The 22nd of April 2024 marks the 300th anniversary of the birth of the philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724–1804). To this day, Kant’s ground-breaking contribution to the Enlightenment, his thoughts on ethics, emancipation, epistemology and international law have lost none of their significance as points of reference. The exhibition sets out to introduce his work to a general audience, and especially to young visitors, who do not necessarily have any solid grounding in philosophy.

The four famous Kantian questions: ‘What can I know?’, ‘What ought I to do?’, ‘What can I hope for?’, ‘What is man?’ will structure the exhibition. High-quality paintings, graphics, scientific instruments, maps and manuscripts will visualise the central themes of the Enlightenment. At the same time, the historical person Immanuel Kant, his environment and his networks will come into focus. Kant’s biography was closely linked to the urban environment of Königsberg (today’s Kaliningrad, Russia), where he lived for 73 years. As the intellectual centre of its time, the Prussian royal seat left its mark on the whole of Germany and Europe. This is why we are bringing the baroque city of Königsberg, which was completely destroyed in 1944/45, back to life in a virtual reconstruction. VR stations allow visitors to take an imaginary journey into the world of Immanuel Kant.

An exhibition in cooperation with the Ostpreußisches Landesmuseum, Lüneburg.

The cooperation with the Digital Kant Centre NRW and the University of Bonn forms a thematic bridge to the major international Kant Congress, which will be hosted by the University of Bonn and the Kant Society in September 2024.