Maya Mercer’s photo series “The parochial segments” is the starting point for her joint project “YUBA – Ring of fire” with playwright and author Albert Ostermaier.

Originally, Yuba County in California, like the entire United States, belonged to Native Americans. Entire indigenous communities (societies, peoples, tribes) were attacked by the gold prospectors and driven off their land.

Maya Mercer’s “YUBA – Ring of fire”

Mercer’s protagonists are the descendants of white people who strayed here less than 100 years ago, fleeing the destruction (and drought) of their agriculture in the Great Plains. These “Okies” flooded California in waves that remind us of today’s migration movements, and encountered the same resistance, prejudice and cruelty – from their fellow American whites. This was not a racial conflict, but a class conflict, and it still is.

Maya Mercer has known this community since her youth and lived there continuously from 2012 to 2021. Mercer staged and photographed mainly local teenage girls and a boy with indigenous roots. The photographs are not a direct “reportage”, but rather see themselves as an artistic record of a “karmic debt” to the land, which is now characterised by extreme drought as a result of climate change.

Albert Ostermaier has taken up the mood of the photographs and written a series of poems. This has resulted in a combination of two different art forms, which will be reflected in a reading by Ostermaier.

Accompanying programme:

This event will no longer take place this month. Click on the arrows to get an overview of the next months.

Further offers

Get out of the studio, grab your yoga mat and head down to the Kunsthaus! The combination of contemporary art and yoga offers a particular change of perspective, awakens the senses and enhances perception of […]
Back in his day Joseph Beuys recognised that “everybody is an artist” and can be creative in different ways. Inspired by themes and techniques in the current exhibition and with professional guidance, young and old […]
Once a month on a Sunday afternoon, independent Göttingen-based artist and illustrator Ruth Reiche will lure you into the world of drawing. Inspired by the current exhibition, which you will get to know during a […]
Twice a month after a hard day at work you can simply soak up the end-of-day atmosphere and let art soothe your soul. Look forward to exciting exhibition themes sprinkled with interesting anecdotes, followed by […]

Children and families

Vacation time is art time. On two consecutive days children aged eight and over can get creative each morning and delve into the world of contemporary art and the KuQua arts district with the help […]
Bringing the family to the Kunsthaus? Not a problem! One Saturday each month is dedicated to family time at Kunsthaus Göttingen. Young and old together embark upon a journey of discovery through the exhibition spaces […]
Art? You can do it! After the children explore the exhibition spaces filled with countless exciting works of art, they can draw, print or film to their hearts’ content. Once a month, children aged six […]
Children big and small can celebrate their birthdays at Kunsthaus Göttingen. After a little discovery tour through the exhibition on a specific theme and with lots of little art-themed games, the birthday guests will then […]

Schools at the Kunsthaus

For each exhibition there will be an introductory teacher workshop. Following a dialog-based overview tour, interested teachers can try out the bookable and the public educational offerings and begin crafting their first plans and ideas […]
For school classes in particular, a visit to the Kunsthaus should be as lively and as activity- and skills-oriented as possible, so that all classes and levels are given access to art. The programme invites […]
Kunsthaus Göttingen is happy to work with schools (not just in Göttingen!) to realize various project days and weeks covering the areas of photography, print and poster art, as well as new media. Contact us […]
Learn English outside the classroom and talk naturally about art-related themes outside the school setting: Kunsthaus Göttingen makes it possible. Part of learning English is exploring new, unfamiliar terrain and putting yourself in situations in […]