The exhibition design module at the Media University is about much more than just spatial planning and aesthetics. Students deal with the question of how content can be made tangible – and what responsibility designers have in this regard. In a current practical project, they combine design know-how with historical and political analysis and work on a concept dedicated to one of the most important – and at the same time most incriminating – buildings of the Nazi era: the West Wall.
Together with Claudia Warda and the cultural initiative in Hillesheim, the students are developing an exhibition concept for the Westwall, a defensive system over 600 kilometers long that stretches from the southern Upper Rhine across the Eifel to the Lower Rhine. To this day, this structure shapes the landscape around Hillesheim – and at the same time stands for the violent history of the Nazi dictatorship.
The aim of the project is to create a sensitive approach to this historically charged site in terms of the culture of remembrance. The exhibition is intended to arouse visitors‘ interest, encourage them to engage with the site and offer a lasting experience – both in terms of design and content.
The module focuses on fundamental aspects of exhibition design: the development of a sustainable concept, the arrangement and presentation of content and the design of the space itself – always with the expectations and needs of visitors in mind.
On today’s project day, the students – under the guidance of Markus Schröppel – carried out their first practical work on site. They worked in the outdoor area with great commitment and thought creatively.
In this project, exhibition design means making history tangible, negotiating social issues and creating spaces for remembrance.
An impressive example of how teaching at the Media University is combined with responsibility, relevance and practical relevance.
