Yes, we care. Das Neue Frankfurt und die Frage nach dem Gemeinwohl

Exhibition

The exhibition Yes, we care. The New Frankfurt and the Pursuit of the Common Good is dedicated to the topic of care for the common good and welfare – its institutions and associations, its people, concepts and initiatives during the 1920s. At the same time, it draws a connection to today’s care crisis, which is not only evident in the debate about the unequal distribution of care work between men and women, but also in access to affordable housing and the provision of care services in urban districts.

“Care” refers to nursing, welfare and diligence – both interpersonal and socio-political. In the 1920s, concern for the common good was a central motif of Frankfurt’s urban planning. Under Ernst May, the city gained a forward-looking dynamic through the housing and urban development programme of the ‘New Frankfurt’: municipal welfare, health and educational institutions were created, educational reforms were initiated, and new infrastructures such as central laundries and heating plants were designed to make everyday life easier.

Many projects from this period are still in use today; while others – such as kindergartens, community centres and libraries – never came to fruition. It is precisely these that show how much the common good and social visions determined urban progress at that time.

The exhibition Yes, we care asks which ideas and institutions of the 1920s shaped everyday life and whether their concepts can offer answers to today's crises in care, education and social justice. On display are objects, texts, photographs, films and audio recordings from the fields of education, household, social affairs and health – linked to current perspectives on our shared future.

Curator: Grit Weber