When can the exhibition be visited?

The exhibition can be seen from November 11, 2026, to February 21, 2027, at the Wendish Museum Cottbus. On November 11, visiting starts at 10 a.m.

Where does the exhibition take place?

The exhibition takes place at the Wendish Museum Cottbus, specifically at Serbski muzej, Mühlenstraße 12, 03046 Cottbus.

How much does admission cost?

The regular admission for adults is 5 euros. Reduced tickets cost 4 euros; entry is free for visitors up to 18 years.

What contents are shown in the exhibition?

About 200 glass negatives by Denis Galloway featuring portraits, costumes, field work, market scenes, children’s images, and weddings from Lower Lusatia and the Spreewald can be seen.

Is the exhibition displayed indoors?

Yes, the exhibition is presented indoors at the Wendish Museum Cottbus.

Is there a combination ticket available?

A combination ticket with the city museum costs 8 euros.

Discover Faces of an Era: Historical Photography and Wendish Culture in Cottbus

Name: Denis Galloway – Woblica ze zajźonego casa / Faces of an Era
Start: 2026-11-11T10:00:00+01:00
End: 2027-02-21T17:00:00+01:00
Location: Wendisches Museum Cottbus / Serbski muzej

Faces of an Era: Photographic Memories of the Slavs in the Spreewald

The Wendish Museum Cottbus presents for the first time a selection from approximately 200 glass negatives by Scottish ethnographer, photographer, and artist Denis Galloway. The exhibition opens an impressive photographic journey into the Sorbian-Wendish way of life in Lower Lusatia and connects historical photography with cultural history, memory, and aesthetic experience.

An Archive of Glass and Light

Between 1908 and 1914, Denis Galloway documented life in Lower Lusatia and in Wittichenau. His images depict fieldwork, market scenes, portraits of women and children, as well as significant life events such as weddings. The fine shades of gray, precise contours, and the unique materiality of the glass negatives lend the images a quiet, concentrated intensity.

Faces, Costumes, and Daily Life

At the center of the artwork view are people whose expressions, postures, and clothing tell stories from a bygone era. The various Wendish costume variants with their fabrics, patterns, and headgear appear particularly striking. They refer to regional identity, social belonging, and traditional customs that are scarcely visible in this form today.

Photography between Ethnography and Art

Galloway's photographs possess documentary accuracy as well as remarkable aesthetic presence. The images depict people not as anonymous subjects of study, but as individuals with dignity, relationships, and personal histories. This creates an artistic experience that bridges photographic art, ethnography, and visual memory culture.

A Journey Through Time in Lower Lusatia

The original glass negatives entered the Ethnographic Museum in Cluj-Napoca in 1950 and were later digitized. Through the European cultural portal Europeana, they became publicly accessible. At the Wendish Museum, the Lower Lusatian images can now be seen for the first time in printed form. The curation makes visible how photography functions as a historical archive and cultural education becomes directly tangible.

Aesthetic Experience and Cultural Education

The exhibition atmosphere invites a slowed-down observation. Each image opens its own spatial world: the expression of a face, the structure of a garment, the movement at work, or the relationship between people and landscape. Thus, the exhibition connects art history, photography history, and Sorbian-Wendish cultural history into an intense aesthetic experience.

Conclusion: History Comes Alive in the Image

Visitors can expect a touching consideration of historical portraits, costume images, and everyday scenes from Lusatia. Those interested in photography, ethnography, regional identity, and the history of the Sorbs and Wends will experience an extraordinary artistic event at the Wendish Museum Cottbus. This exhibition deserves careful consideration of the original.