"Inventory of Power": A Visual and Literary Journey into the Berlin Wall
Portraits of Political Prisoners Under the Stasi Regime
April 24th, 2025
Until April 27, 2025, the Berlin Wall Memorial at the Bundestag hosts the exhibition Inventory of Power – The Berlin Wall from a Different Perspective, an artistic and documentary project that invites visitors to rethink the history of the first Berlin Wall. The exhibition, created by writer Annett Gröschner and photographer Arwed Messmer, combines archival images and literary texts to construct a visual and reflective narrative of the city’s division.
The exhibition originates from a 1995 discovery at the Potsdam Military Archive: hundreds of film negatives taken by border troops between 1965 and 1966, documenting the Wall’s condition at the time. Based on this material, Messmer developed a comprehensive photographic documentation, following what curator Florian Ebner called a "visual archaeological practice."
In parallel, Gröschner transformed official reports into literary narratives that revive everyday encounters on both sides of the Wall. Parts of the project were first exhibited in Berlin and Aix-en-Provence in 2011, and in 2016 the artists presented a full topographic view of the Wall, now reappearing in an expanded and enriched version.
The exhibition is set in a highly symbolic location: the eastern side of the former death strip, directly opposite the Reichstag building. Through more than 1,000 images, textual collages, and original documents from the Federal Archives—some displayed for the first time—the exhibition recovers the human and everyday dimension of the border.
A post scriptum is also included, focusing on a failed escape attempt via hot air balloon in the spring of 1989, reflecting both the desperation and ingenuity of those seeking to cross the divide. The project was accompanied by a two-volume book, which received several awards including the German Photobook Award.
The exhibition explores the physical and symbolic legacy of a border built to divide. Through an aesthetic based on repetition—watchtowers, tunnels, escape ladders, names of guard dogs—it prompts reflection on the logic of control, surveillance, and historical memory. In this approach, the archive becomes more than a passive document; it transforms into an active tool for interpretation and intergenerational dialogue.
The exhibition is open Tuesday to Sunday from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and on Thursdays until 8:00 PM, with no prior appointment necessary. Entry is via the Spree River promenade, at the Marie-Elisabeth-Lüders House. More information is available on the official Bundestag website:
www.bundestag.de/erinnern/ausstellungen/mauer
References:
- https://www.bundestag.de/besuche/ausstellungen/kunst_ausst/inventarisierung-macht-1023654 https://www.bundestag.de/besuche/ausstellungen/kunst_ausst/inventarisierung-macht-1023654
