Verlorene Dörfer in Masuren

In the organizer's words:

The exhibition in the Carl Brandt House Central Library reveals the traces of an almost forgotten region and takes a double look back: at historical Masuria - and at the impressive research work of students from Düsseldorf and Olsztyn. Between 2017 and 2019, students from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (history) and the Warmian-Masurian University Olsztyn/Allenstein (landscape architecture) embarked on a joint expedition into Europe's cultural memory. The focus was on villages that once lined the German-Polish border and almost disappeared as a result of the Second World War. What remains are silent cemeteries, individual traces of the Wall - and a rich treasure trove of stories, which the exhibition impressively documents.

Opening and supporting program
The exhibition will be officially opened on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at 7 p.m. in the plaza of the Carl Brandts Haus Central Library (Hilde-Sherman-Zander-Straße 6, 41061 Mönchengladbach) - with words of welcome from Lord Mayor Felix Heinrichs. Afterwards, the library will host a discussion in the WandelSaal:
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Christoph Nonn (HHU) and Dr. Sabine Grabowski (Gerhart-Hauptmann-Haus Foundation) will talk about the project, student research and the social structures of the Masurian population through the ages. Yilmaz Holtz-Ersahin, Head of the Library & Archive Department of the City of Mönchengladbach, will moderate the event.

The exhibition can be seen from May 21 to June 26, 2025 in the Carl Brandts Haus Central Library during normal opening hours.
It was developed and realized by the Gerhart-Hauptmann-Haus Foundation and is being shown in the Carl Barndts Haus Central Library in cooperation with the Mönchengladbach City Library.