Special Exhibitions Archive 2009
Two Days in Berlin – Images of a City
November 11, 2009 – March 14, 2010
The Museum THE KENNEDYS is participating in Berlin's special project this year called »20 Years Fall of the Wall.« Our contribution includes a special exhibition entitled »Two Days in Berlin – Images of a City.« The 50 exhibited pieces will complement the museum's permanent Kennedy exhibition. Two key moments of post-war Berlin will be presented side-by-side for this exhibition. One of these is John F. Kennedy's visit to Berlin, the other is the day the Berlin Wall came crumbling down.
The exhibition will display photographs from renowned photographers Bruno Barbey, Thomas Billhardt, Leonard Freed, Thomas Hoepker, and Will Mc Bride. They succeeded in capturing the effusive emotions of both days and in placing them in the context of the actual events. As an extension of these moments, the museum will show numerous snapshots of the times before and after both major events. Through precisely this focus the exhibition captures the living conditions of people on both sides of the wall and documents daily life in the divided city.
With the special exhibition »Two Days in Berlin,« the Museum THE KENNEDYS seeks to make its expertise about Kennedy's visit accessible, in order to present the fall of the wall in a different light, as a monumental but nonetheless peaceful event. Within the general historical context of the cold war, both days have now entered the collective conscience of people around the world. The comparison of both days allows for exciting parallels to emerge and shows, in a different way, the development of Berlin between both memorable days.
President Barack Obama – On the Tracks of the Kennedys?
May 1 – November 9, 2009
The Museum THE KENNEDYS is devoting a special exhibition to the 44th American president, Barack Obama. The temporary show will complement the permanent exhibition of the museum at the Brandenburger Tor with about 40 pieces, many of which are photographs by the official White House photographer, Pete Souza.
Souza already shadowed Barack Obama during his mandate as senator. His photographs succeed in capturing the dynamism and charisma of this American bearer of hope. The photographs that show, for example, Obama in a circle of followers or with his family, and often point to symbols of the American presidency that were established and diversified by former incumbents.
Due to the highly discussed parallels and connections between Obama and various Kennedy family members, the Museum THE KENNEDYS offers the perfect setting to contemplate to what extent these comparisons are justified. As spokesmen for change, Kennedy and Obama symbolize the dynamism and progress of a new generation. Both politicians succeeded in convincingly embodying optimism, new perspectives, and the spirit of a new beginning in their campaigns, thus electrifying people and rallying them to their cause. This motivation was particularly transmitted by expressing feelings of closeness and trust. These feelings were translated through photography. Both politicians seem familiar because photographs show them not only in their political, but also in their private everyday lives.
In light of the numerous parallels made in the past few months between the 35th and 44th president of the United States, this exhibition will provide the opportunity to discover for oneself, in the heart of Berlin, what these comparisons are all about.