Uffrur – 500 Years of the Peasants’ War in Bad Schussenried

The exhibition “Uffrur” at Bad Schussenried Monastery commemorated the 500th anniversary of the Peasants’ Wars – and brought together history, media art and emotion in an impressive way. It was designed by Jangled Nerves, who reinterpreted the historical material with modern technologies. For me, it was a special photographic experience to capture history not as a retrospective, but as a living experience.

History meets the present

The Peasants’ War is a chapter that is difficult to capture in pictures – between idealism, suffering and rebellion. In “Uffrur”, this tension became palpable: through immersive spaces, media stagings and a clear design line. My task was to translate this atmosphere photographically without losing the intensity of the scenography.

AI characters as narrators

Particularly fascinating were the AI-generated figures, who acted as virtual contemporary witnesses through the exhibition. Their faces seemed familiar and foreign at the same time – a deliberately chosen effect that oscillated between documentation and fiction. In combination with the specially produced films, a narrative rhythm was created, which was also photographically challenging: changing lighting moods, projections, interaction.

Between darkness and projection

The lighting conditions in the monastery were demanding – from deep shadows to strongly directed spot effects. I worked with calm exposures and selective post-processing to maintain the color temperature of the projections. This mixture of real spatial architecture and digital light made the series special for me. A similar interplay of atmosphere and technology was already evident in the “Weltenbrand” exhibition at the House of Bavarian History.

An exhibition with attitude

“Uffrur” is not a classic history exhibition. It challenges, asks questions and uses digital tools to make attitudes visible. This is precisely what makes projects like this so exciting – because they show that visual communication goes beyond mere information. For me as a photographer, this means: finding the moment in which content and staging become one.