Against a white background, there is an erected rectangle with black lines. DOMiD is written in black bold letters in the center. The rectangle is open at the top left, above DOMiD; there it says 02. The rectangle is also open at the bottom right, above DOMiD; there you can see the word Lab.

Mind The Gap!

Exhibiting What's Missing

The second lab Mind The Gap! deals with the topic of collections, and particularly with what is missing from them. In every collection, and in every museum, there are missing objects as well as missing narratives – smaller or bigger gaps. The DOMiD collections also have such gaps: one of them is the lack of LGBTIQA+ perspectives. This raises the following questions: How can DOMiD's planned migration museum deal with gaps (in terms of design) in its permanent exhibition? In which ways can the LGBTIQA+ stories from within the migration society be told?

Thanks to the support and networks of SOFRA – Queer Migrants e.V., rubicon e.V. with baraka – a place for international queers and Integrationshaus e.V. with Spektrum Queer Group, enthusiastic participants could be found. Adrian Flaksbaum Moll, Akshay Kapadia and Elizaveta Khan joined the freelance curator Niko Wahl (Vienna) to form this lab’s curator-collective. They were accompanied in their work by the DOMiD project team. The design elements and formats were developed in collaboration with the exhibition builders from StiftungFREIZEIT.

The curator-collective met regularly to discuss and exchange on personal as well as societal LGBTIQA+ narratives and topics. Based on these exchanges, the team then developed and tested design elements and formats that translated the notion of “gap” both visually and spatially.

The work of the curator-collective concludes with an exhibition, Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants, which will be hosted by the Kulturbunker Köln-Mülheim.


The Lab team has agreed on using the term LGBTIQA+ as an abbreviation for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer, asexual and + for further diverse sexual orientations and gender identities. The German translation of the term is LSBTIQA+, standing for: Lesben, Schwule, Bisexuelle, trans* Personen, inter Personen, queere Personen, asexuelle Personen and + for further sexual and gender identities.

Against a pink background are various illustrations with black lines. In the center there is a museum building with a person holding up a sign in front of it. They are standing on two folders titled Biographies and Photo Album. To the left of the museum building is a person holding a speech bubble over the roof of the building with their disproportionately long left arm. To the right of the museum building is a hand holding a puzzle piece that appears as if it is to be inserted into the right side of the museum.

Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants

Against a neon yellow background is an illustration of a white star. Above it in black capital letters is written "MIND THE GAP!". The logo of Lab #02 can be seen at the top right. At the bottom right it says "Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants".

The exhibition Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants is the result of the DOMiDLabs’ second Lab. Based on personal stories and experiences, the exhibition addresses the hitherto prevailing gap of LGBTIQA+ perspectives in the DOMiD collections. Moreover, it explores various ways to deal with existing collection gaps both through the exhibition design and its contents.

Duration: 31.03. – 04.05.2023

Opening hours

Mondays, Tuesdays and public holidays closed
Wednesday through Friday: 3 – 7 pm
Saturdays and Sundays: noon (12) – 7 pm

Exhibition space: Kulturbunker Köln-Mülheim, Berliner Str. 20, 51063 Köln

Private group tours (max. 15 participants) on request at labs@domid.org
Admission to and participation in events free of charge

Program

Saturday, 01.04., 4 pm | Guided tour of the exhibition Mind The Gap!

Meeting point: Galerie at the Kulturbunker Cologne-Mülheim, registration until 30.03.2023 at labs@domid.org (max. 15 participants)

Members of the curatorial collective will guide through Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants. The tour is bilingual, in German and English. Participation in the event is free of charge.

Sunday, 02.04., 2 pm | Guided tour of the exhibition Mind The Gap!

Meeting point: Galerie at the Kulturbunker Cologne-Mülheim, registration until 30.03.2023 at labs@domid.org (max. 15 participants)

Members of the curatorial collective will guide through Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants. The tour is bilingual, in German and English. Participation in the event is free of charge.

Thursday, 06.04., 5 pm | Guided tour of the exhibition Mind The Gap!

Meeting point: Galerie at the Kulturbunker Cologne-Mülheim, registration until 04.04.2023 at labs@domid.org (max. 15 participants)

Members of the curatorial collective will guide through Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants. The tour is bilingual, in German and English. Participation in the event is free of charge.

Saturday, 08.04., 2 pm | Guided tour of the exhibition Mind The Gap!

Meeting point: Galerie at the Kulturbunker Cologne-Mülheim, registration until 06.04.2023 at labs@domid.org (max. 15 participants)

Members of the curatorial collective will guide through Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants. The tour is bilingual, in German and English. Participation in the event is free of charge.

Saturday, 15.04., 2 pm | Guided tour of the exhibition Mind The Gap!

Meeting point: Galerie at the Kulturbunker Cologne-Mülheim, registration until 13.04.2023 at labs@domid.org (max. 15 participants)

Members of the curatorial collective will guide through Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants. The tour is bilingual, in German and English. Participation in the event is free of charge..

Saturday, 22.04., 7 pm | Guided tour of the exhibition Mind The Gap! during Mülheimer Nacht

Meeting point: Galerie at the Kulturbunker Cologne-Mülheim, registration until 20.04.2023 at labs@domid.org (max. 15 participants)

Members of the curatorial collective will guide through Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants. The tour is bilingual, in German and English. Participation in the event is free of charge.

Friday, 28.04., 5 pm | Guided tour of the exhibition Mind The Gap!

Meeting point: Galerie at the Kulturbunker Cologne-Mülheim, registration until 26.04.2023 at labs@domid.org (max. 15 participants)

Members of the curatorial collective will guide through Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants. The tour is bilingual, in German and English. Participation in the event is free of charge.

Sunday, 30.04., 2 pm | Guided tour of the exhibition Mind The Gap!

Meeting point: Galerie at the Kulturbunker Cologne-Mülheim, registration until 28.04.2023 at labs@domid.org (max. 15 participants)

Members of the curatorial collective will guide through Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants. The tour is bilingual, in German and English. Participation in the event is free of charge.

Thursday, 04.05., 5:30 pm | Guided tour of the exhibition Mind The Gap!

Meeting point: Galerie at the Kulturbunker Cologne-Mülheim, registration until 02.05.2023 at labs@domid.org (max. 15 participants)

Members of the curatorial collective will guide through Mind The Gap! Narratives and Questions from LGBTIQA+ Migrants. The tour is bilingual, in German and English. Participation in the event is free of charge.