Name: It’s about Life
Start: 26.03.2022 - 00:00
End: 30.09.2022 - 23:50
Location: ZKM | Zentrum für Kunst und Medien

It’s about Life

The spring and summer program at ZKM

Sat, March 26, 2022 – Fri, September 30, 2022

ZKM | Center for Art and Media

It's about nothing less than the love of life! At the intersection of art, science, and technology, the project »It's about Life« of ZKM brings together people of different ages and backgrounds and encourages an exchange on biophilia, the love of life.

Peter Weibel, artistic and scientific director of the ZKM, sees the crises currently threatening us as a starting point to finally focus on life again. And specifically, a life in which the focus is not on human, but on the earth. "Life on earth itself will not perish and neither will the earth. But whether humans will survive self-induced climate change, that's the question. We have to be careful that species extinction doesn't one day also hit Homo Sapiens," says Peter Weibel.

»It's about Life« accompanies the ZKM's current program, which approaches biophilia in different ways. Artists and scientists come together with citizens and local initiatives. Dialogical tours, creative workshops, the digital reading circle »Ecophilia Reading Group«, film screenings on the ZKM's forecourt or the experimental »Kitchen_Ferm_Lab« literally bring the biophilic approach of »It's About Life to life«.

The program is hybrid, so it can be experienced at the ZKM and at any other place on earth.

Program

On site tours

- Information and registration
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- Tue 1-6 pm, Thu 9 am-1 pm
  Phone (0721) 8100-1990, Fax -1999
  fuehrungen@zkm.de
  Without registration, limited participants
  For individuals and families
  Meeting point: Information desk at the foyer
  Duration 60 minutes
  Cost 3 euros per person + museum admission
  For variations see guided tours below
- Overview tours
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- Art mediators give an insight into the exhibitions.
  BioMedia + The Beauty of Early Life
  Saturdays 3 pm (April 16/23/30, 2022)
  Saturdays 4:30 pm (starting March 26, 2022, not on May 14, 2022)
  Sundays 11:30 am (starting March 27, 2022, not on May 05, 2022)
  Sundays 4 pm (April 10/17/24, 2022 and May 01, 2022)
  Whit Monday, June 06, 2022, 4:30 pm
  BioMedia
  Saturdays 4:30 pm (until March 19, 2022)
  Sundays 11:30 am (until March 20, 2022)
  Easter Monday , April 18, 2022, 4:30 pm
  The Beauty of Early Life
  Easter Monday, April 18, 2022, 3 pm
  The Artwork as a Living System
  Friday, May 20, 2022, 4 pm
  Saturdays 3 pm (starting May 07, 2022)
  Sundays 4 pm (starting May 08, 2022)
  Whit Monday , June, 2022, 3 pm
  Language: German
  All In_Sight tours at a glance
- Tandem tours in »The Beauty of Early Life«
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- Scientists from the Karlsruhe Museum of Natural History and art educators from the ZKM | Karlsruhe will guide visitors in a dialog through the exhibition.
  Saturday, April 09, 2022, 3 pm
  Friday, April 29, 2022, 4 pm
  Thursday, May 05, 2022, 5 pm
  Friday, July 08, 2022, 4 pm
  Sunday, July 10, 2022, 2 pm
  free of charge+museum admission
  Language: German
- Natural history tour in »The Beauty of Early Life«
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- Scientists from the Natural History Museum Karlsruhe provide an in-depth insight into the scientific background of the exhibition.
  Thursday, March 31, 2022, 5 pm, with Dennis Grabow
  Saturday, May 14, 2022, 4:30 pm, with Prof. Dr. Norbert Lenz
  Sunday, May 22, 2022, 11:30 am, with Dr. Eduard Harms
  free of charge+museum admission
  Language: German
- Reflections – Performative guided tours through the exhibition »It's about Life« with Gabriela Lang
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- Wednesdays, 4:30 pm
  Free of charge+museum admission
  Language: German
  Follow performative art educator Gabriela Lang (dancer and choreographer) on a playful journey between artworks and bodies! Together you will move and be moved. Do the opposites between artists and viewers, between work objects and visitor subjects, between experts and laypeople, between thinking and perceiving still exist? Here it is not about understanding or correct formulation, but about bodily experience, about sensory perception and expression. In these tours you can experiment together!
  30.03.22 BioMedia
  27.04.22 The Beauty of Early Life
  25.05.22 The Artwork as a Living System
  29.06.22 BioMedia
  
