1. Top of the bill is a visit to the Gemaeldegalerie alte Meister, part of the Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin under the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz. Located in the concrete structure of the Kulturforum, off Sony Center. The Gemäldegalerie contains fabulous old master paintings from Germany, Holland, Flanders, Italy and also pretty good in other major national schools of paintings.
It is widely considered a first-rate collection of fine paintings, comparable to Prado, Louvre, National gallery in both London and Washington.
I would be happy to give you an indepth introduction to the famous painters, in particular with Vermeer, Caravaggio. Rembrandt. And many others. Put the paintersa and their works of art into perspective. Help you discover what is so fabulous about each of them.
Critical note: I am afraid the museum is oddly located in a corner of an ill-designed wasteland, and it very successfully hides its front entrance. Its current name and web site does also little or nothing to attract art lovers and bus loads of tourists. Compare to the Uffizi. Where are the throngs of tourists waiting for hours outside to get in?
Why not rename it National Gallery of Berlin? Roll out the red carpet?
To the right: Petrus Christus, detail of one of the important paintings in the rich collection of Flemish Primitive painters.
Do not confuse the above with the next museum:
2. Alte Nationalgalerie, located on the eastern end of Museum Island near the Cathedral/Dom. This fine museum contains mainly German and also some French nineteenth century art.
To the left a detail of an image by Hans Thoma painting in this museum, showing a knight guarding an enclosed playground with nubile nude women. Why does he keep us viewers out? Are the women locked in? It all looks very enticing.
To the right a Hans Kolbe sculpture of a dancer doing her thing in the Alte Nationalgalerie on Museum Island.
The museum also owns a fabulous series of great paintings by Kaspar David Friedrich.
Bodemuseum.
Another museum on the western end of Museum Island is the Bode Museum with countless highlights of many of International schools of sculpture. Mainly German sculpture, but also rich in Italian and Dutch art.
One of the gems I encountered were portrait busts of Willibald Imhoff and his lady.
Their images link up beautifully with the newly acquired Van der Schardt self portrait in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 
Holland. Renaissance self awareness personified.
Romanesque art is well displayed in the basement of the Bode Museum, resembling a crypt in a church and thus a burial atmosphere.
Pergamon.
Obviously the outstanding gem of Museums Island, centrally located just by the train line is the Pergamon museum with the Pergamon altar, once successfully transported from the Orient and re-erected here. It has withstood the air attacks on Berlin with the help of many sand bags. It remains one of the best examples in the world of late Greek expressive sculpture, labeled 'Hellenistic'.
Detail of the mural sculpture frieze above. The other parts of this Pergamon museum contain large and impressive wow- items like the exuberant large Milete market gate. And the Ishtar gate from Babylon. Not bad for a museum and quite unrivalled in Western Europe.
As an art historian I am ready to guide you through!
On request I will also help you prepare for your trip to Berlin with my wonderful powerpoint presentation. Learn about the richess of the city of Berlin, its culture, museums, design and culinary specialities. I will show you around, giving you a good idea of Berlin's layout by means of birds-eye views, aerial photographs, maps, drawings, photographs.
I am fluent in Dutch, English, and I have a good command of German / Deutsch. A limited command of French and Italian, (Français & Italiano).
This is an academic tour preparation by scholar-lecturer, art historian Drs. Kees Kaldenbach* Read a biography. Download my PDF file of my company flyer.
Menu:
Powerpoint presentation of Amsterdam.
Powerpoint presentation of Athens.
Powerpoint presentation of Barcelona.
Powerpoint presentation of Berlin.
Powerpoint presentation of Copenhagen.
Powerpoint presentation of Florence.
Powerpoint presentation of Helsinki.
Powerpoint presentation of Istanbul.
Powerpoint presentation of Naples.
Powerpoint presentation of Rome.
Powerpoint presentation of Split.
Powerpoint presentation of Stockholm.
Powerpoint presentation of St. Petersburg, Russia.
Powerpoint presentation of Venice
Menu presentation of walks and museum visits in Towns in Holland.
An outstanding tour by a colleage on Nazi thugs, World war II and the Cold war years.
My home is Amsterdam, The Netherlands. I will travel to any address you require to give this powerpoint presentation to you, your business partners, family and friends.
You may pay me by credit card. For further information please contact kalden@xs4all.nl. Specify your (client's) personal needs, date, time AND THE TELEPHONE NUMBERS of both your mobile telephone and your hotel. Our company is stable and trustworthy - that is why we have long standing contracts with VISA, MasterCard and American Express.
As an art historian based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, I can meet your clients in major capitals around the world such as Barcelona - but also in Dutch cities such as Amsterdam, Alkmaar, Haarlem, Leiden, Gouda, Rotterdam. Right there, I will present a personalized guided tour of art museums and historic centers. Or we may combine art with nature in places such as the Kröller Müller Museum in Otterlo.Complete Listing of tours See client testimonials.
Experience beauty and local history together. Clients will enjoy themselves and learn while strolling and discussing the country's past, art and culture. In doing so, they may touch many bases - spanning not only fine art and architecture but also a city's background and current social issues.
Starting at your hotel I will take you on the wonderful private cultural walking tour of your choice. My guided itinerary offers you accessable informative conversation in Dutch, English or German (my French and Italian are more limited).
You may also arrange this VIP treatment for business contacts or friends. We will ensure an unique and memorable experience.
Drs. Kees Kaldenbach is your private "scholar-lecturer on culture tours" *.
*Martha Gellhorn, Travels with Myself and another, p. 182.
Endorsements
The Rijksmuseum has done me the honor of linking the main Rijksmuseum site to my website.
I conduct Rembrandt walks in Amsterdam for the Netherlands Bureau of Tourism, the London and New York City offices. Their clients include important journalists.
The travel site www.luxurytraveler.com has devoted a main feature to my tours and walks.
Drs. Kees Kaldenbach has been featured in television and radio documentaries, including BBC2 TV, BBC2 TV, was interviewed in the Atlanta, Georgia CNN studios, and appeared on NTV Japan, Danish TV and Radio Netherlands World Service. In July 2004 he was interviewed about Delft artists by Tetsuya Tsuruhara for the leading Japanese newspaper The Yomiuri Shimbun. In 2004 and 2005 he acted in an advisory role to additional BBC teams. Kaldenbach has written extensively on Vermeer and 17th century Delft, on Vincent van Gogh and on other art history topics. He also lectures on cruise ships. Kaldenbach has written extensively on Vermeer and the 17th century, Vincent van Gogh and on other art history topics. In 2008 he was the author of a Museum Guide book.
Read further client testimonials.
Further information is available on his encyclopedic web site: www.johannesvermeer.info
Contact
information:
Drs. Kees Kaldenbach , kalden@xs4all.nl
Haarlemmermeerstraat 83 hs
1058 JS Amsterdam
The Netherlands
Tel.: 020 - 669 8119 (from abroad +31 20 - 669 8119)
Cell phone: 06 - 2868 9775 (from abroad 31 +6 - 2868 9775)
Reaction, questions? Read client testimonials.Open seven days a week.
Member of the VVV Tourist information and the Amsterdam Chamber of Commerce (Kamer van Koophandel).
Email responses and bookings to art historian Drs. Kees Kaldenbach.
This page forms part of the 2000+ item Vermeer web site at www.xs4all.nl/~kalden
Launched October 4, 2008. Update 4 feb 2011.
Complete Listing of tours