Planet Africa – State of the Art

At the beginning of May the time had come! The trailer as well as the introductory film and the animated slideshows for module 3 were completed. Digitally, the first wall designs for three presentation boxes have already been created. These boxes are the central elements and guide the visitors through the six topics of the exhibition by using films, slideshows, images and texts.

The end of the pilot phase also marks the launch of social media channels such as Twitter and Instagram. In addition to the regular blog posts, our day-to-day work is documented there, the team is introduced, and exciting previews of the exhibition are provided. In addition, the content of the remaining thematic modules is now being developed. This includes the formation of local committees in African partner cities as well as the selection of African street artists who will design the key visuals of the individual thematic modules.

At the annual reception of the German Archaeological Institute on May 11, 2022, Jörg Linstädter, the Executive Director of the Commission for Archaeology of Non-European Cultures, gave the keynote speech. The event took place both in presence and online. Part of his lecture was also the presentation of the Planet Africa exhibition and the trailer. The audience was enthusiastic about the progress and conception of the exhibition and there was a lively discussion at a get-together afterwards.

Another milestone was reached with the construction of two presentation boxes for Module 3. These pre-built test boxes serve as “proof of concept” and will be on display for the first time at the international conference “Groundcheck - Climate, Crisis, Archaeology” of the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin. From there, they will move to the MVF, Berlin, and will be integrated into the exhibition in 2024.