facts and fiction developed an informative and entertaining approach to today‘s Federal Republic and its inhabitants. ‘Unity, justice, and freedom’: the Federal Agency for Civic Education and the Goethe Institute laid down the guidelines for an exhibition aimed at reviewing the past 60 years and taking a closer look at the present-day Federal Republic of Germany. The idea was to confront visitors with their own view of Germany - including all clichés - reduce fear of the unknown and present  a well-balanced mixture of serious and of entertaining topics through interactive access.

The 26 letters of the alphabet provided the keywords to the exhibition - correct with regard to its content, but also self-ironic and tongue-in-cheek. The oversized letters partly designed as free-standing sculptures served as showcases for texts, exhibits and interactive elements.

The exhibition attempted to seriously tackle the issues and challenges currently faced by the Bundesrepublik: A as in Arbeit (work) and Arbeitslosigkeit (unemployment), W as in Wissen (knowledge), and Z as in Zukunft (future). However, it also looked at typical German peculiarities: C as in Currywurst (sausage in curry sauce), G as in Gemütlichkeit (cosiness), and H as in Humor (humour). Neither did the exhibition shy away from the darker sides of Germany’s history with M as in Mauer (the Berlin Wall), N as in Nazis raus (Nazis out!).

Visitors were encouraged to engage personally with the contents and discover the information for themselves with the hope that this approach would provide a long-lasting impression. The many facts and anecdotes available contributed to an individual puzzle-like view of present-day Germany with many surprises and eye-opening insights along the way.

The travelling exhibition was not only aimed at Germans, so the essential texts were also available in Turkish and English – after all, it is Germany for beginners!