Aby Warburg's Bilderatlas Mnemosyne Reconstructed at Berlin's Haus der Kulturen der Welt
Aby Warburg's incomplete Bilderatlas Mnemosyne, which commenced in 1924, was reassembled for display at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin from September 4 to November 1, 2020. This exhibition comprises 63 panels showcasing 971 images, merging works from Antiquity through the Renaissance with various newspaper clippings and additional materials. Warburg, who passed away in 1929, intended to examine civilization and the pathways of cultural exchange. The panels illustrate temporal connections, notably in Panel 72 and Panel 77. Drawing inspiration from Friedrich Nietzsche, Warburg delved into cultural reappropriation. The atlas has influenced artists such as Marcel Duchamp and Gerhard Richter, striving for unity within a fragmented interwar landscape, despite its Eurocentric perspective.
Key facts
- Aby Warburg's Bilderatlas Mnemosyne was exhibited at Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, from September 4 to November 1, 2020
- The atlas comprises 63 panels with 971 images, including artworks from Antiquity to the Renaissance, newspaper cuttings, advertisements, stamps, coins, and astrological charts
- Warburg began the project in 1924 and died in 1929, leaving it unfinished
- The atlas traces cultural exchange routes from Baghdad to Coruña and Hamburg to Aswan
- Panels suggest connections across time and space, such as Panel 72 mixing Christian/Classical conviviality with contemporary ceremonies
- Warburg was influenced by Friedrich Nietzsche's concept of eternal returns
- The atlas has influenced artists like Marcel Duchamp, Gerhard Richter, Hito Steyerl, and Arthur Jafa
- Warburg documented Hopi serpent dances in 1895, leading to contemporary restitution demands
Entities
Artists
- Aby Warburg
- Eugène Delacroix
- Marcel Duchamp
- Gerhard Richter
- Hito Steyerl
- Arthur Jafa
- Trevor Paglen
- Liu Chuang
- Gaudenzio Ferrari
- Leonardo da Vinci
- Friedrich Nietzsche
- Gotthold Ephraim Lessing
Institutions
- Haus der Kulturen der Welt
- ArtReview
Locations
- Berlin
- Germany
- London
- United Kingdom
- Baghdad
- Iraq
- Coruña
- Spain
- Hamburg
- Aswan
- Egypt
- France
- Syracuse
- Italy
- China
- Athens
- Greece