Adventure Orient – Max von Oppenheim and his Discovery of the Tell Halaf

at Bundeskunsthalle Bonn

The exhibition focuses on the presentation of outstanding archaeological finds from the world of the Aramaeans. Magnificent collection pieces illustrate Oppenheim‘s biography and are shown here for the first time together with his archaeological discovery.

In addition to the large Tell Halaf show at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin, the exhibition in Bonn sets sets its own accents and contextualizes the exhibits in a new light.
The highlight of the tour is the re-enactment of the famous entrance façade of the West Palace with the original pictorial works in position, dimension and relation to each other. A virtual reconstruction of the entire ancient settlement mound complements this monumental presentation.
For the overall impression and effect of the exhibits, the graphic design is of essential im-portance here. The monochrome large-scale objects had to be effectively staged in their uniform materiali-ty „stone“.
In addition, there was a desire to make the unique photographic documents showing the excavation situation at the end of the century before last accessible to museum visitors. This treasure trove of image motifs formed the basis for the graphic and mediation concept. Wall-filling photo motifs show the excavation context. The illustrations fulfill several func-tions: the representation (the scale was chosen in such a way that the people and objects are shown in approximately their original size), proof of authenticity and, last but not least, an authentic atmospheric image of the Orient at the time.

https://www.bundeskunsthalle.de/ausstellungen/archivierte-ausstellungen/abenteuer-orient.html