With a ban in the offing for environmental reasons, the plastic bag has already achieved the status of a historical cult object. Parallel to the exhibition on the Stankowski + Duschek graphic design studio, in 2020 the Kunstbibliothek will be displaying 40 plastic bags from the Berlin-based Sadecki Collection (Cool Collection Berlin) in its showcase next to the reading room.

The selection features bags that use the company logo as the graphic starting point for a colourful geometric design ‒ bags on which the trademark grows the pattern. The exhibit includes the oldest German plastic shopping bag, produced for the Horton department store in 1961, an original version of the classic ALDI Fruhtrunk bag, and Anton Stankowski’s designs for REWE.

An evening of impetus lectures (date to be announced) from the fields of enviromental protection, futurology, packaging design and material development illuminates the topic of plastic bags from various perspectives to permit a critical reassessment.