Exhibition architecture lecture and workshop

Himmelweit gleich – Europas 1989

III. Workshop in Dresden

(19 – 21 June, 2009)

- Wroclaw

- Praha
- Dresden

- Bratislava

- Dublin, an west east west story in light and structure by Ruairí O'Brien

At the weekend I was invited to give a lecture on "exhibition architecture" to a group of international students working on the project "Himmelweit" organised by the "Weiterdenken" society in Dresden and Historian Peter Skyba. The project was conceived to look at the changes 20 years on after the peaceful revolution of 1989 that changed the face of Europe. Last year I made a suggestion that I develop an artwork for the society that could represent the larger european dimension of the falling of the Iron curtain. this was then in spring of this year given the go ahead. The artwork/installation expresses my own viewpoint as an artist and architect as to the change I have experienced in my Europe since 1989. Coming originally from Dublin and having experienced the “falling of the wall” on British TV. in London this can be seen as offering a pendent to the eastern works covering this subject. My first work on this subject I called "Baustelle Deutschland" (1999) which is now in the permanent exhibition of "The House of Contemporary History in Leipzig". This was followed by the lightobject "Betreten auf eigene gefahr" or "Enter at your own risk" (2004) placed on the site of the "Plattenbaumuseum" I built in Dresden (2003).

10 Elements of Exhibition architecture-O'Brien '09

My view is a view from another angle, perhaps the far west angle.
The graphic published here is a working method I have developed to create contemporary exhibitions, in my lecture I went into more detail regarding each word and its function in relation to the other elements mentioned.

The project

"Dublin-West-East-West Story told in light and structure by Ruairí O'Brien"

will be exhibited in Autumn in Dresden. Exact details as to location and times will be published in september 2009 on this blog.