  These tours are part of the program »It's about Life«, funded by the impulse program »Culture despite Corona« of the »Ministry of Science, Research and Art Baden-Württemberg«.
- Transgressions – Theologians meet Contemporary Art
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- Fridays, 4 pm
  Guided tour and museum admission free of charge
  Language: German
  On the first Friday of each month, the Protestant and Catholic churches organize the Friday Guided Tour in cooperation with Museum Communication. On these dates, theologians together with art mediators from Museum Communication guide visitors through a ZKM exhibition and encourage them to think outside the box.
  01.04.22 The Beauty of Early Life
  06.05.22 BioMedia
  03.06.22 The Artwork as a Living System
  01.07.22 The Beauty of Early Life
  05.08.22 BioMedia
  With Dipl.Theol. Tobias Licht (April 01, June 03, August 05, 2022)
  with Pastor Eckhart Marggraf (May 06, July 01, 2022)
- Curator's tour through »BioMedia. The Age of Media with Life-like Behavior«
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- Friday 2 pm, Atrium 8+9 ground floor
  03.06.2022 with Daria Mille
  24.06.2022 with Sarah Donderer
  
  Without registration, for individuals and families – limited number of participants!
  Guided tour and museum entrance free of charge
  Language: German
  Explore the exhibition »BioMedia. The Age of Media with Life-like Behavior« on a guided tour with the exhibition curator.

Digital Guided Tours

- Informations and Registration
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- Registration via führungen@zkm.de, limited number of participants
  Duration 60 minutes
  Free of charge
  Digital Prerequisites: Stable internet connection, video conferencing capability (camera and microphone). The guided tour will take place online via Zoom. The Zoom link will be sent shortly before the start of the tour.
- Guided Tour on the digital platform of »Critical Zones« (German)
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- Wednesdays, 6 pm
  March 16, 2022, April 20, 2022, May 18, 2022, June 15, 2022
  Every third Wednesday of the month, ZKM art educators offer a digital insight into the online platform »Critical Zones«.
- Guided Tour on the digital platform of »Critical Zones« (English)
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- Every Friday
  New York 7 am, London 12 pm, Tokyo 8 pm, Berlin 1 pm
  04.03.22, 18.03.22, 01.04.22, 29.04.22, 13.05.22, 27.05.22, 10.06.22, 24.06.22
  New York 12 pm, London 5 pm, Tokyo 1 am, Berlin 6 pm
  11.03.22, 25.03.22, 08.04.22, 22.04.22, 06.05.22, 20.05.22, 03.06.22, 17.06.22
  Get a 60-minute overview of the constantly changing digital platform of the exhibition »Critical Zones«. Meet the exhibition's art educators and curators in a zoom chat and talk to them about terms like Gaia, terrestrial, holobiont and many more.
  Digital requirements: internet access, video conferencing capability (computer camera and microphone). The guided tour will be hosted on zoom. We will send you the Zoom link shortly before the workshop begins.

On site workshops

- Information and Registration
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- Information and registration, until 4 days before the start of the offer
  Tue 1-6 pm, Thu 9 am-1 pm
  Phone (0721) 8100-1330, Fax -1339
  workshops@zkm.de
- Sensors Workshop
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- Fri, March 18, 2022, 3:30-5:30 pm
  4 years and older
  With: Andreas Kugel and OK Lab Karlsruhe
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  The exhibition »BioMedia« invites you to learn about and discuss possible forms of coexistence between organic and artificial life forms. For centuries, man has been trying to create machines that simulate life. A contemporary and typical example of this are the sensors of a computer. These sensors correspond to our sensory organs and essentially provide the computer with a kind of machine-sensory experience.
  The sensors convert environmental events (sound, light, heat, and the like) into digital data that the machine can process in any way it chooses. How do these sensors work? What kind of data do they provide and how can we program them?
  In this sensor workshop, OK Lab Karlsruhe will show us how to assemble and program a measuring device for air data ourselves. In the process, we will learn which substances are in the room air, how CO2, for example, can be measured with a sensor. The programming is done with a simple graphical user interface. Previous knowledge is not required, but it helps to be interested in digital technologies.
- Loving Life – A Moving Workshop
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- Sun, March 20, 2022, 2-5 pm
  14 years and older
  With Gabriela Lang
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  We want to explore this special topic by means of experiences we want to have with our own bodies directly in the exhibition »Biomedia«. What does life mean at all? Where does it come from, where does it go? We use movement, cell phones and pens to record our experiences.
- My new world with BioMedia
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- Sat, April 09, 2022, 11 am - 1:30 pm
  Sat, July 02, 2022, 11a m - 1:30 pm
  9 years and older
  
