People by the river

The Danube is one of the longest rivers in the world and flows through more cultural regions than almost any other river. Fascinated by this, Christian Schmiedbauer set off a few years ago on an adventurous backpacking trip along the river’s course. For a whole summer, he used his camera to capture portraits of people – from the source to the mouth of the Danube.

Based on his travel photographs, Christian Schmiedbauer created the graphic novel ‘Menschen am Fluss’ (People by the River). In it, he explores the personal connections that Danube residents have with their river. The graphic novel has received several grants from the Bavarian State Library and the Free State of Bavaria.

Based on the graphic novel, the exhibition of the same name presents graphic panels featuring photographic and comic elements, QR codes for smartphones with links to accompanying material, and water samples from the river’s course.