Superstition – Super-knowledge

A million people trust their daily horoscope in the newspaper. Two thirds of all youths need some form of lucky charm to be able to write an exam. 85 percent of American high-rise buildings have no 13th floor.

Die Ausstellung stellt die Objekte der historischen Sammlung in ihren ursprünglichen Kontext, skizziert so ihre superstitiöse Syntax und geht der Fortschreibung magischen Denkens bis in die Gegenwart nach.

The Folk Life Museum owns an extensive collection of objects from the 18th to the early 20th century, which are described as superstitious, folkloristic or simply as magical cures.

The exhibition sets the objects from the historical collection in their original context, thus laying out their superstitious syntax as it were, and tracing the continued story of magical thinking into the present day. Where can such continuities be traced? Which historical events have led to ruptures and how does the modern syncretic building block system of interpretations of the world function in the search for a world that is not random?