Worlds – Changes – Perspectives

Ausstellungsansicht, "wie es ist" im Volkskundemuseum,

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Location

Folk Life Museum

Curators

Birgit Johler

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Module overview

About the exhibition

The exhibition undertakes a survey of the current social situation and cultural forms of expression, linking these how a Central European region sees and perceives itself, one which also enjoys especial popularity as a tourist destination.

The title Worlds - Changes - Perspectives marks the starting point for the Folk Life Museum’s new exhibition. It undertakes a survey of the current social situation and cultural forms of expression, linking these how a Central European region sees and perceives itself, one which also enjoys especial popularity as a tourist destination.

The focus shifts to those people living in Styria, staying here or connected with the region in some way or other. What affects people? What do they identify with, what are they concerned about, how do they shape their lives, environment and society? How do they relate to developments that influence their usual way of life?

The exhibition is currently divided into three large exhibition modules. Each module functions as an exhibition within the exhibition and can be visited independently of the other areas. Together, they provide a multi-layered and multi-voiced perspective on what it is like. The exhibition also focuses on the building, its history, the historical rooms and its relations to the outside world.

Exhibition design
Benedikt Haid, Pretterhofer Arquitectos – Heidi Pretterhofer, MVD Austria with Michael Rieper

Further information
With cooperation and contributions from Johannes Maier, Christiane Rainer (Folk Life Museum), the Visitor Services section of the UMJ, and Agnieszka Czejkowska with the team of the Department of Education and School Research at the University of Graz, Barbara Frischling, Nicole-Melanie Goll and Georg Hoffmann, Heimo Halbrainer, Eva Kreissl, Werner Michael Schwarz, Andreas Vormaier, Hans-Peter Weingand

Exhibition module

We're doing well!?

Rising consumption and progress, growing quality of life, education and mobility reflect a broad understanding of Western prosperity and are part of the self-image of many residents of Styria. What can these ‘we are doing well’ factors tell us about the country in concrete terms?

This module examines current ‘Styrian’ self-images. Visitors are invited to explore these ideas through culinary highlights, the education sector, a popular tourist region, and the topic of mobility and individual mobility experiences.

Modelle einer aus rund 300 Apfelsorten bestehenden Modellsammlung, Firma Dürfeld, Deutschland, 1880er-Jahre

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Exhibition module

My world, your world, and how do we come together?

What defines me or us and how we want to live with others are questions that concern us as individuals in our relationships and also as part of a group. Especially in times of change, the question of what we have in common becomes increasingly important. Engaging with one's own environment is part of a never-ending process of development.

This module deals with forms and practices of exchange as an essential element of self-development and coexistence. The acceptance of otherness and ambivalence are fundamental components of modern societies. Visitors encounter young people who reflect on their digital biographies. They meet people who had to leave their place of origin. In the search for social solutions for fair coexistence, actors who show responsibility for society and its history have their say. Visitors can exchange ideas in the discussion room.

Diskussion und Austausch standen im Mittelpunkt der gemeinsamen Arbeit

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The Power of (Un-)Certainty

Time and again, societies pass through uncertain and risky times. Yet uncertainty is also a fundamental, daily experience from which people develop concepts and practices relating to safety, prevention and precaution. Objects of ‘superstition’ bear witness to this for earlier times, while contemporary religious practices make it clear that utility objects are still important in people’s everyday lives. Spanning an arc in time, the new exhibition, part of Worlds, Change, Perspectives, both brings this theme up to the present and links up the individual micro and macro levels.

Questions include: how can safety be guaranteed and risk limited? What makes people feel uncertain? And what is safety? How certain is our own personal future, that of humankind and our planet? Can uncertainties also be productive in the sense of ‘opposing the power of habit’?