  With: Anne Wagner
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  Imagine being able to create your very own creature that is a mixture of a natural and an artificial being. A robot, computer or other machine merges with an animal, human or plant. Now imagine what the world looks like from this exciting creature? What does it sound like?
  You will find all this out in our workshop.
  Would you like to communicate, talk, sing, play with your creature in this world? With the help of the green screen technique this is possible! Through our Green Screen you can even dive into your own media world!
- Becoming hybrid – Design your green screen body filter
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- Sat, April 23, 2022, 2-5 pm
  16 years and older
  With: Oliver-Selim Boualam
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  What are hybrid beings and can we even become such ourselves? Artist and scenographer of the exhibition »BioMedia« Oliver-Selim Boualam deals with this question. The resulting spatial concept shows us possible ways to bring humans and technology together.
  In this artist workshop, we will transform ourselves into hybrid fantasy beings with the help of various materials such as cardboard, wood, foil, adhesive tape and green paint. Our stage for this is the huge green screen in the middle of the exhibition »BioMedia«. The exhibition shows media with life-like behavior – in this workshop we show media-like behavior.
- Robotic Creatures @BÄM Family
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- Sun, April 24, 2022, 11 am - 4 pm
  6 years and older
  With: Max Kosoric
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  Build your own creature! She can move crazy with the help of a motor and has different glowing eyes on her body. You will design its shape and appearance and discover different forms.
  
  These workshops are part of the program »It's about Life«, funded by the impulse program »Culture despite Corona« of the »Ministry of Science, Research and Art Baden-Württemberg«.
- Artificial intelligence and discrimination
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- Fri, May 06, 2022, 2:30-5:30 pm
  16 years and older
  With Dr. Ralf Eger
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  In everyday life, we are already surrounded by artificial intelligence that makes decisions for us. One would think that technical systems are neutral. Nevertheless, discrimination often occurs. In the workshop we want to discuss how this happens and what we could do about it. We will train an AI ourselves and investigate its behavior.
  This workshop is part of the project »intelligent.museum« and is supported by the »Fonds Digital« of the German Federal Cultural Foundation.
- Your AI video clip
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- Fri, May 20, 2022, 3:30-5:30 pm
  10 years and older
  With Paul Bethge
  In German language
  Free of charge
  Replacing the background in a video, displaying a sequence of images in the style of another painting or recognizing human movements in a video - all this is possible with the help of Artificial Intelligence (AI). In the workshop we will shoot short video clips and use AI tools from the »intelligent.museum« to edit and alienate the videos. No previous knowledge required.
  This workshop is part of the project »intelligent.museum« and is supported by the »Fonds Digital« of the German Federal Cultural Foundation.
- Scratch – Family Jump
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- Sun, May 22, 2022, 11 am - 4 pm
  8 years and older
  With Max Kosoric
  Language: German
  Cost for children 10 Euro / Cost for adults 13 Euro
  Learn to program and build your own computer game together with your parents or grandparents.
  The exhibition »BioMedia« inspires us to create a fusion between media and humans. In this workshop, with the help of the software Scratch, you will design yourself as a cyborg game character, with superpowers and also a corresponding game world in which you can jump, run or fly. The classic Jump n Run game with you as the main character.
- Dance with the media
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- Sat, June 18, 2022, 2-5 pm
  10 years and older
  With Gabriela Lang
  In German language
  Free of charge
  Asking robots to dance and learning new movements from them is really fun! We will also be inspired by colors and use them to express our moods. Just try it out, you will be surprised. All people of any age who like media and dance are cordially invited to this workshop!
- Lumen Prints
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- Fri, July 08, 2022 3-6 pm
  
