Democratising the Museum: Citizens' Assemblies in Bonn and Dresden

Name: DemocracyNext
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The question asked of citizens in both cities was:

"How should the institution evolve to remain a relevant, welcoming, inclusive, and diverse public space that enables social dialogue on the most pressing issues of these rapidly changing times?"

DemocracyNext and Design & Democracy have collaborated on groundbreaking Citizens’ Assemblies on democratising the museum.

Bundeskunsthalle and SKD, two major cultural institutions - one in the East and one in the West of Germany - each commissioned a Citizens' Assembly that took place in autumn 2023 about democratising the museum. Their aim was to re-evaluate the relevance of cultural institutions in regards to their broader role in society. This was the first time that cultural institutions implemented deliberative assemblies in this way anywhere in the world.

The question asked of citizens in both cities was: "How should the institution (Bundeskunsthalle / Dresden Kunstgewerbemuseum / SKD) evolve to remain a relevant, welcoming, inclusive, and diverse public space that enables social dialogue on the most pressing issues of these rapidly changing times?"

Each assembly was comprised of 30-35 people selected by lottery to be broadly representative of the Bonn and Dresden Communities and met for four days of informed deliberation.

The assemblies are followed by exhibits on the history and future of democracy with both museums in Bonn and Dresden. The exhibit at the Bundeskunsthalle (Art and Exhibition Hall of the Federal Republic of Germany) opened on 29 May 2024 in Bonn and will open in 2025 at the Dresden Kunstgewerbemuseum / SKD (Decorative Arts Museum), showcasing historical artefacts such as ballots, posters, parliamentary architecture, as well as exploring the ways in which the democratic paradigm is currently undergoing transformation.

Both the exhibits and assemblies pose questions raised by the last few decades of turmoil in democratic processes and institutions. Traditional systems are in crisis, and tend to incentivise short-termism, re-election, and risk avoidance to the detriment of long-term thinking, the public good, complexity, and innovation.

What could new democratic institutions look like, if we started by asking what is the best way of taking collective public decisions? What would new democratic spaces - both physical and virtual - look like to help fulfil these principles of genuine equality and inclusion?

Further details on the Bundeskunsthalle Assembly and the Assembly report (in German).

Further details on the Dresden Kunstgewerbemuseum Assembly (in German).