Unlike others, the lead singer of the band, Jonathan Pierce, believes gentrification will in fact benefit the city, resulting in better "art, music and extreme originality".

Naumann agrees. "The more wealthy people move into this town, the better for the arts because they can fund and buy the work."

Berlin's many tourists provide much needed income for the arts. And the arts, in turn, draw more visitors to the German capital. "Berlin would be nothing if not for its artists," Naumann told an audience at this year's International Literature Festival in the German capital.

The former culture secretary said newcomers to Berlin were attracted by the combination of the "sinister appeal of the past", and its diverse cultural scene, which is perceived as an expression of freedom.

Overall German funding of the arts exceeds €1 billion (Dh5.07 billion) each year, with state subsidies having always been an important part of the political system.

But Naumann dismissed criticism that established artists were the main beneficiaries of generous state subsidies. He said a "grassroot fund", worth the equivalent of about €10 million, had been set up to promote alternative art in Berlin, including photography and theatre projects.

Interim, a small radical magazine, blames outsiders for the city's accelerating gentrification. Non-Berliners from wealthy backgrounds are revamping former bohemian districts such as Prenzlauer Berg and Kreuzberg, they argue.

Gentrification has entered the political debate, with both the Green and the Social Democrat (SPD) parties offering proposals to stem the flow of Berlin's so-called yuppification during a recent state election campaign. The Greens called for "just social diversity and urban development" in gentrified areas, while the SPD suggested capping rent increases in modernised flats at 9 per cent.

Meanwhile, plans to evict artists from the city's most famous squat, the Tacheles, and redevelop the building to turn a profit, have sparked an uproar in the artistic community. Artists, forced to look elsewhere for cheaper rents and larger spaces, are now relocating to alternative districts such as Wedding and Moabit, says Silke Neumann, the spokeswoman of the Art Berlin Contemporary Fair (ABC).

"I do not think there is a city with as much artistic talent as Berlin," Neumann says.

Kat Frankie, an Australian singer who moved to Berlin six years ago and now lives in Wedding, was drawn to the city for pragmatic reasons. "I can afford to be a full-time musician here," she says, adding that the city also offered a welcoming environment to artists.

As opposed to "cut-throat" London, Berlin has "a community that welcomes new ideas; it is totally open," says the singer.

The English indie band Veronica Falls agreed that gentrification was changing the face of Berlin, forcing art and music venues to close or move elsewhere. "Venues change when they relocate; they will not have the same atmosphere," the band told dpa.

Nevertheless, the London band prefers gigs in mainland Europe to ones at home, simply because "people are friendly and you get better treatment".

For them, Berlin's appeal lies in its "fascinating history and political turmoil".

- dpa