Denise Künstler (left) and Prof. Dr. Verena Klusmann-Weißkopf at the project presentation
Furtwangen University “KImAge” project at StattMuseum
A hiking trip. A Citroën 2CV 2CV. A staircase. At first glance, these photo motifs have little in common, yet they are all part of a current exhibition at the StattMuseum. The images are an individual exploration of the theme of aging being collected as part of the “KImAge” project at Furtwangen University (HFU).
“Images of aging influence how we see ourselves and others, and indeed how healthy we are and how long we live. This is still not widely known, which is why we want to discuss it with young and old alike,” explains HFU professor Dr. Verena Klusmann-Weißkopf. Together with her project team, she therefore invited people to the StattMuseum for a discussion. The call was answered by interested members of the Furtwangen community, representatives of the city, and volunteers from the region. After a presentation of the project, many of the guests shared their own experiences with aging. For example, how old you feel depends on your environment and comparisons with others.
For the “KImAge” project, photos are being collected that represent individual encounters with aging in everyday life; these are cataloged and evaluated using AI in accordance with strict data protection guidelines. During the evening, the participants in Furtwangen already considered which images they could submit and how the project could be made better known.
“The evening showed once again how important it is to engage in conversation so that things that would otherwise only be thought about are actually said out loud. This also makes it easier to understand the different perspectives of young and old,” summarises Professor Klusmann-Weißkopf. “We've also got some new ideas about where to present the project next, for example at the Arche or the Otto Hahn Gymnasium”.
Until the end of March, those interested, no matter what age, can meet with the project team every Thursday from 10.00am - 4.00pm at the StattMuseum (Friedrichstraße 3). The StattMuseum is being used as a workshop space by the German Clock Museum during its renovation and is also available to the university for initiatives, projects and other activities.
Verena Klusmann-Weißkopf invites you to the StattMuseum, “We want to get people talking over tea and coffee to get lots of people excited about the project. Every photo counts, because it's only with lots of participants that we can show the diversity of images of age”.
More information about the “KImAge” project is available on the Furtwangen University website at: Internal link opens in the same window:https://www.hs-furtwangen.de/forschung/forschungsprojekte/kimage