Press Release 04I03I2021

HfG Ulm: Exhibition Fever 01.05.-19.09.2021

The exhibition HfG Ulm: Exhibition Fever by the HfG-Archiv Ulm presents, for the first time, an opportunity to explore the exhibition activities of the Ulm School of Design (HfG), which contributed significantly to its international reputation.

Without doubt, one of the most influential schools of design in the twentieth century, the HfG Ulm was a pathfinder for our contemporary understanding of design as an interdisciplinary practice. With hitherto unpublished materials, such as architectural models, professional trade journals, and historical photographs, HfG Ulm: Exhibition Fever illustrates how the school circulated their design positions and concepts around the world.

Exhibitions were so in vogue in the 1950s and 60s that experts spoke of an “exhibition fever”. Design was the topic of numerous exhibitions and fairs, and the HfG Ulm played a prominent role in these developments: During its 15 years of existence, the school organized an array of exhibitions to increase the visibility of its design position and to convey its elaborate teaching methods. Besides these self-portraits, members of the school conceived exhibition systems for external commissions, such as Braun and BASF as well as a contribution for the German Pavilion at the 1967 World Exhibition. Exhibitions were always a vital experimental terrain for the school’s design innovations. The dynamic atmosphere of these decades becomes tangible for visitors to HfG Ulm: Exhibition Fever through presentations in diverse media. The focuses range from the impact of the Ulm School of Design and its global reception to the search for an ideal exhibition design.

The showcase HfG Ulm: Exhibition Fever forms the conclusion of the four-year research project “The Visibility of the Ulm School of Design: From Ulm to Montréal”, which was supported by the Volkswagen Foundation and organized by Folkwang University of the Arts, Essen, the HfG- Archiv Ulm, and Pforzheim University.

The exhibition is accompanied by a comprehensive programme of events, a project publication and a website.

Press Conference I Friday I 30 April 2021 I 10 am I HfG Archiv I 11 am I ZOOM With Prof. Dr. Thomas Hensel (Hochschule Pforzheim), Dr. Martin Mäntele (HfG-Archiv) as project manager and the curatorial team director Viktoria Heinrich M.A..

Additionally via ZOOM: Prof. Dr. Steffen Siegel (Folkwang Universität der Künste Essen) as project manager and the curatorial team with Christopher Haaf and Linus Rapp.

We would be happy to welcome you personally to the press briefing at the HfG-Archiv on Friday, 30 April 2021 at 10 a.m., in compliance with the Corona pandemic protection measures. For our planning purposes, we would be very pleased to receive feedback on your attendance. We would also be happy to send you the relevant ZOOM link for digital participation in advance on request to [email protected].

Pic.: Information carrier in the German pavilion at expo 67, photographer: Herbert Ohl, 1967, (c) HfG-Archiv Ulm I Inge Aicher Scholl, Walter Gropius and Max Bill on the opening day of the HfG photographer k.A., 02.10.1955, (c) HfG-Archiv Ulm I HfG travelling exhibition in the Ulm Kornhaus, photographer Roland Fürst, 1963, (c) HfG-Archiv-Ulm I Information carrier in the German pavilion at expo 67, photographer Michael Klar, presumably 1967, (c)-HfG-Archiv Ulm

: Further information on the exhibition is also available at www.hfg-archiv.museumulm.de

HfG-Archiv I Museum Ulm Opening Hours Am Hochsträss 8 I 89081 Ulm Thu - Fri : 11am - 5 pm T : +49(0)731-161-4312 Sat - Sun : 11am - 6 pm [email protected] www.hfg-archiv.museumulm.de