COLOGNE.- What if the historical photographs housed in a city's archive could speak not just of human lives, but also of the creatures who shared those streets, parks, and buildings? That's the compelling question at the heart of a new exhibition by Polish artist Marta Bogdańska, currently on view at the Kölnisches Stadtmuseum as part of the Internationale Photoszene Köln's "Artist Meets Archive" program.

Bogdańska, born in 1978, embarked on a deep dive into the museum's extensive photographic collection for this year's project. The result is a thought-provoking multimedia exhibition that turns the lens – or perhaps, encourages a look behind the lens – on the presence and experiences of animals in Cologne's urban landscape throughout history.

Archives are typically built by people, for people, naturally reflecting a human-centric view of the world. Bogdańska's work directly confronts this bias, asking: What non-human stories are hidden within these vast collections? Can we possibly reconstruct memories or retell history from the perspective of the animals who were there?

Through a variety of artistic strategies, Bogdańska doesn't just present answers; she invites visitors to become active participants, challenging their own assumptions and understanding of urban coexistence. Her multimedia project opens up fascinating new ways to interpret the Kölnisches Stadtmuseum's photographic holdings and aims to foster a deeper sense of empathy for the animals we live alongside.

The exhibition unfolds across two locations. In the OPEN SPACE of the museum's foyer, Bogdańska has created a striking, wall-sized collage. This work combines historical archive photographs with AI-generated imagery to revisit a particularly poignant local tale: the story of Petermann, a chimpanzee who became a trained attraction at the Cologne Zoo in the 1950s before tragically being shot in 1985 after an attack on the director. The piece serves as a powerful focal point, prompting reflection on the complex relationship between the city and its non-human inhabitants.

Meanwhile, in the exhibition space located in the basement of the "Photo Pavillon" festival center, the artist presents a series of evocative video and sound installations. These installations aim to make visible the stories of non-human city dwellers – narratives often buried in the archive or simply experienced fleetingly in urban life. Her "Ghost Stories," for instance, explore historical photographs for moments where animals seem to exhibit a form of "visual resistance" against the human will or gaze, subtle acts of defiance captured in time.

By bringing these overlooked animal lives into focus, Marta Bogdańska's exhibition serves as a unique and compelling reminder that the history of a city is a shared one, extending far beyond the human narrative and encouraging a more compassionate understanding of our place within the urban ecosystem.