ACT’s Azra Akšamija Unveils Major Public Art Project, “Eulensicht” (Owl’s Wisdom)

Above images: Azra Aksamija and the Future Heritage Lab, Eulensicht, 2026. Photo: © Stefanie vom Stein, City of Wuppertal.

Breker, one of Adolf Hitler’s favorite sculptors and a leading figure in Nazi art propaganda during the Third Reich, created the Pallas Athene for the school’s entrance in the 1950s, a commission that exemplifies how Nazi-affiliated artists continued to receive prestigious public commissions in post-war Germany. The sculpture has sparked debate for years, particularly after being toppled in 2003 in protest against the Iraq War, with graffiti reading “Away with Breker’s war goddess.”

Rather than removing the sculpture, the city of Wuppertal, with major support from the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, initiated a competition in 2023 for a contemporary artistic intervention. Akšamija’s proposal was selected from among prominent artists in February 2024.

Above images: Azra Aksamija and the Future Heritage Lab, Eulensicht, 2026. Photo: © Stefanie vom Stein, City of Wuppertal.

“Eulensicht” employs what Akšamija calls “sedimentary intervention,” an approach inspired by archaeological methodology that reveals multiple historical layers simultaneously. The work consists of an interactive bronze sculpture in the form of an owl’s head mounted on a classical column, positioned directly beside Breker’s Pallas Athene.

The owl (the traditional attribute of Athena as goddess of wisdom, which Breker notably omitted in favor of emphasizing the martial aspects of spear and helmet) serves as both symbolic commentary and literal viewing device. Visitors can look through the owl’s eyes, which function as binoculars, to see Breker’s sculpture framed by a stencil silhouette of the Athena emblem used on Nazi propaganda materials, including the catalog covers of the “Great German Art Exhibition” from 1937 onward.

Through the binoculars, viewers experience a carefully calibrated optical overlay: Breker’s three-dimensional bronze figure appears superimposed with the dark silhouette of the Nazi propaganda Athena profile, creating a visual “archaeology” that reveals the ideological layers embedded in what appears to be a neutral classical form. This complex optical operation required precise alignment and calibration to ensure that the two-dimensional stencil and three-dimensional sculpture align perfectly in the viewer’s field of vision.

Prof. Mechtild Widrich [MIT alumna, PhD in the History of Art and Architecture, 2009], who contributed to the project publication, observes: “A performative monument builds up a social interaction in which the viewers must involve themselves, become activated, and in the ideal case, a kind of democratic process emerges. I believe there is a lot of potential in that, especially when it comes to historical gray zones and gray zones in interpretation.”

“The project addresses multiple levels of problematic history,” Akšamija explains in the accompanying publication. “First, the Nazi aesthetics embedded in what appears to be a classical figure; second, how Breker, despite his active role in NS art politics, continued a lucrative career in post-war Germany; and third, how we prevent monuments from losing their meaning and context over time.”

Above images: Azra Aksamija and the Future Heritage Lab, Eulensicht, 2026. Process photo. Courtesy of Azra Aksamija and the Future Heritage Lab.

The sculpture features a day and night transformation that extends its critical function. During daylight, the viewing experience remains individual and voluntary. After dark, a light projecting from one of the owl’s eyes illuminates Breker’s statue and casts its shadow large-scale onto the school facade, where a quote from philosopher George Santayana becomes visible: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” (in German: “Wer sich nicht an die Vergangenheit erinnern kann, ist dazu verdammt, sie zu wiederholen”).

Wilhelm Dörpfeld, after whom the school is named, was a pioneering German archaeologist known for his work on ancient Greece, particularly at Troy and the Athenian Acropolis. The school maintains a strong “Profile: Antiquity” with emphasis on classical languages and Mediterranean cultural history. Akšamija’s intervention draws on Dörpfeld’s stratigraphic excavation methods as a metaphor for excavating suppressed historical narratives.

The project has garnered significant institutional support. Ina Brandes, Minister for Culture and Science of North Rhine-Westphalia, stated: “Instead of removing or merely contextualizing the artwork, a contemporary work of art is placed alongside it, enabling a new perspective.”

Above images: Azra Aksamija and the Future Heritage Lab, Eulensicht, 2026. Photo: © Stefanie vom Stein, City of Wuppertal.

The realization of Eulensicht required extensive interdisciplinary collaboration and complex engineering. The MIT Future Heritage Lab team led the development and production of the sculpture’s sophisticated kinetic mechanism. Working with heavy bronze, the team faced the challenge of creating a sculpture that could be easily operated by users of different sizes and abilities, including children and wheelchair users.

Engineer Charles Hitchcock, together with Merve Akdoğan (SMArchS ’24), the Future Heritage Lab’s lead design researcher, spearheaded the engineering and three-dimensional design development. They were supported by MIT PhD students in engineering ZhiYi Liang (SM ’21, PhD ‘26) and Juan Romero (PhD ‘28). The interdisciplinary team of artists, architects, and engineers conducted hundreds of hours of trial and error, producing multiple models, tests, and drawings to perfect the design.

The kinetic mechanism operates on a principle similar to a drinking bird, allowing the heavy bronze owl’s head to move fluidly and be easily adjusted by users with minimal effort. This engineering solution was not merely technical but conceptually crucial: by making the sculpture accessible to children and students of all abilities, the design embodies democratic principles and ensures that critical historical reflection is available to all members of the school community.

Penelope Phylactopoulos coordinated operations between multiple stakeholders throughout the complex production process, ensuring seamless collaboration between the MIT team, German fabricators, landscape architects, and institutional partners.

Above images: Azra Aksamija and the Future Heritage Lab, Eulensicht, 2026. Process photo. Courtesy of Azra Aksamija and the Future Heritage Lab.

Artistic Concept and Design: Azra Akšamija

Design Research: Merve Akdoğan, Thera Webb

Project Development: Merve Akdoğan, Ghida Anouti, Penelope Phylactopoulos, Nadine Zaza

Conceptual Contributions: Christopher Hassan Allen, Svafa Grönfeldt, Dietmar Offenhuber. 

Project Management: Penelope Phylactopoulos

3D Planning and Visualizations: Merve Akdoğan

Mechanical Engineering and Technology: Charles Hitchcock, ZhiYi Liang, Juan Romero

Bronze Sculpture Production: Modern Art Foundry

Landscape Architecture: LAND Deutschland

Landscape Implementation: Herbert Plöttner, Garten- und Landschaftsbau GmbH

Major Funding: State of North Rhine-Westphalia (Land Nordrhein-Westfalen), German Ministry for Culture and Science, City of Wuppertal

Institutional Partners: Von der Heydt-Museum Wuppertal, Wilhelm-Dörpfeld-Gymnasium Wuppertal

Publication

A comprehensive publication documenting the project accompanies the unveiling, featuring conversations with critics and art historians, including MIT alumna Prof. Dr. Mechtild Widrich.

Event Details

Unveiling Ceremony Wednesday, January 28, 2026, 1:00 PM Wilhelm-Dörpfeld-Gymnasium Johannisberg 20, 42103 Wuppertal, Germany

Speakers:

• Matthias Nocke, City Director and Cultural Director of Wuppertal
• Claudia Schweizer-Motte, Principal of Wilhelm-Dörpfeld-Gymnasium
• Martin Schulte, History Teacher at Wilhelm-Dörpfeld-Gymnasium

Musical performance by students of Wilhelm-Dörpfeld-Gymnasium, directed by Dorothea Schenck.