Deutsches Museum Nürnberg
The Deutsches Museum Nürnberg commissioned various installations for their inaugural future themed exhibition. The exhibition is divided in five exhibition areas - »Work and Daily Life«, »Body and Mind«, »City System«, »Earth System« and »Space and Time« - on three levels. Giving visitors the opportunity to explore the challenges and opportunities of the future through interactive media and displays is the main focus. The aim is to promote forward-thinking and critical engagement with issues related to technology, society and the environment. A wide range of topics is getting covered by the exhibition, from renewable energy and sustainable living to digitalization and artificial intelligence.
I had the honor to work on three interactive installations, which are part of the exhibition - Mediastorm, Future Vehicles and Dished Up!.
Mediastorm
While exploring the exhibition area »Work and Daily Life« visitors will stumble upon a massive metal tornado. The Mediastorm is an interactive installation that explores the relationship between social media and society. The colossus invites visitors to trigger different scenarios and consider how social media impacts our perceptions, opinions and behavior.
By interacting with the terminal touch screen, visitors take a picture of themselves and post their selfie on fictitious social media. On twelve screens, the full impact of the chosen scenario unleashes in a sequence of reacting posts going upwards along the tornado shaped structure. Additionally, LED panels mounted to the outside of the structure show catchphrases discussing the role of social media and teasing the overall theme of the installation.
Visitors can explore topics such as fake news, media manipulation and the role of social media in shaping public opinion. The installation encourages critical thinking about the information we consume and provides a platform for reflection on the impact of media on our lives and our environment.
Future Vehicles
Future Vehicles is part of the exhibition area »City System« and offers visitors a fun opportunity to explore their imagination and creativity by drawing their vision of the next future vehicle onto paper. Once visitors have completed their drawing, it is scanned and cut out, before being projected onto a large wall where it becomes part of a bustling paper city, along with the drawings of other visitors.
Visitors can give their vehicles the ability to fly, drive or bounce, creating an interactive experience that engages visitors of all ages. The exhibit encourages visitors to think about what the future of transportation might look like and to consider the different factors that could influence the design of vehicles in the years to come.
Dished Up!
Upon entering the second floor of the museum, Dished Up! welcomes visitors to the exhibition area »Earth System«. Dished Up! explores the fascinating world of food trends and its potential to feed our future society. Visitors are invited to explore 16 different samples of food props encased in petri dishes, each one representing a unique culinary specialty from around the world, a futuristic concept from science fiction movies or a potential solution to future food challenges.
Using six touchscreens, visitors can place the props on the screen tables and watch as plates of the corresponding food are magically dished up before their eyes. By turning the petri dishes, visitors can access detailed information about each food sample, including its origin, nutritional content and future potential. Tokens within the petri dishes ensure that the touch screens recognize the samples and dish up the food correctly.
Throughout the exhibit, visitors can explore different types of interesting future food and guess which ones actually exist and could help protect our society from food shortages or overpopulation.
