Exhibition: 12 May 12 – 9 November 2016
The Waldsiedlung Wandlitz, part of the town of Bernau, is still regarded in East and West Germany as a symbol for the political style and lifestyle of the SED power elite, their privileges and increasing seclusion from the GDR population’s reality of life. The exhibition provides a critical overview of the history of the residential area of the SED’s top-ranking officials, built in 1958 and occupied until 1990. A great number of objects, photographs and documents show the facilities and furnishings, the security regime and the special provisioning of the Waldsiedlung – the latter regarded with particular suspicion by the GDR population. The visitors gain an insight into the living environment of the members of the Politburo, their families and their security and service staff. Also, the implications of the residential complex for the municipality of Wandlitz and the whole Barnim region play a role. This can be comprehended by the visitors on a walkable map of the Barnim nature preserve. Addressing the ‘conquest’ of the Waldsiedlung by the GDR media, which had become more courageous, the exhibition evaluates one of the important symbolic acts of the ‘Peaceful Revolution’ in 1989.