  16 years and older
  With Anthea Oestreicher
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  Following in the footsteps of the first photographers and photographic processes, we create »lumenprints« and capture imprints and traces of life with the help of sunlight on photographic paper. As a completely cameraless process, these "shadow catchers" are created by the contours and transparencies of the objects in direct contact with the paper. By using algae and plant species whose chemical properties resemble some components of classical photo developers, light and shadow compositions are created in which the beings seem to communicate themselves. Working together with plant species, we become designers and creators of shared portraits.
- Becoming hybrid – Design your green screen body filter
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- Sat, July 16, 2022, 2-5 pm
  16 years and older
  With Oliver-Selim Boualam
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  What are hybrid beings and can we even become such ourselves?
  Artist and scenographer of the exhibition »BioMedien« Oliver-Selim Boualam deals with this question. The resulting spatial concept shows us possible ways to bring humans and technology together.
  In this artist workshop, we will transform ourselves into hybrid fantasy beings with the help of various materials such as cardboard, wood, foil, adhesive tape and green paint. Our stage for this is the huge green screen in the middle of the exhibition »BioMedien«. The exhibition shows media with life-like behavior – in this workshop we show media-like behavior.
- BÄMlab
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- Fridays, 2-6 pm
  8 years and older
  Free admission, limited number of participants.
  Language: German
  11.03.22 Blue print on paper
  18.03.22 Cyanotype on your pocket
  25.03.22 Green Screen in motion
  01.04.22 Nature forms on your T-shirt
  On the dates listed above, the BÄMlab is ready for all spontaneous or regular hobbyists, hackers, creatives and interested people. We offer space and material for creative making! Just drop by! We are looking forward to meeting you!
  The BÄMlab is intended as a workshop for individuals or small groups of up to 4 people. Larger groups are welcome to book our BÄM space exclusively for a workshop (workshops@zkm.de).
  
  This workshop is part of the program »It's about Life«, funded by the impulse program »Culture despite Corona« of the »Ministry of Science, Research and Art Baden-Württemberg«.

Workshops – Digital

- Information and Registration
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- Registration via workshops@zkm.de
  Limited number of participants, free of charge
  Digital requirements: Stable internet connection, video conferencing capability (camera and microphone). Workshops will take place online via Zoom. The Zoom link will be sent shortly before the tour begins.
  These workshops are part of the program »It's about Life«, funded by the impulse program »Culture despite Corona« of the »Ministry of Science, Research and Art Baden-Württemberg«.
- Expanding our senses: BodyMedia (German)
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- Sat, March 26, 2022, 11 am – 1 pm
  Sat, May 14, 2022, 11 am – 1 pm
  16 years and older
  With Mira Hirtz
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  Every day we interact with technologies that extend our senses: cameras become our eyes, apps guide us through the city and video platforms create virtual spaces where we meet. In this online workshop Mira Hirtz invites you to performatively explore these technological extensions of our senses. In the context of the exhibition »BioMedia« we will playfully explore how virtual and analog space, camera and eye, map and memory relate to each other - using our bodies and creativity! You don't need any previous experience in performance or in dealing with technologies, just bring your joy of experimentation.
  You will need: Paper, pen and some space to move around.
  Registration possible until March 25, 202222, 4 pm or May 13, 2022, 4 pm.
- Expanding our senses: BodyMedia (English)
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- Saturday, July 02, 2022, 11 am – 1 pm (CET Berlin)
  
  16 years and older
  Free of charge
  Language: English
  With Mira Hirtz
  Every day we interact with technologies which expand our senses: cameras are our eyes, Apps guide us through the city and video platforms create virtual meeting spaces. In this online Workshop, Mira Hirtz invites you to explore these technological extensions of our senses with the means of performance. In the frame of the exhibition »BioMedia«, we will investigate how virtual and analogue, camera and eye, map and memory meet – by engaging our bodies and creativity! No pre-experience in performance or the use of technologies is necessary, just bring your curiosity to experiment.
  You need at home: paper, pen and a little bit of space to move.
  Your registration is possible until the evening before.

Preschool at the ZKM

- Information and Registration
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- Tue 1-6 pm, Thu 9 am-1 pm
  Phone (0721) 8100-1330, Fax -1339
  workshops@zkm.de
- Primordial Beings, Mixed Beings and Us
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- In this course, we will explore visions of a distant future. What will humans, animals or artificial beings, such as robots, look like in the future? How will they move, how will they live, what will they eat? And will we humans become hybrid beings?
  On our way into the future, we first go back in time: We discover small organisms and primordial beings in the exhibition »The Beauty of Early Life« (starting March 26, 2022). These inspire us for our visions of the future. We embark on a journey through time, to the origins of life on our planet and explore the background of biodiversity. Numerous works of art and exciting conversations inspire us to think - for example, how the common solidary and sustainable life on earth can look like in the future. The creative realization of these thoughts and dreams, with different artistic materials/media is fun, encourages the children and promotes their communication.
  Course offer (4 dates + vernissage)
  Language: German
  Duration 4 x 1,5 hours + vernissage for the parents
  Costs 160 Euro, max. 7 children + 2 accompanying persons
- Workshop with work consideration (individual appointment)
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- Duration 1.5 hrs.
  Cost 47 euros, max. 7 children + 2 accompanying persons

