Foundation

Frontalansicht des Schweizerhaus Seelow im Sommer

Mission statement

The foundation seeks to honour the memory of Hugo Simon by promoting the causes and ideals with which he engaged during his lifetime. Its mission is to support art and culture, knowledge and education, heritage and historical preservation, sustainable land use and conservation, all in a spirit of international cooperation. 

A central task of the foundation is to care for the Schweizerhaus Seelow estate, the historical site linking its existence to a family experience, a local community and a common heritage. In this place, Hugo Simon once brought together land, labour and art to produce a work of culture and solidarity. 

Outwards from its base in the Oderbruch region, the foundation seeks to cooperate with like-minded initiatives and individuals worldwide in the following fields of endeavour: artistic production and research; sustainable agriculture and organic farming; exile studies and refugee affairs; scholarly work on Hugo Simon and his time.

Advisory Board

Rafael Cardoso

Rafael Cardoso is an art historian and writer. He is the great-grandson of Hugo and Gertrud Simon. Born in Rio de Janeiro, he has lived in Berlin since 2012.

Marion Krüger 
Marion Kruger is a founding member and longstanding director of the Heimatverein Schweizerhaus Seelow e.V., founded 2007, dedicated to revitalizing the former estate of Hugo Simon and conserving the Schweizerhaus Seelow site.

Anna-Dorothea Ludewig
Anna-Dorothea Ludewig is a literary scholar at the Moses Mendelssohn Center and lecturer at the University of Potsdam. She has been researching and publishing on Hugo Simon and his environment for many years.

Marion Krüger, Rafael Cardoso und Anna-Dorothea Ludewig
Marion Krüger, Rafael Cardoso und Anna-Dorothea Ludewig

Announcements

https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/biografien-der-moderne
Biographies of Modern Art
01.09.2024 — 24.11.2024
Brücke Museum, Berlin
https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/juedische-kulturtage-hamburg
Days of Jewish Culture Hamburg
13.11.2023
19:30
Warburg-Haus Hamburg
https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/woche-des-juedischen-lebens
Week of Jewish Life
09.11.2023
11:00
Kultur Schweizerhaus Seelow
https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/tage-des-exils-berlin
Days of Exile Berlin
06.10.2023
18:00
Villa Grisebach Berlin
https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/eine-freundschaft-im-krieg-hugo-simon-und-rita-janett
A friendship in wartime. Hugo Simon and Rita Janett.
09.09.2023 — 07.01.2024
15:55
Bündner Kunstmuseum Chur
https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/konferenz-ueber-marginalisiertes-kulturerbe
Conference on marginalized cultural heritage.
01.02.2023
Europa-Universität Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder)
https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/spuren-juedischen-lebens-in-seelow-ein-nachmittag-des-gedenkens
Vestiges of Jewish life in Seelow – an afternoon of remembrance
13.11.2022
16:35
Kultur Schweizerhaus Seelow
https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/vier-akte-in-landschaft-1912-von-max-pechstein-wird-im-bruecke-museum-ausgestellt
Max Pechstein’s Four Nudes in a Landscape (1912) exhibited at the Brücke Museum
15.10.2022 — 29.01.2023
Brücke Museum, Berlin
https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/rekonstruktion-der-kunstsammlung-des-juedischen-berliner-bankiers-hugo-simon-1880-1950
Reconstruction of the art collection of Berlin Jewish banker Hugo Simon (1880-1950)
01.09.2022
Magdeburg
https://www.hugo-simon-stiftung.de/en/announcements/besuch-der-ministerin-fuer-wissenschaft-forschung-und-kultur-manja-schuele
Visit of Manja Schüle and Simona Koß to the Schweizerhaus Seelow estate.
31.08.2022
Former estate of Hugo Simon, Schweizerhaus Seelow
all events