Giessen as a Place of Refuge for International Asylum Seekers

This exhibition project at the Notaufnahmelager Gießen learning and remembrance center focused on the multi-perspective processing of migration stories. The place of learning and remembrance is located in the very building complex that housed a central reception center for displaced persons, refugees and migrants from the GDR as well as asylum seekers from all over the world from 1946 to 2018.

My task included academic research and the conceptual design of central exhibition modules and media stations. The aim was to make complex global contexts, from historical experiences of flight to current debates about Europe’s external borders, visually and narratively tangible.

An essential part of my work was the processing of the following focal points, which were presented on individual walls:

• Wall 1: World map on the countries of origin and escape routes of refugees who applied for asylum in the Hessian initial reception center.
• Wall 2: Border experiences of refugees on their way to Europe and the situation at Europe’s external borders.
• Wall 3: What factors will determine the reasons for flight and flight movements in the future? (e.g. climate change)
• Wall 4: Conception of a temporary exhibition on a contemporary witness with an interview and selected memorabilia.

Scientific development and mediation

When designing the content of the themed walls, I paid particular attention to a synergetic combination of image and text sources: From the data visualization on the world map to the preparation of the complex legal and ecological backgrounds of future causes of flight such as climate change. By writing concise, target group-oriented exhibition texts and strategically planning the arrangement of the exhibits, I created a narrative space that not only provides information about past movements, but also encourages critical reflection on current global challenges.