Akademie der Künste

I can’t speak to the Bundesarchiv, the major resource for many people, but I have had a very positive experience with the archive of the Akademie der Künste. This is a fabulous resource and I recommend glancing at their holdings if you’re dealing with Berlin history, even if you’re not working on an arts-related topic (http://www.adk.de, look under Stiftung Archiv). The archive is divided into a main reading room where music, theatre, and literature holdings are kept, and the Sektion Bildende Kunst, which houses the art collection and the archival materials relating to the visual arts. Particularly in Bildende Kunst the archivists at the AdK are very helpful and personable people who (I am not kidding) make archival work enjoyable.