debatorial®

Amidst the pandemic: How did society’s perspective on the state change? How does it perceive governmental action and the options at hand? Are the borders that were established or suddenly closed during the pandemic now permanently anchored in our thinking? What are the long-term consequences of insecurity, conspiracy theories and doubts about the (constitutional) state?

This is the discourse the Zeppelin Museum invites the public to engage in with political scientists, sociologists, philosophers, artists and activists on its new platform debatorial®: A platform for debate that breaks away from the traditional museum framework and rewrites the role of the museum as a place of education, research and democratic participation. It is the prologue to the exhibition “Beyond States. The Boundaries of Statehood”.

The subject of the exhibition, which was developed before Corona, is highly relevant. Its different chapters—state and borders, state and nation, state sovereignty and state failure, state power and state symbols as well as citizenship and statelessness—act like a magnifying glass for current conflicts.

The exhibition was originally scheduled to open in May 2020. The Corona pandemic has impacted the topics of the exhibition in manifold ways. Therefore, the Zeppelin Museum decided to expand the exhibition to include a discursive process which ultimately led to a new digital format; the debatorial®. Initially, the debatorial® will examine the social, economic and political consequences of the pandemic on an interdisciplinary and participatory level. These discourses will be implemented in the physical exhibition, which will open in January 2021. After the end of the exhibition, the museum will attempt a (preliminary) conclusion. Thus, the format of an exhibition is challenged: away from a pure presentation of results towards a transparent process with three phases: debatorial®—exhibition—epilogue.

The debatorial® will be continuously expanded by the museum and the public with texts, videos, images, podcasts, talks, animated maps and articles. With this innovative format, the museum aims to address a broad public and, by involving them, makes a necessary contribution to institutional change. Furthermore, everyone interested is invited to express their views. To encourage this exchange, numerous participatory formats, such as surveys or the option to leave comments, can be found on the platform.

Artists, scientists and journalists already confirmed for the debatorial®:
Lea Beckmann (Gesellschaft für Freiheitsrechte), Dr. Rafael Behr (academy of the police Hamburg), Dr. Daniel Dettling (Zukunftsinstitut Berlin), Miro Dittrich (platform “de:hate”, Amadeu Antonio Foundation), Prof. Dr. Wilhelm Heitmeyer (sociologist), Susanne Koelbl (correspondent of Der Spiegel), Prof. Dr. Herfried Münkler (political scientist) and Mattea Weihe (sea-watch). Furthermore, artists like  James Bridle, Jacob Hurwitz-Goodman & Daniel Keller, Henrike Naumann and the Peng! Kollektiv. 

Curators:
Dr. Claudia Emmert (director), Jürgen Bleiber (head of Zeppelin department), Ina Neddermeyer (head of art department), Dominik Busch (head of the public discourse and mediation department), Felix Banzhaf (research associate Zeppelin department), Caroline Wind (research associate art department).

Director:
Dr. Claudia Emmert

Press contact: 
Simone Lipski
T +497541 3801-21
lipski [​at​] zeppelin-museum.de

Press material