Greenland’s society is currently undergoing a transformation that is having an incredible impact on the world’s largest island and its inhabitants. It is influencing every aspect of life and all walks of life. The same applies to Switzerland, which also shares other similarities with Greenland. Thus, it seems only natural to stage an exhibition here that reflects the influence of change on Greenlandic society and the island. Yet two things are surprising: the exhibition is being shown in Switzerland’s Alpine museum, and it feels more like being in Greenland rather than an exhibition about Greenland.
Permafrost and ice masses, a seemingly untouched nature, lots of folklore and traditions and a language barely understood by the rest of the world on the one hand. Melting glaciers, rising tourism numbers, large predators moving into agricultural areas, natural disasters, uncertainties due to the geopolitical situation on the other hand. These are the similarities between Switzerland and Greenland that come to mind when looking at these two “islands” (Switzerland is often referred to as an island within Europe).
From Friday, visitors will be able to experience another similarity: the exhibition “Greenland – Everything changes” at the ALPS Museum (formerly the Alpine Museum of Switzerland) will be open to the public. Spread over two floors, the exhibition shows how the changes currently taking place on the world’s largest island are affecting virtually every aspect of life and the Greenlandic environment. The extraordinary thing about this exhibition is that the museum does not simply display objects. Instead, visitors are fitted with headphones and guided through a series of themed rooms where people from three Greenlandic places share personal and profound insights into their lives and how the various forms of change affect them.
Not about Greenland, but in the midst of Greenland
The people responsible for this new and, for the ALPS Museum, revolutionary presentation of a topic beyond the high mountains are museum curator and director Beat Hächler and film director and co-curator Gian Suhner. “In recent years, Greenland has taken on global significance, as has climate change,” says Director Hächler in his address at a media event at the museum. ”Greenland is a world laboratory that shows the big picture on a small scale. And Greenland is also a mirror that reflects what drives the world. This is what we want to address in our exhibition.” Whether it’s climate change, which has now reached all regions and corners of the earth, the hunger for new and old resources such as rare earths or fish, the increase in tourism or the urbanization of society, everything affects Greenland just as in other parts of the world.
And yet Greenland is a special case, especially in the Arctic region. This is because Greenland is a society in which the indigenous people are the majority, not the minority. And it is in a state of transition, finally trying to come to terms with the issue of colonization by Denmark and to move on, to go its own way. “Nothing about us without us” is the guiding principle that has even been included in the Greenlandic government’s strategy paper. And the same goes for the exhibition at ALPS. “We didn’t want an exhibition about Greenland, but one around Greenland,” explains co-curator Gian Suhner.
Right in the middle of it all – an experience for all the senses
At the heart of the exhibition are video presentations shot and edited by Gian Suhner and his film team. The team traveled to Greenland three times over a period of two years, specifically to Nuuk, Ilulissat and Kullorsuaq in Northwest Greenland. Over the course of several weeks, sometimes with the help of interpreters, they visited and spoke with more than 30 people there. The fact that the people are not just well-known personalities like Minister Naaja Hjelholt Nathanielsen or social media influencer Qupanuk Olsen, better known as Q, turns the exhibition into a very personal experience. Teachers, fishermen, scientists, artists and people from the cultural scene, young and old, they all form a panopticon of Greenlandic society and share their thoughts on Greenland’s past, present and future.
In various themed rooms, ranging from research to music and separated by rope curtains made from recycled ocean plastic, not only the people interviewed are shown. On large double screens, the exhibition presents Greenland as it really is and not just as it is imagined. The exhibition presents footage of cross-country skiers gliding past the shadow of a power plant, traffic chaos in Nuuk, workers in fishing factories and render videos of planned airports, as well as dog sledding across the ice, kayaking along the coast, and hunting seals and whales. And of course, there is also a polar bear to be discovered, which, as in Greenland, does not reveal itself at first glance.
The sequence of the clips, however, is not fast-paced, but leisurely, to allow viewers to immerse themselves fully in the visual world. Thanks to the headphones, the exhibition is not only a visual trip to Greenland, but also an auditory one. Right in the middle of it all.
Part of the exhibition is not just about seeing and hearing, however, but also about discovery: in several boxes, ALPS presents objects that are connected to the various aspects of change in Greenland. Yet they must first be discovered, just as numerous research groups are currently doing so in Greenland.
The last room of the exhibition is designed to appeal to the ear. Here visitors can immerse themselves in the musical side of Greenland. Innunnguaq Petrussen, lead singer and guitarist of the Greenlandic band ‘Inuk’, was responsible for putting together the playlists. “I wanted to give an overview of the diversity of the Greenlandic music scene. Because it is very diverse,” he says. Whether folk, pop, rock or even hip hop or metal, there is something for everyone, demonstrating a small but very vibrant music scene. “In Nuuk, we tend to prefer pop and rock, while in the north it’s more rock and metal,” he explains. ‘But in the end it doesn’t matter, because music is one of the things that connects us.’ Yet another similarity to Switzerland with its vibrant music scene. Those who are interested can get a taste of it until August 16, 2026.
Anyone who wants to do more than just visit the exhibition should also take note of the events offered by ALPS. These range from discussion groups in the Museumsquartier to movie nights at the Kino Rex and beer and culinary tastings. And don’t worry, even there are more things in common than one might think.
Dr. Michael Wenger, Polar Journal AG
Exhibition Greenland – Everything changes
ALPS Museum, Helvetiaplatz 4, CH-3005 Bern
October 25, 2024 – August 16, 2026
Opening hours TUE – SUN 10am – 5pm
Admission: Regular CHF 18 / Children (-12 yrs) free / Teenagers (12 – 16 yrs) CHF 6 / Apprentices & students CHF 12 / IV CHF 12
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