Innovative Forms
of Memory Culture

Shaping the Past / Gestaltung der Vergangenheit

How does the past take shape? What happens in the process of coming to terms with the past? What social repercussions are associated with the rooting of history in monuments and memorials? How can those narratives be shifted or upended through alternative, innovative approaches to memorialization? These questions and many others are at the center of our project, Shaping the Past, a partnership between Monument Lab, the Goethe-Institut, and the Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (German Federal Agency for Civic Education/bpb)
More on this project

Monument Lab Town Hall
Memory Month Map
Memory Month Events and Programs
Perspectives
Our Fellows
Our Partners

Monument Lab Town Hall

On October 8 and 9 2020, we kicked off our project Shaping the Past with the Monument Lab Town Hall. Watch videos of the keynote conversations that took place, check out the graphic recording of the event and see the 2020 Shaping the Past fellows introducing themselves! More

Get a Set of Postcards!

With most of our events being digital, we still wanted to give you something tangible. Enter your address and we will send you a set of postcards with a selection of modern monuments and art in public spaces!
To the form

Memory Month Map

Throughout North America, we have developed local programs on topics of memory culture with our partners – accompanied by events both online and offline. Find out what's happening in your area, or participate digitally with events in other locations.

All locations:

Memory Month Events and Programs

We invite you to our Shaping the Past: Memory Month, a month-long virtual and in-person program series focused on contemporary debates surrounding various aspects of memory culture and featuring the Monument Lab 2019 and 2020 Fellows as well as prominent international voices in the field.

In the coming months, numerous events – both online and offline – will take place in this context. Find out more by clicking on the events!

10/08
- 12/31/2020
Shaping the Past: Memory Month
Online| Special Event Series

10/28
- 12/10/2020
STP-on-Demand: Cinematic Perspectives on Shaping the Past
Online| Film Series

12/01/2020
Approaching Reconciliation, or the Discomfort of Remembrance
12:00 PM - 1:30 PM - Online| Panel Discussion

All events in the context of
Shaping the Past

Perspectives

Historical memory is constantly shaped and reshaped by new interpretations of the past. Explore unique perspectives, nuanced arguments, and an examination of current events by scholars, activists, and the Shaping the Past fellows.

Ada Pinkston, participant of “Shaping the Past”, in front of the Washington Monument in Baltimore

Shaping the Past
Wavering Monuments

How do monuments shape the commemorative culture? How can they become places of participation? The project “Shaping the Past” of the Goethe-Institut, the Monument Lab and the Federal Agency for Civic Education brings together initiatives from North America and Germany.

Racism – Marked by a new patriotism: the 2006 World Cup in Germany

Remembrance Politics
The ambivalence of coming to terms with history

Germany and the Germans brought unprecedented suffering to the world during the Nazi era. The way Germany dealt with its past is considered an example of a successful historical reappraisal. But does that really correspond to reality? Social scientist Anna Delius investigates how the two German societies dealt with National Socialism and the Holocaust after 1945.

Shaping the Past
Turning One's Attention to Knowledge

Each One Teach One (EOTO), a library and community centre in Berlin’s African Quarter, is a space that gives people of African descent the opportunity to transform their past into ideas for the future. Author and curator Michael Götting explains the importance and the history of this special place.

Colonial Era – Attack on the statue of General Storms in Brussels (Belgium), which reminds of the colonial past

Colonial traces in the public space
And the statues really are alive

What should we do with colonial monuments and traces in the public space? Ever since the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent worldwide demonstrations in the context of the Black Lives Matter movement, the discussion about historic monuments has been rekindled.

An indigenous ceremony to memorialize those who have fought in the resistance and honor the land.

The Ancestral Memory of Medicinal Plants in Covid-19

2020 Shaping the Past Fellow Thalia Fernández Bustamente writes about the impact Covid-19 has had on indigenous communities in Mexico and the challenges they are currently facing.

Memory: The Memorial of the Murdered Jews of Europe - Holocaust Memorial in Berlin, Germany

On the Mbembe Affair
The Specters of Comparison

Achille Mbembe has been accused of anti-Semitism. The ensuing debate raises fundamental questions about the culture of memory and freedom of expression. An article by Michael Rothberg.

Monument Lab Fellows and Goethe-Institut Staff during Research Trip

Monument Lab in Berlin

Over the summer, we traveled to Berlin with members of Monument Lab's 2019 Fellows cohort for a research trip, meeting with memory workers, cultural organizers, and public space advocates, touring both prominent and grassroots sites of memory.

Monumental Violence, from Germany to the United States

Joel Garcia reflects on his time in Berlin, especially around the ways the formerly divided city offered a site to engage borders and monumentality in the U.S., and considers narratives of freedom and manifestations of white supremacy.

The Berlin Wall’s Second Act

Cheyenne Concepcion considers her time in Berlin, especially the ways the formerly divided city offers a site to engage borders and monumentality back in the U.S. while inquiring about the (after)lives of border walls as sites to reckon with legacies of division.

The Power of the Message: Send us your message!

Alisha Wormsley, Ayanah Moor and some very special helpers show you in a short video how to create from everyday objects you may already have at home. Send us a photo of your kite, poster, or yard sign and we will publish it on our Facebook and Instagram pages!
Watch the video

Our Fellows

The fellows for Shaping the Past come from Monument Lab's 2019 and 2020 fellowship cohorts and were selected from an applications pool of over 100 memory workers throughout North America and Germany with existing projects using art, activism, history, journalism, and other tools to approach monuments in their communities. Applications were reviewed by a jury representing the fields of art, history, and social engagement, who recommended applicants who demonstrated excellence, innovative processes and projects for public engagement.

Updated October 22
In the News

Recent media reports and events featuring our fellows and partners.

Our Partners

Shaping the Past is produced in partnership with the Goethe-Institut, Monument Lab, and the Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (Federal Agency for Civic Education).