Programs – Digital

- Kitchen_Ferm_Lab in the garden
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- Saturday, Duration: 2 hours
  March 19, 2022, 4:30 pm Build Bokashi yourself part I
  April 30, 2022, 3 pm Bokashi build yourself part II and prepare soil mixture
  May 28, 2022, 3 pm Prepare beds with self-made effective humus
  June 25, 2022, 3 pm Terra Preta – magic soil preparation
  Jul 23, 2022, 3 pm Grow effective microorganisms yourself
  Limited number of participants
  With Fanny Kranz and Maximilian Kosoric
  Language: German
  Free of charge
  Fermentation is the oldest form of food preservation. Through the support of various microorganisms, refinement processes occur that release new, delicious flavors. After many intensive workshops on the subject of wild fermentation, the Kitchen_Ferm_Lab is moving from the kitchen to the garden. We now want to experiment with so-called »effective microorganisms« and watch our vegetables grow. Boost your garden!
  You will need: A materials list will reach you after registration.
  Note: For some of the dates, additional materials will be sent to you by mail. For this reason, registration is possible until one week before the workshop date. By registering for the workshop, you agree that we may use your personal information to send you workshop materials.
  Digital requirements: Stable internet connection, video conferencing capability (camera and microphone). The workshop will take place online via Zoom. The Zoom link will be sent shortly before the workshop starts.
- Kinship as a Verb – Ecophilia Reading Group
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- Tuesday, Duration 90 minutes
  March 15, April 12, May 10, June 14, July 12, 2022, 7 pm CET/CEST
  With Sybille Neumeyer
  In English
  free of charge
  The Ecophilia Reading Group invites you to dive into the meshwork of multi-species relationships, where kinship is not something given but a result of reciprocal giving and taking. Learning from indigenous concepts of kincentric ecologies we will explore the ethics and response-abilities that are embedded in modes of becoming-with and worlding together.
  In this group we meet to read together, share perspectives and exchange knowledges in the ongoing ecological, climate and social crises. Texts from a diversity of fields and genres combined with somatic and imaginative exercises open a critical zone for discussions on biocultural diversities, interdependencies and multi-species relationships in more-than-human ecologies. Open to participants from all disciplines.
  Digital requirements: Internet access, video conferencing capability (computer camera and microphone). The reading group will be hosted on zoom. We will send you the Zoom link shortly before the workshop begins.
  
  These workshops are part of the program »It's About Life«, funded by the impulse program »Art despite Corona« of the Ministry of Science, Research and Art Baden-Württemberg.

Filmscreenings

- Information and program
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- Monday, July 04. 2022 until Wednesday, July 06, 2022
  From 7 pm, ZKM Island
  The current film program can be found at www.zkm.de.

Events

- Clothing and book bazaar
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- Thu, June 30, 2022, 5 pm, duration approx. 4h
  Island Hub on the forecourt
  Stroll and browse for a good cause!
  As part of the »It's about Life« program, the ZKM is once again hosting an after-work clothing and book bazaar under the treetops of the green island on the ZKM forecourt. In the spirit of sustainable consumption, our library has once again provided a few selected book copies and the ZKM team has brought its most beautiful discarded clothes, bags, wardrobe stalwarts, mis-buys and unworn pieces of jewelry for you.
  Good music and delicious drinks will be provided on our ZKM island. So if you are looking for a new outfit for spring, but at the same time want to renounce online shopping, then we look forward to the joint clothing chat under the open sky!
  The proceeds will be donated to an aid project for Ukraine.
- Ecumenical service
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- Sunday July 03, 2022, 6:30 pm in the exhibition »BioMedia«
  Admission free

Art me Anything @ZKM Karlsruhe

So in our new series »Art me Anything« we decided to ask the artists of the ZKM exhibitions random questions about life and technology – like, “How do you define whether something is alive?“ or “Would you upload your mind to a cloud?“.

Artist Talk with AATB | Art me Anything @ZKM Karlsruhe

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Artist Talk with Sommerer & Mignonneau | Art me Anything @ZKM Karlsruhe

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Artist Talk with Christian Mio Loclair | Art me Anything @ZKM Karlsruhe

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Artist Talk mit Bernd Lintermann | Art me Anything @ZKM Karlsruhe

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Artist Talk with Špela Petrič | Art me Anything @ZKM Karlsruhe

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Artist Talk with Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen | Art me Anything @ZKM Karlsruhe

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Organization / Institution: ZKM | Centre of Art and Media
Program funder: Funded within the impulse program »Culture despite Corona« of the Ministry of Science, Research and Art Baden-Württemberg