The current exhibition “Fixing Futures” at the Museum Giersch of Goethe University invites visitors to form their own view of tomorrow’s world. As part of the museum’s realignment, Goethe University scholars worked with artists to co-create the exhibition addressing the major topics of climate change and global crises.
It is a word rarely encountered in its plural form: at “Fixing Futures”, futures are explicitly conceived in the plural. This is a central aspect of the exhibition, as curator Laura Domes emphasizes: “There are already numerous exhibitions exploring various futurisms. What we aim to offer is something more personal – we want visitors to leave with their own image, their own impression.” That’s a key part of the message: this exhibition doesn’t proclaim what the future will look like; instead, it provides entry points into historical and contemporary perspectives. What might the future look like? What assumptions underlie the scenarios and forecasts? Which discourses are inscribed within them? None of it is set in stone. And yet, the scientific and artistic frameworks are naturally shaped by biodiversity loss, resource scarcity, and climate change.
Scientific Advisory Board
While Museum Giersch and Goethe University Frankfurt have collaborated in past projects – for example, the 2014 anniversary exhibition “Ich sehe wunderbare Dinge” [I see wonderful things] – this cooperation has now become a permanent fixture under the museum’s new director Ina Neddermeyer. “Fixing Futures” was closely supported and advised by sociologists Dr. Julia Schubert and Dr. Steven Gonzalez Monserrate. In total, 10 researchers from a variety of disciplines were involved.
The museum’s wood-paneled ground floor has also been integrated into the exhibition: a small library composed of items from both the museum and the university library invites visitors to read and linger. In the adjacent room, visitors can try out a retro-style computer game inspired by the aesthetics of the 1980s: “Terra Nova”, created by Canadian game developer Maize Longboat, presents a clash of two worlds: humans who left Earth due to climate change return from space to find others who have adapted to the harsh conditions. This popular medium encourages players to bring colonial and indigenous worldviews into dialogue.
On the upper floors, visitors are invited to engage in virtual dialogue with Goethe University researchers, presented in life-sized video installations at eye level. Legal scholar Prof. Christoph Burchard, education researcher Prof. Juliane Engel, and climate scientist Prof. Nico Wunderling – all members of the C3S research group founded in 2024 – discuss their fields and provide key contexts for the artworks on display. Curator Laura Domes’ favorite pieces is “Solar Protocol”, on view on the first floor. Artists Tega Brain, Alex Nathanson, and Benedetta Piantella have established a global network of solar-powered servers in collaboration with volunteers. The project’s website runs on whichever server currently receives the most solar energy. “The idea is simple yet powerful,” explains Domes. “The internet, especially data storage, consumes enormous amounts of energy. This unique art project raises awareness while also suggesting an energy-efficient alternative.”
Audience Participation
“As a museum, we don’t just see ourselves as a gateway to research, but also as a gateway to the city,” says Ina Neddermeyer. This approach is reflected in the exhibition signage, which is also provided in plain language to ensure accessibility. “Language,” she adds, “should never be a barrier to engaging with the worlds of the future.” In general, the exhibition aims to foster not just a dialogue between science and art, but also active visitor participation. Throughout the now brighter, airier museum – newly open to views of Frankfurt’s surrounding high-rises – guests are invited to contribute their ideas, which may even find their way into new artworks.
This participatory approach is exemplified in “Iwapo” by Kenyan artist Jordan Rita Seruya Awori, who lives and works in Frankfurt. Awori began by asking what her hometown Nairobi might have looked like without colonization. Using visual AI, she generated images that offer alternate histories – including for German cities. Visitors’ suggestions inspired additional images. “Her AI-generated works also reveal the racist biases of the technology,” explains Domes. “For example, in an Africa-colonized Frankfurt, barren lots and rusty cars dominate the scene. It reflects what the researchers involved in the exhibition also emphasize in their work: certain futures require critical reflection on their political preconditions – a concern that is central to Awori’s work.”
Some works in “Fixing Futures” present fascinating and disturbing visions. Artist Maximilian Prüfer documents and reenacts biodiversity loss in a region of China where, due to overpopulation and pesticide use, no pollinating insects remain. As a result, farmers must pollinate trees by hand. Prüfer has cast a single pear – painstakingly pollinated this way – in bronze.
Another highlight is “Metakosmia” by Nina Fischer & Maroan el Sani, which revisits an ambitious yet failed geoengineering experiment: the construction of “Biosphere 2”, a giant greenhouse in the 1990s designed to simulate self-sustaining life in a closed system. The project failed, not least due to rising CO₂ levels. Today, the University of Arizona uses the facility to conduct experiments on, for example, rainforest resilience. “The idea of an artificial habitat hasn’t lost its allure,” says Domes. “Especially in an era of planned Mars missions, it feels newly relevant.”
A Museum Committed to Sustainability
Climb to the top floor of Museum Giersch, and you’ll notice it’s warmer – unusual for a museum, where climate control is typically strict. But this is intentional, says director Ina Neddermeyer: “We haven’t done away with heating and air conditioning altogether, but we’ve widened the tolerance range. Heating starts only below 18°C and cooling only above 25°C. Artworks, especially photographs, are sensitive, of course. But if we want to think seriously about the future, we also need to rethink how museums operate. After all, the cultural sector is among the biggest carbon emitters.” In line with this thinking, old pedestals from previous exhibitions have been repurposed into new furniture. Even in the small details, the museum leads by example: exhibition texts are printed on recycled paper and affixed with nails, so that all materials can later be separated and recycled. This approach avoids the use of common but non-recyclable vinyl lettering.
There’s a great deal to discover, see, and interact with in “Fixing Futures”. A single visit won’t be enough to take in all the perspectives and insights. “And that’s absolutely fine,” says Laura Domes. “We encourage guests to create their own program. If they decide to come back a second time – even better.”
The exhibition “Fixing Futures” is made possible by the German Federal Cultural Foundation (Kulturstiftung des Bundes) and the Hessian Cultural Foundation (Hessische Kulturstiftung).
It runs until August 31, 2025, at the Museum Giersch of Goethe University on Schaumainkai.
