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Wolf Biermann is one of Germany's best-known songwriters - East and West. His expulsion from the GDR in 1976 was a political caesura in post-war German history and an admission of great helplessness on the part of the SED party leadership. Many of his songs, ballads and poems have outlived the current occasion of their creation. „Warte nicht auf bessre Zeiten“, „Ermutigung“ or „Ballade vom preußischen Ikarus“ have become classics.




From 7 July 2023 to 02 June 2024, the German Historical Museum will show the new exhibition "Wolf Biermann. A Lyricist and Songwriter in Germany", curated by Monika Boll.


The show focuses on the life and work of the lyricist and singer-songwriter against the backdrop of the special position that culture held in the GDR and his interweaving with the (cultural) political events of contemporary German history. The exhibition leads chronologically through Biermann's life: born in Hamburg in 1936, he grew up in a communist-influenced working-class milieu. In 1953, Biermann moved to the GDR out of political conviction while still at school.


He celebrated his first publications and successes as assistant director at the Berliner Ensemble and as director of the workers' and students' theatre b.a.t., as well as the controversial appearance at the legendary poetry evening at the Akademie der Künste. But in the mid-1960s he was banned from performing and publishing, after a period of wrestling with the party and the party around him. This was followed just eleven years later by his expulsion from the GDR, which was enforced despite public protests from the art scene.


For Biermann's artistic and political self-image, the forced change from East to West meant a challenge:


How did a songwriter redefine himself who, for all his criticism of the SED leadership, saw himself as a communist and an exile?


His controversial songs, ballads and poems are contemporary testimonies, but they do not lose their relevance. The exhibition places his work not only historically, but also in the context of contemporary art criticism.

Interactive median stations, a children's track and an accompanying booklet are aimed specifically at younger museum visitors aged 8 to 12 and encourage them to discover Wolf Biermann's life and German-German history.

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Accessibility

The German Historical Museum wants to be a museum for all: barrier-free and inclusive.

Dates
March 2024
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