WITCHES

Opens December 5, 2024 – May 11, 2025

Welcome to WITCHES, an exhibition that engages all senses. Through elaborate set designs, images and videos the visitors will experience the witch trials that took place in Sweden 1668-1676. Who were the women accused of witchcraft, and why were they burnt at the stake?

“Satan’s fury is unleashed in Sweden in the year of our Lord 1668. Suddenly, women are being accused of witchcraft and communing with the Devil. The King sends out a Witchcraft Commission with the power to impose the death penalty. Next, verdicts are being passed and become the spark that ignites the fire all over Sweden. The Great Noise, as the witch hunts came to be called, has begun. And before it falls silent, the axe and the flames will have claimed the lives of almost 300 women.”

The innovative exhibition WITCHES contains both truth and dream. It portrays real events and life stories of how women were accused of witchcraft in Sweden in the 17th century. Here, gossip in cottages turns into truths with fatal consequences, shown through scenography, films, and images.

But what did they look like, the women who were accused, the children who testified against them, and the men who judged them? The affected get a face thanks to the images in the exhibition, which were created using artificial intelligence. Thus, WITCHES is the first historical exhibition in Sweden created with AI.

 

Specially adapted for the History Museum

WITCHES, which is currently on display at Kalmar Castle and is coming to the History Museum in a specially adapted version. Here, a 400-year-old Icelandic black magic book from the museum’s collections is added – a mysterious manuscript containing formulas and magical signs believed to affect the environment in various ways.

Additionally, witches will be the main theme at the History Museum throughout the exhibition period, with daily guided tours about the exhibition. During the program evenings of “Historical Wednesday,” witches will also be in focus.

 

Exhibition production

The WITCHES exhibition was created by artist Pompe Hedengren and set designer Erik Gullberg. Together, they previously created the acclaimed exhibitions Aquanauts: The Expedition and Kraftwerk – Craftsmanship in Our Time. History teacher and podcast host Cecilia Düringer from P3 Historia is the writer of the exhibition texts.

The exhibition is recommended for ages 10 and up.

Comments on WITCHES:

 

“WITCHES takes exhibition aesthetics to a whole new level.”
“…The experience is so real and impactful that it feels like being there and witnessing the tragedy for which the state has never taken responsibility.”
Kerstin Parker, Exhibition Critique

“The visual world they have built is impressive.”
Frida Lindström, Barometern

“It’s like stepping into a film, stylish and suggestive.”
Mattias Berg, Sveriges Radio