New website and brand identity for the Brehm Library Foundation
Bringing old cultural treasures back to life digitally: This is what the Bad Arolsen Brehm Library Foundation will do with the help of the state of Hesse and the district of Waldeck-Frankenberg as part of a digitisation project in the "Strong Homeland Hesse" programme. As a first step, a new brand identity and a website have now been developed, which can be accessed immediately at www.bibliothekbrehm.de.
The Hessian Minister for Digitalisation and Innovation, Prof. Dr. Kristina Sinemus, emphasises: "With the further development of the Bad Arolsen Brehm Library into an interactive museum, the Digital Ministry is promoting the experience of the region as a cultural tourism destination. With the launch of the website, the first milestone of the Smart Business project is now also visible to the outside world.
Library as an interactive museum
"The website will be the gateway to many digital services that the foundation will offer online in future as part of the project as an interactive museum," explains District Administrator Jürgen van der Horst, who, together with the Hessian Minister for Culture, Education and Opportunities Armin Schwarz and Bad Arolsen's Mayor Marko Lambion, took a look at the progress of the project at the foundation. "As a native of Arolsen, I have followed the development of the Brehm Library with great interest for many years. Thanks to the digitisation project, everyone will soon be able to immerse themselves in cultural history online. This will certainly provide further impetus for the historical collection, for example as an extracurricular educational centre," says Culture Minister Armin Schwarz.
The Brehm Library is one of the most important private libraries in the German-speaking world with a collection of around 44,000 historical books and exhibits dating from the beginnings of book printing to the end of the 20th century. "By developing it into an interactive museum, the foundation aims to make the numerous historical exhibits accessible to an even wider audience - and to reach children and young people in particular through the digital offerings," explain the foundation's Managing Director Kerstin Braun and Chairman Dr Hartmut Wecker.
360-degree tour, digital hotspots, interactive knowledge games
A wide range of offers such as a digital 360-degree tour through the 20 rooms of the library, interactive knowledge games with tablets or VR glasses and digital hotspots: Selected works, stories and exhibits are to be explained digitally and experienced interactively in future. The new website is the interface to many of the services on offer. It offers digital information about the foundation, an online booking system for guided tours and lectures, an online events calendar and all news about the Brehm Library at a glance - embedded in an innovative brand identity including a new logo. Later, it will also be the gateway to a virtual tour of the foundation.
The project is funded by the Hessian Ministry for Digitalisation and Innovation through the "Starke Heimat Hessen" programme for the promotion of smart municipalities and regions with a quota of 90 percent; the other 10 percent is provided by the district of Waldeck-Frankenberg. The cooperation project is also embedded in a collaboration with the local tourism promotion organisation of the town of Bad Arolsen, particularly with regard to joint advertising campaigns. "We are delighted that the cooperation with the district to further develop the Brehm Library will also further strengthen the cultural tourism profile of the town of Bad Arolsen," emphasises Bad Arolsen's mayor Marko Lambion.
Background: Funding from the "Starke Heimat Hessen" state programme
In spring 2020, the Hessian state government set up the Smart Regions office in the Digital Minister's office to support local authorities and facilitate exchange and networking. The "Starke Heimat Hessen" programme supports local authorities with important projects for the future. This includes the district together with the town of Bad Arolsen as part of the project "Bringing old cultural treasures to new life digitally: The Brehm Library as an interactive museum". The project has a total investment volume of 288,000 euros and is scheduled for completion in mid-2026.
Caption: Delighted with the launch of the Brehm Library Foundation's new website as a gateway to all future digital offerings: Project Manager at the Foundation Anna Lewandowski, District Administrator Jürgen van der Horst, Foundation employee Phillipp Wecker, Chairman of the Foundation Dr Hartmut Wecker, Mayor of Bad Arolsen Marko Lambion, Managing Director of the Foundation Kerstin Braun and Hesse's Minister of Culture Armin Schwarz.