The Austrian engineer Alois Negrelli made a major contribution to the planning of the Suez Canal. His estate is held in the TMW archives and formed a key basis for the multi-year research project Colonial Infrastructures, which was funded by the Federal Ministry for Housing, Art, Culture, Media and Sport (BMWKMS). As part of the project, numerous historical documents were transcribed and scientifically evaluated. Key research questions centred on the motivations behind Austria’s involvement in the Suez Canal project and the economic benefits that resulted from it.
Drawing on diaries, photographs, maps and explanatory videos, this compact exhibition presents key findings from research into the archival holdings. The topics covered include an Austrian expedition to Egypt and the involvement of engineers and companies from the Habsburg Monarchy in colonial networks.
The Suez Canal – Between Engineering and Colonialism is on display as an intervention in the permanent exhibition Material Worlds. It is situated immediately adjacent to the Rubber exhibition area, which also sheds light on the colonial background to rubber extraction. This spatial connection illustrates how infrastructure projects accelerated colonial exploitation and the transport of raw materials to Europe, and made a significant contribution to European industrialisation.
Furthermore, the intervention serves as a showcase for the comprehensive TMW research project, which is presented in the multimedia web exhibition [re]framing Colonial Infrastructures. For anyone wishing to delve deeper into the TMW’s critical research on colonialism, the online exhibition offers detailed information and historical documents not only on the Suez Canal, but also on the construction of railway lines in Brazil, India and Namibia.
Exhibition duration: until end of March 2027
#suezkanal_tmw
Drawing on diaries, photographs, maps and explanatory videos, this compact exhibition presents key findings from research into the archival holdings. The topics covered include an Austrian expedition to Egypt and the involvement of engineers and companies from the Habsburg Monarchy in colonial networks.
The Suez Canal – Between Engineering and Colonialism is on display as an intervention in the permanent exhibition Material Worlds. It is situated immediately adjacent to the Rubber exhibition area, which also sheds light on the colonial background to rubber extraction. This spatial connection illustrates how infrastructure projects accelerated colonial exploitation and the transport of raw materials to Europe, and made a significant contribution to European industrialisation.
Furthermore, the intervention serves as a showcase for the comprehensive TMW research project, which is presented in the multimedia web exhibition [re]framing Colonial Infrastructures. For anyone wishing to delve deeper into the TMW’s critical research on colonialism, the online exhibition offers detailed information and historical documents not only on the Suez Canal, but also on the construction of railway lines in Brazil, India and Namibia.
Exhibition duration: until end of March 2027
#suezkanal_tmw
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