ZKM | Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie

Aby Warburg

Mnemosyne Bilderatlas

01 Sep - 13 Nov 2016

Historic photograph of panel nr. 37 of Aby Warburg's »Mnemosyne Atlas« / © Warburg Institute, London
Reconstruction of panel 48 (Summer / Fall 1929) with the originals from the Photographic Collection of the Warburg Institute, London
Reconstruction of panel 32 (Summer / Fall 1929) with the originals from the Photographic Collection of the Warburg Institute, London.
Linda Fregni Nagler, untitled., 2016, 170 × 140 cm / © Linda Fregni Naglerclose
Andy Hope 1930, no title, chalk on slate, 170 x 140 cm / © Andy Hope 1930, photo: 8. Salonclose
The routes of the "Bilderfahrzeuge" sketched on the "Wanderstrassen" of culture on a map that was prepared at the Warburg library (K.B.W.).
cheme of spatial arrangement of Warburg's panels in the exhibition at ZKM | Karlsruhe / © Forschungsgruppe Mnemosyne & 8. Salon
Sequence of the panels in the exhibition »Aby Warburg. Mnemosyne Picture Atlas«, ZKM | Karlsruhe, 2016 / © Forschungsgruppe Mnemosyne & 8. Salon
Exhibition view »Aby Warburg. Mnemosyne Bilderatlas« / © ZKM | Zentrum für Kunst und Medien, photo: ONUKclose
Exhibition view »Aby Warburg. Mnemosyne Bilderatlas« / © ZKM | Zentrum für Kunst und Medien, photo: ONUK
ABY WARBURG
Mnemosyne Bilderatlas
Reconstruction – Commentary – Revision
1 September – 13 November 2016

Curators: Roberto Ohrt and Axel Heil

Description
To mark the 150th birthday of the cultural scientist Aby Warburg (1866–1929), the ZKM is exhibiting a complete reconstruction of his Mnemosyne picture atlas in its original size. Warburg developed this comprehen­sive and unusual instrument in his last years. All 63 panels are presented for the first time with a detailed commentary, combining the findings from Warburg’s writings with an analysis of his visual language. Due to his sudden death, it was long assumed that the work was a fragment. Even at the end of the 20th century, after the panels were first published as a book, the »Mnemosyne Atlas« remained a legend. Warburg examined the »Afterlife of the Antiquity« with its foundation in European culture. In the open structure of his picture systems, he showed how images and gestures — that he called »Pathosformeln« [expressions of pathos] — were passed on across cultures and periods of time.

The atlas lists the »Wanderstrassen of culture« and follows the long voyages of images on their »vehicles«, called »Bilderfahrzeuge«: Calendars, carpets, graphics. As the first »media scientist«, he extended the art history of masterpieces to fashion, advertising and everyday culture. Pinning black and white photographic reproductions on black-strung boards, Warburg created constellations that made cross-epochal inferences visible.

In addition to Warburg’s Atlas, an artistic update of the instrument »Bildertafel« will be shown, 12 panels created specially for the exhibi­- tion by Linda Yasmine Fregni Nagler, Andy Hope 1930, Albert Oehlen, Tal R, Elfie Semotan, Sarah Lehnerer, Olaf Metzel, Christian Vind, Jannis Marwitz, Jochen Lempert, Matt Mullican, and Peter Weibel.

Artists and scientists

Andy Hope 1930, Linda Fregni-Nagler, Sarah Lehnerer, Jochen Lempert, Jannis Marwitz, Olaf Metzel, Matt Mullican, Albert Oehlen, Tal R, Elfie Semotan, Christian Vind, research group MNEMOSYNE (represented by Axel Heil, Roberto Ohrt, Christian Rothmaler, Philipp Schwalb and Regine Steenbock) and Peter Weibel.
 

Tags: Andy Hope 1930, Jochen Lempert, Olaf Metzel, Matt Mullican, Linda Fregni Nagler, Albert Oehlen, Elfie Semotan, Peter Weibel