Who was Marcel Reich-Ranicki? What should be highlighted and remembered in an exhibition about him? His incredible life’s work, his numerous fields of interest, but also the historic events that so greatly influenced Reich-Ranicki’s biography make it difficult to encapsulate the phenomenon that Reich-Ranicki embodied. Yet these things also make it all the more exciting to focus on the many different roles that Reich-Ranicki adopted or was forced to adopt during his lifetime.
The exhibition at the German Exile Archive 1933–1945 is curated by Uwe Wittstock, author of the book “Marcel Reich-Ranicki. Die Biografie” and Sylvia Asmus, Head of the German Exile Archive. In seven chapters, it examines the complex personality that was Reich-Raniki. The exhibition introduces Reich-Ranicki to visitors as a contemporary witness, a man in search of a homeland, a critic, literature advocate, friend, media star and as someone who felt ambivalent towards his Jewish heritage.
The exhibition is sponsored by Kulturfonds Frankfurt RheinMain (Frankfurt RheinMain Culture Fund) and Stiftung Polytechnische Gesellschaft (Polytechnical Association Foundation). In cooperation with ZDF.
Temporary Exhibition of the German Exile Archiv 1933-1945 in Frankfurt am Main
3 June 2022 until 14 January 2023
Photo: F.A.Z.-Photo/Frank Röth