Berlin Medical History Museum Explores the Horizontal: The Sickbed as a Site of Activity
The Berlin Medical History Museum presents 'Horizontal – Das Krankenbett und die Welt im Liegen', a special exhibition curated by Nora Heidorn and director Monika Ankele. Running until an unspecified date, the show assembles historical objects, archival materials, and artworks to challenge the notion that lying down is passive. It features works by artists including Paul Waak, Poppy Nash, Benoît Pièron, Gritli Faulhaber, and Rosy Lilienfeld, alongside historical pieces like Carl Sandhaas's 1839 lithographs for a medical textbook and a 1783 etching by Daniel Chodowiecki. The exhibition examines the sickbed as an ambivalent space of care, violence, and creativity, referencing philosophers Georges Canguilhem and Roland Barthes, and writers Thomas Mann and Virginia Woolf. Highlights include Nash's textile 'The Art of Dying' (2019), Pièron's installation 'Le Lit' (2011), and Faulhaber's 'Militant Joy' series created while bedridden with ME/CFS. A facsimile of Rosy Lilienfeld's ink drawings, made for her lost novella 'Das Reich ohne Tag', is also on view. The show explores how the horizontal body interacts with its environment, from antique Greek incubation beds to modern hospital equipment.
Key facts
- Exhibition titled 'Horizontal – Das Krankenbett und die Welt im Liegen' at Berlin Medical History Museum
- Curated by Nora Heidorn and Monika Ankele
- Features historical objects, archival materials, and artworks
- Includes works by Paul Waak, Poppy Nash, Benoît Pièron, Gritli Faulhaber, and Rosy Lilienfeld
- Carl Sandhaas's 1839 lithographs for a medical textbook on Krankenphysiognomik are displayed
- Poppy Nash's 'The Art of Dying' (2019) uses medieval woodcut motifs on hand-printed bedding
- Benoît Pièron's 'Le Lit' (2011) is a colorful bed installation with a silk canopy and gutter
- Gritli Faulhaber's 'Militant Joy' series (since 2019) consists of small abstract paintings made in bed
- Rosy Lilienfeld's ink drawings from the 1920s are shown as facsimiles; she was murdered in Auschwitz in 1942
- The exhibition references philosophers Georges Canguilhem and Roland Barthes, and writers Thomas Mann and Virginia Woolf
- Historical objects include a Davoser Liegestuhl from the 1930s and a plaster cast of a 4th-century BC Greek relief
- Archival photographs show Liegekuren around 1900 and a restraint bed from Weinsberg psychiatric hospital
Entities
Artists
- Paul Waak
- Carl Sandhaas
- Poppy Nash
- Benoît Pièron
- Gritli Faulhaber
- Rosy Lilienfeld
- Tracey Emin
- Yoko Ono
- Meret Oppenheim
- Frida Kahlo
- Daniel Chodowiecki
Institutions
- Berliner Medizinhistorisches Museum
- Aktionshaus Berlin
- Rijksmuseum
- Heilanstalt Weinsberg
Locations
- Berlin
- Germany
- Frankfurt
- Auschwitz
- Davos
- Switzerland
- Greece