The Alfred Toepfer Stiftung F.V.S. is a German foundation established in 1931 by the Hamburg merchant Alfred Toepfer. The foundation is committed to promoting European unification and ensuring cultural diversity and understanding between the countries of Europe.
The rich industrialist Alfred Toepfer is considered, by the contemporary historiographic criticism, a controversial figure; philanthropist and lover of the arts, he had a significant role in the culture, politics and economic environment of Nazi Germany from the 30s until the end of the Second World War. The activity of Toepfer in between the two World Wars, is well documented by a massive cultural promotion of the ideas of common ethics and identity, obviously symbiotic with Nazi ideology. Toepfer however, after the war, denied any kind of Nazi involvement completely and categorically. [1] [2]
The substantial abdication of his politic and ideologic past, is recognised by critics nowadays in the important range of prizes instituted by the [a] foundation, [3] which are:
The foundation cooperates also with the most important German universities and renowned cultural associations. The Heinrich Tessenow Medal is a prestigious architecture prize, created by the Alfred Toepfer Stiftung F.V.S. in 1963 in memoriam of Rostock architect Heinrich Tessenow. The prize is annually assigned by the Heinrich-Tessenow-Gesellschaft e.V. and among the rewardeds are Giorgio Grassi (1992), Juan Navarro Baldeweg (1998), David Chipperfield (1999), Eduardo Souto de Moura (2001) besides the Pritzker Prize winners Sverre Fehn (1997) and Peter Zumthor (1989).
Johannes Bobrowski was a German lyric poet, narrative writer, adaptor and essayist.
The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V. is a German political party foundation associated with but independent of the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU). The foundation's headquarters are located in Sankt Augustin near Bonn and Berlin. Globally, the KAS has 78 offices and runs programs in over 100 countries. Its current chairman is the former President of the German parliament Deutscher Bundestag, Norbert Lammert. It is a member of the Centre for European Studies, the official foundation and think tank of the European People's Party (EPP).
The Herder Prize, named after the German philosopher Johann Gottfried Herder, was a prestigious international prize awarded every year to scholars and artists from Central and Southeast Europe whose life and work have contributed to the cultural understanding of European countries and their peaceful interrelations. Established in 1963, the first prizes were awarded in 1964.
Günter Kunert was a German writer. Based in East Berlin, he published poetry from 1947, supported by Bertold Brecht. When he signed a petition against the deprivation of the citizenship of Wolf Biermann in 1976, he lost his SED membership, and moved to the West two years later. He is regarded as a versatile German writer who wrote short stories, essays, autobiographical works, film scripts and novels. He received international honorary doctorates and awards.
The charitable foundation Zeit-Stiftung Ebelin und Gerd Bucerius is registered in Hamburg. Its aim is to fund projects in research and scholarship, arts and culture, as well as education and training. It was founded in 1971 by Gerd Bucerius and carries the name of the founder, the title of the weekly newspaper Die Zeit, which he co-founded, and the nickname of his second wife, Gertrud Ebel, Ebelin.
Translated from German Wikipedia
The Robert Schuman Prize for European unity was a prize awarded annually by the Hamburg Alfred Toepfer Foundation, in memory of former French Prime Minister, Robert Schuman. The award, first given in 1966, was discontinued in 2000.
Theodore Antoniou, was a Greek composer and conductor. His works vary from operas and choral works to chamber music, from film and theatre music to solo instrumental works. In addition to his career as composer and conductor, he was professor of composition at Boston University. His education included studies in violin, voice, and composition at the National Conservatory of Athens, the Hellenic Conservatory, and conducting at both The Hochschule für Musik and the International Music Centre in Darmstadt. He was a member of the Academy of Athens.
The Network for Reporting on Eastern Europe (n-ost) is an international non-governmental organization and a registered association based in Berlin. Also known by the acronym n-ost, the Network for Reporting on Eastern Europe is led by Executive Director Hanno Gundert and a seven-member board. The organisation has its main office with full-time staff in Berlin's Kreuzberg district.
The KAIROS Prize has been awarded to European artists and scholars from the fields of visual and performing arts, music, architecture, design, film, photography, literature and journalism since 2007 by the Alfred Toepfer Foundation in Hamburg. It is endowed with a sum of 75,000 Euro.
The Heinrich Tessenow Gold Medal (Heinrich-Tessenow-Medaille) is an architecture prize established in 1963 by the Alfred Toepfer Stiftung F.V.S. of Hamburg in the honour of Heinrich Tessenow. It is awarded annually by the Heinrich-Tessenow-Gesellschaft e.V. "to honour people who have achieved distinction in craft and industrial form-making and in the teaching of the culture of living and building, and who have through their life's work acted in the spirit of Heinrich Tessenow". Among the awarded were: Giorgio Grassi (1992), Juan Navarro Baldeweg (1998), David Chipperfield (1999), and the Pritzker Prize winners Sverre Fehn (1997), Peter Zumthor (1989) and Eduardo Souto de Moura (2001).
Elmar Hess is a German artist.
Dr. Alfred Carl Toepfer was a German entrepreneur, owner of the company Toepfer International and founder of the Alfred Toepfer Foundation. He helped shaped the original internal markets of the European Coal and Steel Community, and was a philanthropist known for his celebration of the arts, sciences, and nature.
The Fabrik is a cultural centre in Hamburg, Germany.
Marcus Kretzer is a German pianist and music teacher. Since 1979 he regularly gives recitals and concerts with famous orchestras and conductors worldwide. His art of piano playing is described as "new and unheard. A deep sensibility, attended by resolute authority. A musical genius, combined with an extraordinary technical virtuosity. His play is ingenious, intelligent and erudite as well as subtle and touching, steeped in almost unreal tenderness. The play of a true master of the piano.". As piano pedagogue Kretzer acts in Germany and abroad in which his comprehensive teaching method lastingly influences the future generation of pianists.
Alfred Lichtwark was a German art historian, museum curator, and art educator in Hamburg. He is one of the founders of museum education and the art education movement.
Alois Machatschek was an Austrian architect, architectural historian, university professor and architectural preservationist.
The Brückepreis is an international prize given annually to a person who contributed by a life's work to better understanding between peoples in Europe. It is given annually, beginning in 1993, by the town of Görlitz/Zgorzelec. The Europastadt lies in both Germany and Poland, connected by a bridge across the Neisse, and not far from the Czech Republic. The bridge appears in the prize name also for building bridges among people and nations, as Norbert Lammert, the president of the Bundestag, expressed in his laudatio for Arvo Pärt in 2007. The official name is Internationaler Brückepreis der Europastadt Görlitz/Zgorzelec. The prize money is 2,500 Euro. The prize is managed by an association, Gesellschaft zur Verleihung des Internationalen Brückepreises der Europastadt Görlitz/Zgorzelec.
The European Film Academy University Award has been awarded annually since 2016 by the European Film Academy. The award presented and voted for by university students across Europe. The aim of this initiative is to involve a younger audience, to spread the “European idea” and to transport the spirit of European cinema to an audience of university students. The initiative is co-ordinated with Filmfest Hamburg and supported by the Körber Foundation, The Alfred Toepfer Stiftung F.V.S. and Creative Europe Desk Hamburg and realised in co-operation with NECS–European Network for Cinema and Media Studies and Prix collégial du cinéma québécois (PCCQ). The following universities participate in EUFA edition:
Heinrich Stegemann was a German Expressionist painter and sculptor.
