CTRL Z / CTRL Y

A cooperation of the WissensSpuren
with the class for Artistic Action and Research at the Academy of Fine Arts (HGB) Leipzig
and the German Museum of Books and Writing (DBSM) at the German National Library (DNB).

Artists: Qutiba Alchalabi, Tobias Bertz, Diren Demir, Inga Kruse, Tobias Kurpat, Tina Metschke, Alaina Nugnis, Daisam Othman, Barbora Svobodová
supervised by Sven Bergelt

Leaflet: Jule Oberg

In the context of the “Tag des Vergessens. Und des Erinnerns.” the class for Artistic Action and Research at the HGB Leipzig contributed an artistic intervention to the exhibition Forget it?! in the the DBSM.

“CTRL Z / CTRL Y” was on display from November 8 to 16, 2025.

The interventions made use of research-based, site-specific, speculative, and power-critical working methods. They revisited processes of remembering and forgetting from different perspectives, and they established references to thematic focal points of the permanent exhibition, like de/industrialization, hegemonic representation of history, forms of censorship, or loss and preservation of knowledge.

The titel CTRL Z / CTRL Y  alludes to the keyboard shortcuts “Undo” and “Recover,” that are used to in the digital realm of recover deleted items. In the vague zone between these two commands, a decision is made as to what will be retrieved or deleted forever. In this space for reflection, the artistic works illuminated the ambivalence between forgetting and remembering.

The leaflet was designed by Jule Oberg, based on the font Polymer designed at the HGB Leipzig by Jan Gabriel.

The class Artistic Action and Research at the HGB Leipzig is directed by Prof. Christin Lahr (🇩🇪) and Sven Bergelt (🇩🇪).

• De
• Exhibition
• 2025