Triple exhibition launch at the German Maritime Museum
The special exhibitions "CHANGE NOW! Ships Change the World" and the photo show "INTO THE ICE - The MOSAiC Expedition in Pictures" start on February 25 and can be seen in the extension building of the German Maritime Museum (DSM) / Leibniz Institute for Maritime History until July 31, 2022. For the first time, guests can also experience the show "KARTEN WISSEN MEER - Globalization from the Water."
Ships, sea and research are the keywords of the DSM's new exhibitions. What is the significance of shipping for our lives? What role did it play in historical developments? What influence does it have on globalization? The exhibitions "CHANGE NOW! - Ships change the world" and "INTO THE ICE - The MOSAiC expedition in pictures" invite visitors to a variety of encounters with the world of the oceans and the world of research.
Oceans cover more than two thirds of our planet. But: The largest ecosystem on earth is in danger. CHANGE NOW makes tangible how heated and exhausted the oceans are. Human overexploitation and climate change are taking their toll on the oceans. If the ocean gets out of balance, this also means danger for life on land. As a research museum, the DSM wants to draw attention to ocean and climate change as well as globalization processes, because the consequences are already being felt by everyone. Ships accelerate this change, but also help to stop it. Thanks to research shipping, scientists can reach the polar regions and remote areas overseas and collect important data that can be used to better understand climate change and global warming.
The tour of both shows is a reminder, but also holds great potential for surprises. On the occasion of the UN Decade of Marine Research for Sustainable Development (2021 to 2030), the DSM provides insights into the diversity of its research: ten theses show how ships continue to shape and change the world today. Shipping has influenced people's lives from time immemorial, serving in the past as a vehicle for exploring the world. Today, large quantities of goods are shipped to various countries on container ships. As globalization progresses, traffic on the oceans is becoming increasingly dense.
For the two exhibitions, which were funded by the Leibniz Research Museums Action Plan, the 2800 square meter extension building was completely redesigned.
Much of the work was carried out by the museum's own workshop, which also produced a science lettering more than five meters high. For sustainability reasons, elements from previous exhibitions could be reused in a different function. Many exhibits could be borrowed from cooperation partners such as the German Oceanographic Museum Stralsund or the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research in Kiel or Greenpeace, and the photo exhibition INTO THE ICE was created in cooperation with the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research.
The deliberate industrial backdrop in signal colors reinforces the raw theme of shipping and the gigantic dimensions that overtake people in ports. Between oversized racking systems, container elements and next to the monumental Science lettering, the play with perspective is exhausted.
At the DSM, around 40 colleagues were directly involved in the success of the exhibition - from the research and exhibition team to museum education, the workshop and IT: "I am very grateful to our entire team, but also to our cooperation partners, for their creative and committed work. Together, we have not only created an exhibition space on highly relevant topics, but also demonstrated the architectural potential of our extension building with its high ceilings and exciting visual axes," says Prof. Dr. Ruth Schilling, Executive Director of the DSM.
"I hope that these exhibitions will already whet the appetites of many museum guests for our new permanent exhibition, which we will open in 2024," says Schilling. "In any case, I look forward to a lively exchange with our guests. As a research museum, we see ourselves as a social forum and deliberately seek dialogue with all interested parties. Our research team is always asking new questions, even of old museum objects, and is happy to take up impulses from our visitors."
Access to the exhibitions
Both exhibitions can be visited from February 25 to July 31, 2022, each with a ticket booked in advance. The show "KARTEN WISSEN MEER - Globalisierung vom Wasser aus" can also be visited in the extension building until April 24, 2022. Since the extension building will soon need to be renovated, the visit will take place in a guided tour that will allow all guests to stay safely. Visitation dates are offered consistently on Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays, with daily tour dates during vacation weeks and on public holidays. On Saturdays and Sundays, themed tours with curators and experts from various fields are on the program.
If you are interested in seeing one of the exhibitions, you can book a time slot ticket in advance online at www.dsm.museum/ticket. Spontaneous visitors can purchase remaining tickets at the Kogge-Halle box office on the day of the guided tour or themed tour. The tickets cost six euro, reduced three euro.
Printable photo material for downloading can be found at www.dsm.museum/presse.
