Exhibition #GermanyDigital

Located in Bonn on the interim capital’s Museum Mile, the „Haus der Geschichte der Bundesrepublik Deutschland“ (dedicated to the history of the Federal Republic of Germany) is one of Germany’s most popular museums. To its umbrella organization, the Haus der Geschichte Foundation, also belongs the Forum of Contemporary History in Leipzig, where Garamantis now had the opportunity to contribute one of their multi-touch tables to the interactive exhibition #GermanyDigital.

The digital revolution has triggered a radical, all-encompassing, and irreversible change affecting every aspect of our lives – for better or worse. Apart from all the fascinating novel opportunities the digital world has to offer, its inhabitants also face the challenge of keeping control over their personal information and the risk of data privacy breaches. Opened in May 2022, the new exhibition #DeutschlandDigital takes a look on digital transformation in Germany as a historical process with international references and interrelations. In three separate thematic fields – work and economy, everyday life and privacy, and politics and society – visitors can explore the tremendous possibilities, but also the hazards of this transformation process.

Individual Chip Card Token

In keeping with the theme, visitors to the exhibition will be given a personal chip card at the entrance that will allow them access to the digital world. With it, they can, for example, program a robot, make payments in cryptocurrency, create their own fake news, take selfies and then edit them with filters, or try their hand at retro games like PacMan. Every interaction a visitor has with the digital features of the exhibition during their stay is stored as data on the chip of the smart card and is available for later analysis when they leave the exhibition.

For the chip cards’ final data evaluation, Garamantis conceived and designed a multi-touch scanner table that allows up to 4 people at the same time to scan their cards and have the information stored there analyzed. If desired, there they can also create their own “digitalization passport” complete with their photograph and certification of their digital skills. Users can share this passport digitally, but thanks to the table’s built-in printer, they can also take it home in an old-school, analog form. Thus, the visit to the exhibition turns into a sustainable experience.

Garamantis realized this multi-touch table in cooperation with construction experts from Rotes Pferd Designers & Engineers, using semi-transparent and LED backlit acrylate slabs that tie in perfectly with the exhibition’s overall design. Apart from its four integrated card readers, the table possesses a motion/person sensor as well as two printer units to generate the digitalization passports. Garamantis were also in charge of the UI/screen design of the table itself and of all other digital stations inside the exhibition, resulting in an integrated and homogenic design concept running throughout the exhibition.

Interactive exhibition in Leipzig and Bonn

The interactive exhibition was on display at the Zeitgeschichtliches Forum Leipzig from May to October 2022 and then moved to the Haus der Geschichte in Bonn. The Haus der Geschichte is one of the most visited German history museums. The exhibition was presented there from March 2023 to April 2024.