With »Fellow Travellers«, we open a multi-voiced and dynamic exhibition space at ZKM, where artists, scientists, communities, and citizens can collaborate and learn from each other. Together, we want to find new, concrete ways to shape our planetary coexistence. 

Human history bears witness to our ability to cooperate and achieve remarkable things. However, we have also succeeded in establishing economic and power structures that have drastically thrown the Earth out of balance today. It seems that we are on the brink of collapse, triggered by the consequences of rapid technological advancement. The problems in the areas of climate, economy, regional conflicts, cultural identity, migration flows, and resource scarcity must be urgently addressed. Artificial intelligence, quantum computers, biosciences, robotics, and technology also pose enormous challenges.

So far, we have not succeeded in realizing an alternative form of society that could restore balance to our world. However, even though large alternative utopias like communism have failed, most people share the ideals of a just society. These intellectual travel companions or „Fellow Travellers“, as they were called in the 20th century, still exist today. However, this type of community is no longer based on a political doctrine but on the goal of creating a livable culture and environment. All over the world, artists and activists use technological tools in their daily lives and at the local level to change the world around them. The geographical location plays less and less of a role in collective action. It should now be possible to build a growing network of these diverse projects that exchange, generate, and implement ideas beyond traditional power centers.

The art of modernity was based on the desire to change the world, but the influences of markets and museums have repeatedly reduced it to "art for art's sake." While socially and politically engaged art has often been critical and challenging, we should now address actual practical change.

The exhibition »Fellow Travellers« at ZKM aims to capture and continue this spirit. The artistic projects presented do not only convey ideas or highlight problems. They all strive to overcome the traditions of representation and take action by actively shaping their environment. In a time when we fear for the future, these projects and their stories give us hope and inspiration.  The exhibition is not designed as a static presentation but is also intended to operate outside the museum – as a laboratory where ideas and tools are exchanged and new projects can grow and be supplemented: a hive of tactics and techniques for changing the world.

The centerpiece of the exhibition is the »Useum«: a place that can be utilized by people to connect these ideas and projects and develop new solutions. A place where we can address the issues that affect us locally in exchange with other active communities around the globe. It is a place of joint creation and action.

Mon to Fri 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM; Sat to Sun 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM

With the exhibition »The Story That Never Ends. The Collection of the ZKM«, the ZKM | Karlsruhe provides a comprehensive insight into its own collection, which, with around 12,000 works, is among the largest and most significant collections of media art in the world. The exhibition tells not only of the intertwined stories of art and technology but also of the challenges that fast-paced technological media bring to museums worldwide.

The history of media art from the 1950s to the present

Electrification and digitalization have changed the world. This transformation has not only affected our daily lives but has also impacted artistic creation. 

Since the beginning of the 20th century, artists have been using these rapidly evolving technologies and constantly expanding the expressive possibilities of art: The spectrum ranges from video, light, and sound works to motor-driven kinetic objects, as well as computer-based interactive installations or works created with the help of artificial intelligence. 

With about 100 works, »The Story That Never Ends« traces these developmental lines of the apparatus arts and their openness to the categories of space, time, and movement as well as interaction and participation – from the 1950s to the present. A selection of important key works that represent significant moments and milestones of media art illustrates the diversity and impact of these technological developments. Marie-Jo Lafontaine's monumental video sculpture »Les larmes d’acier« (1987), which ironizes the complex conceptual constellations of "man, machine, power, and sexuality," as well as Bill Viola's video-sound installation »Stations« (1994), which unites central aspects of his artistic work along with fundamental themes of human existence, or Jeffrey Shaw's »Virtual Sculpture« (1981), representing early experiments in augmented reality, form a small selection of examples here. 

At the same time, the exhibition also makes the socio-political context in which the works were created comprehensible, allowing for deductions and connections to the pressing questions of our time: Feminist works by earlier (media art) pioneers, such as pezoldo (aka Friederike Pezold), Lynn Hershman Leeson, Kirsten Geisler, or Rebecca Horn, are just as noteworthy as works reflecting the impacts of mass media like television (Nam June Paik, Wolf Vostell), the connection between technology and the military, borders and surveillance, or violence in the digital space (Paul Garrin, Hanna Haaslahti, David Rokeby) or natural ecosystems (Justine Emard, Claudia González Godoy). Artists repeatedly question the possibilities and effects of new media, rethink and redesign them, thus bringing forth new social and cultural narratives that shape the discourse about our relationship with technology. 

We perceive art, as the exhibition title suggests, as a story that will never end as long as there are people. The fact that we do not know what form it will take in the future is something it shares with technology. Our knowledge of the past and present influences how we shape the future and value what is yet to come.

The restoration of media art

„The Story That Never Ends“ not only refers to artistic development but also to the challenges museums face when collecting media artworks: Technical devices are not made for eternity, data carriers deteriorate, software standards become obsolete very quickly, and media formats are no longer readable after a few years. This means that works must continuously be monitored and technically updated by conservators. What impact does this have on art and our cultural memory? What skills do we need to develop to not only have a future but also a past?

The ZKM has an internationally recognized expertise in the conservation and restoration of media art. However, since these conservation and restoration activities mostly happen behind the scenes, »The Story That Never Ends« takes a radical step: The decision about which key works from the collection are shown in the exhibition has been entrusted to the conservators of the ZKM. In doing so, they bring hidden treasures to light that have, due to elaborate preservation measures, often not been publicly visible for decades. Since the works themselves do not necessarily reveal the complexity of their technology and the challenges of their preservation, the exhibition also provides an introduction to the history of technology and conservation strategies for this type of works.

The view from the past into the future

»The Story That Never Ends« thus not only tells the fascinating story of media art through the unique collection of the ZKM. It also highlights the fragility of our electrified and digitalized civilization. The exhibition allows for an in-depth insight into the art and technology history of the 20th and 21st centuries and shows how history sharpens the view of the present and stimulates the imagination of possible futures.

Wed to Fri: 10 am to 6 pm
Sat, Sun: 11 am to 6 pm