Cottbus: A Station of Remembrance – Experience NS History Intensively
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Cottbus as a Station of Remembrance: Making NS History Visible
The special exhibition "Cottbus: A Station of Remembrance. Deportations and Forced Labor in National Socialism" introduces a largely repressed chapter of Cottbus city history. In the Human Rights Center Cottbus, the station is presented as a historical site of eviction, deportation, prisoner transports, and forced labor.
A Transportation Hub in the System of Persecution
During the Nazi era, Cottbus station was much more than an ordinary transport location. In 1938, Jewish individuals with Polish citizenship were expelled from Cottbus and the surrounding region to Poland. During World War II, deportation trains passed through the city to ghettos in occupied Poland and to Theresienstadt. Transports from western and southern German cities as well as from occupied Western European countries also passed through the Cottbus tracks.
Four Narrative Threads of the Exhibition
The curation combines four thematic perspectives: the persecution of the Jewish population, Cottbus as a transit point for deportation trains, the women's prison as a site of political detention, and forced labor in industrial enterprises, with the Reichsbahn, in municipal facilities, and on farms. This creates a dense historical panorama that places local events within the European history of disenfranchisement and violence.
Names, Paths, and Fates in a Media Installation
A central element is a media installation inspired by historical departure boards. Names, former addresses, destination stations, and deportation routes become visible. Writing, light, spatial effects, and documentary materials create a concentrated exhibition atmosphere. The presentation does not rely on decorative painting or classical sculpture, but on installation as a bearer of historical testimony.
Culture of Remembrance and Cultural Education
The project was developed as part of MemoRails – Stop! Here, NS history is remembered, and is supported by the Foundation for Remembrance, Responsibility and Future as well as the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media. The Human Rights Center Cottbus realized the exhibition in cooperation with exhibeo e. V., the AG Stolpersteine Cottbus, and the Municipal Collections Cottbus. The exhibition connects historical research, museum education, and political education with the question of the significance of democracy, the rule of law, and human rights in the present.
Conclusion: A Powerful Artistic Experience of Remembrance
Visitors can expect an objective, emotionally engaging, and education-oriented exhibition. The aesthetic experience arises from the combination of documents, names, media images, and the historical resonance space of the memorial. Those who want to not only read about the culture of remembrance but also experience it directly in a concentrated examination of works should definitely visit this exhibition live.
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- Website: https://www.menschenrechtszentrum-cottbus.de/
