Circular Economy in Focus: Technisches Museum Wien Launches Special Exhibition

From "Fast Fashion" to nutrition: With the new special exhibition "More than Recycling," the Vienna Museum of Technology (TMW) aims to demonstrate ways to preserve resources instead of wasting them. This thought-provoking initiative is intended to succeed through new perspectives and ideas, as well as interactive opportunities, which will be presented starting Wednesday (June 18). "It requires a conscious collective decision," said TMW Director General Peter Aufreiter to journalists on Tuesday.

Abstaining, repairing, recycling - what was once taken for granted is now coming back into focus in times of limited raw materials and resources, or is being brought into focus: On five levels of the building in Vienna-Penzing, disposable concepts are contrasted with a sustainable circular economy, offering interactive stations and the opportunity to rethink the handling of things. An interactive "Utopia Path," which runs through the exhibition until December 30, 2026, serves as a common thread, prompting decisions for a specific solution approach that ultimately results in an individual utopia.

A conveyor belt with various discarded objects is intended at the entrance to invite reflection on value and worthlessness and the subjective perception of it. In the first station of the exhibition, soil cross-sections make the consequences of different cultivation methods visible. It also shows which simple measures can prevent soil depletion and how new agricultural concepts from aquaponics - usually a combination of fish and vegetable farming - to vertical farming work.

Vienna Museum of Technology: New Solutions for "Fast Fashion"

The next area of the exhibition, implemented in cooperation with the Ministry of Infrastructure, is entered through an oversized T-shirt, which stands as an example of the excesses of the textile industry - keyword overproduction and exploitation. In addition to outlining the problems, such as the challenging recycling process, solutions like fibers made from fully degradable algae are presented here.

Also discussed are recyclable materials such as hook-and-loop fasteners made from wood or bacterial cellulose as a substitute for petroleum. The numerous advantages of plastics are contrasted with the enormous environmental damage. Here, there is an opportunity to take a look at various research projects that aim to help reduce this discrepancy. Additionally, a gripping machine allows various objects to be "fished" and their suitability for recycling to be explored.

Does Everyone Need a Cotton Candy Machine?

Another station is dedicated to the approach of "borrowing instead of buying," which stands in contrast to individual shopping behavior - a cotton candy machine for every household. As a representative example, a database by Belgian artist Barbara Iweins is referenced, in which she has documented her mobile possessions comprising 12,795 objects. A livestream of a light bulb that has been continuously lit since 1901 is intended to illustrate that longevity was once taken for granted. "This is my favorite object from a time before planned obsolescence," says Aufreiter, referring to products designed to break quickly.

In terms of a sustainable exhibition concept, according to project manager Jürgen Öhlinger, a large part of the existing furniture from the previous special exhibition was reused for "More than Recycling." New acquisitions were significantly reduced and planned to be circular from the start, so they can be used beyond the exhibition period. Additionally, sustainable building materials such as clay plaster were used, according to the information provided.

Longevity also characterizes an ÖBB unique piece that was just handed over to the TMW and will be on display in the permanent mobility exhibition: a cable car that was in service for over 70 years in the Stubachtal in Salzburg. Nearly two years after its last ride, the red gondola is already set to provide a preview of the special exhibition in the fall for the 200th anniversary of the railway, for which preparations are in full swing.

(APA/Red)

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