“Elektron”, Emma Cadwallader-Guild Frankfurt, 1895
The Ohio-born sculptress Emma Cadwallader-Guild (1843 – 1911), who had been working in Germany since 1887, was one of the few women who were successful as artists at the end of the 19th century. Her statue of Electron is based on the seated Mercury of Herculaneum, a classical Greek sculpture by Lysippos (340-300 BC). The messenger of the gods, Mercury, who operates a Morse key becomes an allegory of telegraphy as electron.
“The eavesdropper”, unknown artist Beelitz, 1960s
This bronze sculpture stood in the courtyard of the Beelitz radio reception centre, which was closed in 1991. The “overseas reception station” in Beelitz was built in 1928 to receive radio telegrams from the USA, South America and Southeast Asia. Distributed over the several-kilometre site More than 30 large antennas with heights of up to 75 metres Beelitz was therefore considered to be the German “ear to the world” . The sculpture of the eavesdropper adopts the idea of Beelitz as an “ear to the world”. It was created for a new building in the 1960s. Unfortunately, the artist is not documented.
“Hermes”, Willy Meller Cologne, 1929
This figure of the messenger god Hermes stood above the entrance portal of the parcel post office built between 1927 and 1929 in Stolkgasse, a 67-metre-long four-storey building in the centre of Cologne. When the building was demolished in 1984/85 to make way for a new building, the statue was salvaged by Ulrich Kleine-Rüschkamp of Deutsche Post Bauen GmbH, who donated it to the museum in 2021.
Follow us on a journey through the past, present and future of communication: on the basis of groundbreaking inventions, curious events and unusual fates, the permanent exhibition spans 2500 square metres from the cuneiform tablet to the data glasses.
44 thematic islands demonstrate the development on the basis of four central phenomena:
(c) Anselm Buder/ MSPT
ACCELERATION – Our everyday life is characterised by stress and time pressure. We want to experience more, accomplish more and feel more in the time we have. This intensification speeds us up further. Digitization and mobility are contributing to and shaping the history of communication. Time has become the world’s scarcest resource – how do we deal with this development?
(c) Anselm Buder/ MSPT
NETWORKING – Global networking began with shipping, railroads and telegraphy. Today, we network with people, information and things – mobile and in real time. The boundary to the digital world has become blurred. Does increased networking bring us closer together?
CONTROL – Almost everything is available online and smart devices enable access anytime, anywhere. Digitization offers limitless opportunities, but in the process we leave our mark: our data is becoming a sought-after commodity for companies and states. How can we take advantage of this digital world without giving up control of our personal data?
(c) Anselm Buder/ MSPT
PARTICIPATION – Newspapers, radio and television keep us informed about world events. Through the Internet and smartphones, we can now become an active part of digital communities: we share our opinions, experiences and news. Theoretically – because not everyone can or wants to participate. Global togetherness or digital exclusion?
There is no set itinerary. You can surf through the permanent exhibition in a similar way to the WWW and create your own personal links. At many interactive stations you can learn in a playful way, leave us your opinion, check your user behaviour or take away tips. In the art area, highlights of the collection and temporary exhibitions related to the phenomena of communication history await you
Art Spaces
Highlights of the art collection and temporary exhibitions
Within the art section, we show highlights of the collection and temporary exhibitions related to the phenomena of the history of communication.
Permanent exhibition in the art spaces
The Museum Foundation’s art collection includes works of art from the 17th to the 21st century: Sculptures, objects and multiples through to the present day, photographic art and media art. These include outstanding works by artists such as Carl Spitzweg, Max Ernst, Franz Radziwill, Salvador Dalí and Joseph Beuys.
A small selection of the art collection is on display at the Museum of Communication in the Art Spaces area. At present, they include the well-known ‘Aphrodisiac Telephone’ by Salvador Dalí, often referred to as the lobster telephone, a piece by Joseph Beuys, a piece by Christo, and a sculpture by Markus Lüpertz, which recently entered the collection as a donation from Deutsche Post AG, as well as a piece by the Austrian artist Brigitte Kowanz.
Brigitte Kowanz, Information-Transformation/Transformation-Information, light installation, 2000. The Austrian artist’s diptych encodes its message via Morse code, and when viewed, the information is encoded yet again, as the fluorescent light is constantly changing. The words and sentences that Kowanz writes and in turn transforms into a mysterious glow in her work are also about light.
Art in the museum
A permanent feature of the art presentation in Frankfurt House is also the work ‘Tribute’ by Jean-Luc Cornec. Originally created at a time when cables and tangled cords were as much a part of everyday telephony as dials, intercoms and earpieces, the curly wool of the sheep is quite simply art for younger viewers.
The media sculpture ‘Pre-Bell-Man’ is considered a symbol of the Frankfurt museum. The delicate work was extensively restored in 2019 and since then welcomes visitors again. A comprehensive publication, which you can purchase in our museum shop, has been produced for the re-creation of the work.
History of the art collection
The Museum Foundation’s art collection was founded almost 150 years ago; it consisted for a long time primarily of works with a direct subject matter related to postal operations and their history: paintings depicting stagecoaches, postal stations or letter delivery. In the 1980s, the collection was enriched by carefully selected purchases of high-quality works. By the time of the new museum building in 1990, the museum had turned away from documentary collecting and the presentation of works for communication became more important. With the establishment of the Museum Foundation in 1995, the reorientation of the museums became the broader range of topics. Communication now became the determining factor for all collections as well as exhibitions.
Changing exhibitions in the Art Spaces.
Parallel to the permanent presentations, the museum shows artistic and media-cultural positions in the Art Spaces, in which the phenomena of the permanent exhibition – such as acceleration, participation, networking and control – are reflected.
New perspectives on communication in the 21st century
Will we have to buy privacy in the future? How will a child communicate in 30 years? How is the body used as an interface? In the Museum of Communication’s permanent exhibition, 21 personalities from business, science, civil society and politics present their perspectives on communication in the 21st century and the influence of digitalisation for discussion.
These experts will present their views on the possible trends of tomorrow’s communication in video statements and interviews.
How will a child communicate in 30 years?
Sound collage with answers from: Prof. Dr. Bernhard Pörsken, Thomas Arend, Peter Zoche, Yvonne Hochstetter, Dr. Barbara Hans and Prof. Dr. Regina Anmicht Quinn.
Are we losing control of our data in the digital world?
Answer by Yvonne Hoftstetter, lawyer and managing director of Teramark Technologies GmbH.
What distinguishes smart machines from conventional machines?
Answer by Prof. Sabina Jeschke, IT in Mechanical Engineering at RWTH Aachen University.
Will we have to buy privacy in the future?
Response from Prof. Dr. Thomas Schildhauer of the Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society.
Do we have enough resources for the digital future?
Response from Prof. Dr. Harald Welzer, Futurzwei. Foundation for Sustainability.
