Altes Landratsamt
21 May 2026 at 21:00
At first glance, the images appear strikingly similar: devastated landscapes, columns of tanks, marching soldiers. But also: the semblance of everyday life in the cities.
The project “Vom Kriege” reveals the timeless ambivalence of images of war. At its core are two amateur films from 1942, shot during the Second World War by an Italian and a German soldier in Ukraine. Beyond propagandistic imagery, they also capture private moments: celebrations, jokes, casual gestures—fragile instants within a violent context. Much of it resists clear interpretation and remains ambiguous. In this way, the historical footage becomes a disturbing mirror of the present.
The originally silent images are accompanied by a specially developed soundtrack for electronics, saxophone, percussion, and voice. Alessandro Palmitessa and Thomas Machoczek engage in a dialogue of acoustic and electronic sounds—partly composed, partly improvised—expanding the visual dimension with sonic impressions. Nazar Maidansky, a young Ukrainian singer, contributes folk songs and selected pieces from the classical repertoire.
“Vom Kriege” thus becomes a multimedia artistic experiment exploring the seemingly inescapable everydayness of war.
Funded by: Musikfonds; Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media; Cultural Office of the City of Moers
Supported by: Fondazione Home Movies – National Archive of Family Films; Cologne Film Heritage Foundation
