The Digitalwarenkombinat (DIWAKO) is dedicated to the creative use of open cultural data and develops web applications and merchandise for and with GLAM institutions under the motto „Shaping digital worlds together“. We are committed to the sustainable use of open cultural data and support museums, galleries, archives and libraries in opening up digitally to the whole society.
Anne Mühlich
Western Slavist, Europeanist, Digital Humanist
Born in Upper Lusatia, a region in Central Europe marked by a varied history, I became interested in the neighboring countries of Poland and the Czech Republic and our common roots at an early age. In addition to studying Western Slavic Studies, European Studies, and extended stays in Poland, I was involved in international youth education for many years. In 2018, coincidence brought me to the Coding da Vinci cultural hackathon, where I was able to try out my creativity and learn something new. Together with Gerd, I have since been developing ideas on how to prepare digitized collections in a playful and aesthetically pleasing way to open them up to new target groups. This resulted in the Digitalwarenkombinat.
Gerd Müller
Software Architect, Culture Enthusiast, Open Source Lover
Growing up in the Leipzig area, I was already enthusiastic about the possibilities offered by software development and digitization in my youth. I earned my diploma in computer science at the Leipzig University of Cooperative Education in 2011. For more than 10 years, I have been managing digital projects as a developer, architect and trainer. In addition, I am involved in various Leipzig associations on a voluntary basis. Through friends, I learned about the Coding da Vinci cultural hackathon in 2018, in the context of which I have been expanding and trying out my skills in a creative and diverse environment. Together with Anne, I would like to deepen these experiences and approaches and make them usable in the future - that's what Digitalwarenkombinat is for.
Web applications
Media stations
Merchandise
Consulting
GLAMorous Europe matches culture enthusiasts with collection objects from European museums, libraries, galleries and archives! Starting as a random selection of digitized paintings, prints, sculptures and photographs, an increasingly personalized collection is created that can be explored and transformed into your own artwork.
Go to GLAMorous Europe
Flamingo Flucht is a digital scavenger hunt by Geomazing, which was created in cooperation with celloon GmbH for the Kaufmannsgilde in Aschersleben. With the help of this digital scavenger hunt through Aschersleben, the players try to find escaped zoo animals and discover exciting places and city stories along the way.
Go to Flamingo FluchtPROTESTORY! is a project of the Archive of the Workers' Youth Movement and was implemented together with us. As a web application, PROTESTORY! offers a playful exploration of protest cultures of working-class youth since the early 20th century and makes it possible to experience a variety of materials that were created in the context of youth protests.
Go to PROTESTORY!
With Plantala, we brought archived and digitized hand-drawn biology posters from the Central Custody of the University of Göttingen back to life. With Plantala, colorful and colorable mandalas can be created from individual plant parts. Plantala was developed within the framework of a Coding da Vinci grant 2021.
Go to PlantalaIn Living Democracy we accompany three working-class children towards the end of the 1920s on their way to a children's republic - a socialist tent camp. Join Anna, Karl and Gerda on their journey, based on digitized photographs and reports from the archive of the Workers' Youth Movement in Oer-Erkenschwick. Living Democracy was developed within the framework of a Coding da Vinci grant 2020. English version available.
Go to Living Democracy
The projects of Anne Mühlich and Gerd Müller are a great enrichment for the Coding da Vinci cultural hackathon. With each participation, those two prove their creativity and their sensitive handling of open cultural data and the institutions behind it - as evidenced not least by the Coding da Vinci scholarships with which they have been awarded several times.
Philippe Genêt, Project coordinator Coding da Vinci
Anne Mühlich and Gerd Müller have achieved fantastic things with the sources of the Archive of the Workers' Youth Movement within the framework of the cultural hackathon 'Coding da Vinci': an aesthetically pleasing, technically flawless and target group-oriented homepage on the Children's Republics of the 1920s! But we are not only convinced by the creativity and professionalism of the team, but also by the uncomplicated and constructive cooperation.
Maria Daldrup, Head of the Archive of the Worker's Youth Movement
With Plantala, Anne Mühlich and Gerd Müller have accomplished something wonderful: presenting open cultural data in a software and aesthetic language that ties directly back into the analog. Great fun with great value. Thank you!
Karsten Heck, Göttingen University / Forum Wissen
The collaboration with Anne Mühlich and Gerd Müller as part of the cultural hackathon Coding da Vinci Nieder.Rhein.Land 2021 was inspiring and worked smoothly even over distance. This collaborative work was a great experience and I am very proud of our result.
Liane Hellmund, freelance graphic designer