Thingstätten

The Exhibition opens Sept 7th at Deutsches Haus NYU, New York 6-8 pm, and runs through Oct 27th. An exhibition of documentary photography, art and science in New York Between 1933 and 1936, so-called 'Thingstätte' (literally: thing sites) were erected as propagandistic open-air theaters and meeting places in early Nazi Germany. Four hundred Thingstätten were planned, and around sixty constructed. Many of these barely known sites can still be found scattered across Germany, Poland, and Russia – some forgotten, some still actively in use as open-air theaters. In the deeply researched photobook Thingstätten (Kerber, 2020) and interactive website, an interdisciplinary mix of international artists, scholars, and writers facilitates a critical examination of the unusual history of the “Thingstätte,” and how this forgotten problematic past continues to manifest explicitly and implicitly in our present moment. Thingstätte Heidelberg, 2014, and historic postcard of Thingstätte Borna, Nazi era. (Left: Felix Nürmberger, right, from the collection of Katharina Bosse) Many people have never heard of what is perhaps the most visible cultural investment of the Third Reich. The project received a special mention by the Jury of the European Heritage Award, for its innovative way of researching the problematic history with a network of artists, photographers and scientists. The project was initiated by artist and photographer Katharina Bosse from HSBI University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Germany, whose previous work has been featured in the New Yorker, GEO, National Geographic and the New York Times Magazine. More information, a map and research can be found at : www.thingstaetten.info Katharina Bosse (DEU) Rebecca Budde de Cancino (DEU) Doug Fitch (USA) Jan Merlin Friedrich (DEU) Jakob Ganslmeier (DEU) Bernhard Gelderblom (DEU) Andrea Grützner (DEU/USA) Rebecca Hackemann (USA) Konstantin Karchevskiy (RUS) Hendrik Lüders (DEU) Daniel Mirer (USA) Felix Nürmberger (DEU) Ralph Pache (DEU) Abhijit Pal (IND) Philipp Robien (DEU) Jewgeni Roppel (DEU) Simon Schubert (DEU) Kuno Seltmann (DEU) Erica Shires (USA) Gerwin Strobl (UK) Beata Wielgosik (POL) Thomas Wrede (DEU) Stefan Wunsch (DEU)