Exhibition

Viktor Brim probes slag heaps and scans cinder blocks. By using these exploratory technical processes, he becomes more familiar with this material created and deposited by humans. The starting point for his investigations and, at the same time, the title for his work is Geontopower. The critique of pre-existing power structures lead to the questions: Who decides that a particular region becomes a mining landscape, who decides that stone should turn into ore and slag and to whom does it all belong?

At the machine monument in Hettstedt, Felicitas Fässler observed a mason bee building its nest. Over the course of several days, it cemented together grains of sand and dust particles in a corner of the relief on the memorial; a small hole gave it access to the interior of the nest. Inspired by the work of the small creature, Felicitas Fässler draws parallels between the insect's building activities and the work of the miners, under the working title Mörtelbiene (Mason Bees).

Aus Sicht des Archivs (From the Viewpoint of the Archive): Under this title, Falk Haberkorn and Sven Johne carry out research in the photography collections of municipal and district archives pertaining to the 1990s, including in Mansfeld Land and neighbouring regions. The items filed there do not allow – to put it cautiously – any complete picture to be deduced of the massive structural changes of this time. But it is interesting to note what subjects were chosen at the time as being worthwhile for the archive.

Reflecting on the accumulation of digital data and on copper as the raw material used in wiring leads to the private chamber of a fictitious user who is influenced by data, while producing new traces for valorisation. Under the title Welt als Draht (World as Wire) Juliane Henrich speculates on connections and correlations that are spread through the internet – from revolutionary ideas to inhuman conspiracy theories.

With Hühnerstall-Ensemble, Gregor Müller reconstructs a sophisticated architectural entity created by the former residents of the Werkleitz guest house in Hettstedt. Through models and drawings, he comes closer to their scarcity-driven inventiveness, technical skill and will to create.