The exhibition is over! Together with the development organization Helvetas, Ballenberg looked beyond the horizon and focused on the world. The theme of the year 2024 told stories of people on the move along a themed trail: locally and globally, yesterday and today. What messages did we want to convey with the exhibition? Immigration and emigration, seasonal work elsewhere or simply being on the move are and were global phenomena.
Stories of departure and arrival
The historical world of Switzerland shown at the Ballenberg Open-Air Museum was much more mobile and shaped by global influences than its image suggests. Being on the move was in the past and is today a common, worldwide phenomenon. The Ballenberg and Helvetas demonstrated this together: historical narratives and contemporary stories also made it possible to draw fascinating comparisons.
The themed trail
The themed trail extended over seven exhibition stations in historic houses. Inside the houses, the public encountered stories of people from that particular house or region. Helvetas also presented the story of a person living today from one of Helvetas' many partner countries. This resulted in six historical and seven contemporary stories.
The theme trail was supported (in alphabetical order) by the Federal Office for Spatial Development, the Burgergemeinde Bern, the Carl and Elise Elsner-Gut Foundation, the Federal Commission on Migration, the Gottfried and Ursula Schäppi-Jecklin Foundation, the Lottery Fund Bern, the Migros Culture Percentage, the Mobiliar Award Fund, the Oertli Foundation, the Swiss Charitable Society, the Temperatio Foundation, the Corymbo Foundation, the Walter Haefner Foundation and three renowned foundations from Zug and Zurich, which wish to remain unnamed.
Your contact person for «on the move across the world»
Our past exhibitions
Helvetas exhibitions show connections between Switzerland and developing countries in an interactive way. They provide inspiration on how you can contribute to a sustainable and just world and are shown in Swiss and Liechtenstein museums.
