Half Life Chornobyl

On April 26, 1986, the Chernobyl nuclear power plant suffered what is believed to be the largest civilian nuclear accident to date. Almost 10 years later, in 1995, the German Hygiene Museum in Dresden commissioned photographer Volker Kreidler to document the consequences of the disaster for people, places and nature. in 2015, the photographer returned to the exclusion zone to capture the reconquest of nature through the predominant absence of humans with his camera. in 2025, Volker Kreidler traveled to Kyiv again; the photographs are a highly topical testimony to the political present in Ukraine. The works from 2025 focus on the resilience of the people in Kyiv and the exclusion zone, also in the context of the conditions during the Russian war of aggression.

The exhibition "Half life Chornobyl" in the Bastion Kronprinz of the Spandau Citadel presents this long-term project comprehensively; as a manifesto that visualizes the limits of the controllability of our high-tech world. From the permanent invisible threat of radiation to systemic corruption and escalation through acts of war: Kreidler's images make it clear that the risk of nuclear power is never static, but takes on unpredictable dimensions, especially in times of crisis.

Since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, Volker Kreidler (* 1962) has dedicated himself to the photographic exploration of Eastern Europe. His work is situated in the field of tension between rapprochement with the West and the associated challenges in questions of democracy, education, human rights and interpersonal relationships.Translated with DeepL

Runtime: Fri, 03/07/2026 to Sun, 29/11/2026

Price info: Almost every 1st Sunday of the month is Citadel Sunday and admission is free.

Price: €4.50

Reduced price: €2.50

Reduced price info: Pupils - children aged 6-14 - students - trainees - people who receive transfer benefits (ALG II, social welfare, benefits under the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act) - GdB 50, MdE on presentation of the relevant ID.

public guided tours of Spandau Citadelevery Saturday and Sunday at 2 pm€4.50 per person plus Citadel ticket

(on the last Saturday of the month, the guided tour ofthe exhibition "Unveiled. Berlin and its monuments")

The following guided tours are canceled due to major events:

04. + 05.04.202602. + 03.05.2026July 11, 202603. + 04.10.2026

Takes place here:

• Zitadelle Spandau