Exciting topics that move our society - presented in an entertaining way in lectures at the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum: that's the MuseumsUni Krefeld. This year, the series of events for secondary school students will run from November 10 to February 15, 2025. MuseumsUni Krefeld was successfully launched last year as a joint project between the Kunstmuseen Krefeld and The Hochschule Niederrhein in Krefeld.
The free program combines research topics with the museums' exhibitions. The aim is to make topics beyond the classroom accessible to pupils in secondary schools (grades 7-13). Professors give an insight into the focus of their work in their lectures. Pupils learn how diverse the subjects and topics at HSNR are.
Professor Dr. Erik Schmid, Dean of the Faculty of Design, will kick things off on 18 November. His lecture will address the question of why art is so important for our everyday lives and the human interplay of feeling and thinking. The lecture will be followed by a tour of selected works in the current collection presentation.
On December 9, the co-lecture by Prof. Dr. Marina-Elena Wachs and students from the Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology will focus on examples from the global textile circular economy. This will be followed by a short tour of the "Visionary Spaces" exhibition. Walter Pichler meets Friedrich Kiesler in a display by "raumlaborberlin" and the Studio 2/KreativLabor designed with textile remnants from industry.
The new year continues on January 13 with a lecture by Prof. Dr. Jost Göttert (Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science), in which he will talk about possibilities for material testing using spectroscopic methods. Sebastian Köhler, restorer at the Kunstmuseen Krefeld, will then explain to the students in front of originals the areas of activity involved in restoring works of art and how new technologies support the work of restorers.
Prof. Nicolas Beucker teaches Public and Social Design in the Faculty of Design and will present ideas and concepts for a livable design of public space in his lecture on January 20. The subsequent tour of the "Visionary Spaces" exhibition ties in perfectly with the theme of architecture and coexistence.
The degree will be awarded to Prof. Dr.-Ing. Michael Heber (Faculty of Mechanical and Process Engineering) on February 24: in the event, he will paint a differentiated picture of a rather controversial material and pose the question of how plastics can be used sensibly in both art and industry.
Museum Director Katia Baudin: "We are delighted that the MuseumsUni Krefeld is entering the next round together with The Hochschule Niederrhein. We want to give young people a variety of approaches to the museum and its various fields of activity. This second expenditure of the MuseumsUni is particularly successful for schools: the selected specializations enrich our educational program on the museum collection and the upcoming annual main exhibition Visionary Spaces with technical and scientific topics."
"The university's cooperation project with the Kunstmuseen Krefeld was established at exactly the right time, as demonstrated by the great response to our offer. We are a university for the region. Together with our partners, we are actively helping to shape it. Through formats such as the MuseumsUni, we create links to the exciting topics of our teaching education and research, but also take note of the issues and concerns of urban society and bring them back into the university," says Professor Dr. Donja Amirpur, Vice President for University Culture and Diversity.
The offer is aimed at class groups accompanied by teachers or chaperones. The appointments last from 12 to 1.30 pm. Admission is free.
The entire program of the MuseumsUni Krefeld at: www.hsnr.de/museums-uni or www.kunstmuseenkrefeld.de. The service office of the Krefeld art museums accepts registrations by telephone on 02151 975 58-137 or by e-mail at servicekunstmuseen(at)krefeld.de.
