Published on 20 Mar 2024
Three countries times three houses - that's nine different house stories: Zittau-based photographer Rafael Sampedro has portrayed people who live or work in Umgebindehouses, who accommodate guests or are in the process of saving a house. He expresses the variety of uses and the special features of the building style. Above all, however, the relationship between the people and their houses becomes tangible. We get an idea of the power of this folk architecture: the heart of the house beats in the warm log cabin - the soul of the border triangle is given space in the Umgebindehouse.
The traveling photo exhibition started in March 2023 in the MEDA Mittelherwigsdorf in March 2023, and it is now in its third location: the Konrad-Wachsmann-Haus in Niesky. Guests made their way to the venue for the exhibition opening on March 12, 2024.
Wieland Menzel, the Umgebindehouse consultant from Dittelsdorf, curated the exhibition as part of the European research project TExTOUR and introduced the exhibition with his presentation on life in the Umgebindehouse.
A journey through the centuries provided an overview of how the Umgebindehouse has developed into what it is today: part of the identity of the tri-national region at the border between Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic. After the lecture, the guests made their way to the exhibition rooms, where the photos offered them the possibility to walk through the Umgebindehouse life. Some of the house owners portrayed were among the guests and talked about their experiences and their lives in the historic building.
For the next few months, guests of the Konrad Wachmann House will be able to visit and marvel at the exhibition on the upper floor. New locations for further exhibition spaces, including in Poland and the Czech Republic, are already being sought.
