Past exhibition

01.03.2019–25.08.2019

My Club

In Germany, clubs are pillars of civic engagement. They sustain networks, get people involved, give the state and society new ideas. There are over 600,000 officially registered clubs in Germany. Almost half of all Germans are currently members of at least one of them. The exhibition "My Club" deals with this phenomenon - from shooting societies to allotments, to development agencies and aid organizations.

The exhibition shows the club as a place of conviviality and community, tradition and homeland, bringing together people from different social backgrounds. Clubs are as diverse as numerous. Rifle clubs see themselves as keepers of traditions and native customs. In the GDR, only a few associations, such as allotment gardeners, can lead a life independent of the state. The "Neue Bachgesellschaft (NewBach Society)" keeps the ties between East and West Germany and they enable people from both parts of Germany to meet at their events.

In the recent past, project-related funding and friends’ associations are booming. They represent citizen and consumer interests and play a vital role in society alongside the state and business. Football clubs give fans a sense of identity and togetherness; they become a lifestyle for emotionally attached fans.

The kick-off ball from the football game RB Leipzig against Schalke 04 in December 2016, the bust of Johann Sebastian Bach, which serves as a template for the logo of the New Bach Society or the model of a typical GDR garden allotment are only three of 300 meaningful objects in the temporary exhibition. These objects point out the importance of clubs for their members, the historical development of the club landscape in East and West Germany and the importance of clubs for our society.

Insights
A woman looks at carnival objects
Medals in the exhibition
A visitor photographs objects of the football club Schalke 04
Visitors next to a wall with pictures
Visitors with headphones in the exhibition
Poster for the exhibition
My Club - Your Pictures

On our Social Media channels we asked you to submit photos of your clubs. You can find some pictures in our exhibition and on our German website.

To My Club - Your pictures! (German)