VOLLGEPACKT

PACKED with anticipation, wanderlust, wishes and dreams, but also with worries, disappointments and losses, many of the so-called ‘guest workers’ and their descendants continue to this day to travel back and forth between two homelands. Since the recruitment agreements of the mid-1950s, a complex sense of home has therefore developed in many families across several generations. The exhibition VOLLGEPACKT explores this theme through the lens of Turkish-German migration stories. It is based on a photo series by Alwin Maigler, commissioned for the Mercedes-Benz Art Collection and produced in collaboration with the Turkish Employee Network – a network of the company’s employees. During the summer of 2024, the artist travelled in a historic Mercedes-Benz along the so-called ‘home land route’ documenting memorable encounters with people, places and their stories. The exhibition is accompanied by video interviews and a poetic contribution by Merve Kayıkçı.

Venue and opening hours

Projektraum Kunstverein Wagenhalle, e.V., Innerer Nordbahnhof 1, 70191 Stuttgart
Open Tue–Fri 16:00–19:00, Sat/Sun 14:00–17:00
Free admission

Events and Educational Programme

In an effort to foster a wide-ranging dialogue and expand on the exhibition’s core themes, the exhibition project is accompanied by a dynamic programme of events.

Please register for all events (except the public opening) at alina.grehl@mercedes-benz.com.

09 July 2023, from 6.30 pm: Public Opening

Join us in celebrating the opening of the exhibition!

We will be taking photographs at the opening. Please let us know if you do not wish for any photos in which you appear to be published.

12 July 2026, 11.00 am to 12.30 pm: Matinee event with Staatsoper Stuttgart

In a panel discussion, Julia Schmitt (dramaturg, Staatsoper Stuttgart), Goran Juric (singer, Staatsoper Stuttgart) and Alwin Maigler (artist featured in the VOLLGEPACKT exhibition) will discuss their creative process in designing and realising the photo series “Başardık” and the “mixtape opera” Station Paradiso. Both artistic projects explore a complex sense of home through the history of so-called “guest workers”. How did they approach the subject, and which visual, musical and thematic elements played a central role? What similarities and differences arise in their approaches based on the different artistic media of opera and photography?

With a musical contribution by Goran Juric (bass, Staatsoper Stuttgart) and Alan Hamilton (piano accompanist, Staatsoper Stuttgart), from the “mixtape opera” Station Paradiso.

15 July 2026, 6.30 pm to 7.45 pm: Panel discussion  

The panel discussion brings together people from various communities who have a connection to the history of so-called ‘guest workers’. Joining the discussion are Anna Koktsidou (former Diversity and Integration Officer at SWR) and Luka Babic (PhD candidate at the University of Tübingen). They will share insights from their professional and research work – for example, on diversity and tolerance in the media and corporate culture, or the so-called “Jugo-Liga”. The discussion will also focus on personal experiences, their family histories and what “home” means to them. Through dialogue, the associated challenges as well as possibilities and opportunities will be explored – including potential similarities and differences. The event will be moderated by Vatan Ukaj (democracy trainer, founder of WERTansich(t) and political scientist).  

18 July 2026, 5.00 pm to 6.00 pm: Artist and Travel Talk with Alwin Maigler and Constantin Schiller

In a joint discussion, Alina Grehl (curator of the VOLLGEPACKT exhibition), Alwin Maigler (artist featured in the VOLLGEPACKT exhibition) and Constantin Schiller (photographer and travel companion for the commissioned work) will discuss the planning and realisation of the commissioned work “Başardık”. In addition to details about the photographic series, there will also be a look ‘behind-the-scenes’ from the artists’ three-week road trip to Turkey.

22 July 2026, 6.30 pm to 7.30 pm: Lecture by Thordis Kokot

Thordis Kokot, MA, M.Ed. (PhD candidate at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) will give a lecture introducing her dissertation project on so-called female “guest workers” from Greece in the Federal Republic of Germany during the 1960s to 1980s. Her research focuses on forms and themes of political action and the intersection between migration history, everyday life history, labour history and gender history, as well as (transnational) German social history.

23 July 2026, 6.00 pm to 7.00 pm: Special guided tour with Alwin Maigler and Merve Kayıkçı

In the exhibition VOLLGEPACKT, Alwin Maigler and Merve Kayıkçı’s photographic and poetic approaches to the exhibition’s theme come together. In a special guided tour, they will introduce us to their artistic projects and their chosen key themes, creative approaches and visual languages.

24 July 2026, 5.30 pm to 7.00 pm: Dialogic reading with Nejdet Niflioglu

Nejdet Niflioglu (founder of the Turkish Employee Network and former Diversity Manager at Mercedes-Benz) will read from his book Von Gastarbeitern zu Hoffnungsträgern [From Guest Workers to Bearers of Hope] (Molino Verlag, 2023). Drawing on his personal migration story, he explores Germany’s relationship with immigrants in his publication. The event is designed as a dialogue-based format and aims to foster a shared discourse and exchange.

26 July 2026, 3.00 pm to 4.00 pm: Curator’s tour with Alina Grehl

Join Alina Grehl (curator of the exhibition VOLLGEPACKT) on a guided tour to explore the exhibited artworks and installations. The tour offers an insight into the background of the commissioned work and the exhibition concept.

28 July 2026, 6.30 pm to 7.30 pm: Reading organised by art history students from the University of Stuttgart

31 July 2026, 6.30 pm to 7.30 pm: Curator’s tour with Alina Grehl

Join Alina Grehl (curator of the exhibition VOLLGEPACKT) on a guided tour to explore the exhibited artworks and installations. The tour offers an insight into the background of the commissioned work and the exhibition concept.

tbd: Concert organised by art history students from the University of Stuttgart

All events are recommended for participants aged 12 and over.

Special tours for school groups are also available outside opening hours on request.