Introduction to the topic

The stories of the contemporary witnesses are told at three stations:

In the "prologue", visitors are introduced to the exhibition topic with emotional visual material and short core statements, and come into contact with the contemporary witnesses for the first time. Postcards are used to introduce them - with portrait photos and quotes, as well as a short biography. As a connecting element between all three stations, the postcards are taken along and can be "medially unfolded" at the next point.

The installation is reminiscent of elements of the Berlin Wall and thus also visually creates a bridge to the historical background.

In joint dialogue

At Station 2, "Dialogue", visitors can enter into an exchange with the protagonists via the postcard, which is inserted into a corresponding slot.

Controlled by a separate control panel, the visitor can watch clips from various interviews on a large monitor with surround sound. The control panel and monitor interact in a visually coordinated interplay of video material and background information.

With its large format and acoustic presence, the station is particularly suitable for use by groups or school classes and also has an attention-grabbing long-distance effect in the room.

Sharing knowledge

Station 3, "Deepening" enables visitors to engage even more intensively with the contemporary witnesses, their stories and the historical background.

At a media table with headphones and seating, full-length interviews are activated via postcards. From there, visitors can navigate to further interviews and information via a user interface in order to approach the topic from different perspectives.

A museum at home

Even after a visit to the museum, the digital content can be called up and experienced again. This can be done via codes on the postcards, which can be scanned with a mobile device and lead to the website zeitzeugen-portal.de.

Additional functions

The systems were equipped with tracking functionality that allows the House of History to take an analytical look at usage statistics of the stations.

The installation was on display at the Haus der Geschichte in Bonn from June to November 2022 and will be shown at the Museum in der Kulturbrauerei in Berlin from March 2023.