For over 500 years, Turkey and Germany have shared deep and diverse historical connections—bridging stories and phenomena in art, science, economy, literature, music, and everyday life.
Yet, why are these rich historical traces, these alternative histories, so often treated as exceptions? Why is there always a push to reduce complex realities to a single dominant narrative? In our case, it is the story of the eternal migrants, the guest workers—the ultimate “other.” The Turks.
Beyond these longstanding historical ties, the present reveals a different truth: today, people with a family background from Turkey are no longer just migrants. They are an integral part of German and European society—a visible, undeniable minority shaping its future.
At TAM*, these historically marginalized “exception stories” become the rule. We celebrate transculturality not as something caught between worlds or lacking belonging, but as an intrinsic and enriching part of human history—one that has always been there.
At TAM Museum, we embrace and cherish the ambiguous and the unexpected. We believe that learning to tolerate, even appreciate, a world different from our own is not an act of concession but an opportunity for growth, understanding, and connection.
Museums have the power
Museums have the power to contribute on many levels to such a new cultural understanding. That is why we set out to establish a new museum.
TAM Museum is in the final founding phase as a gGmbH in Berlin, a non-profit institution dedicated to collecting, preserving, and showcasing the untold transcultural narratives that open up the understanding of German-Turkish heritage.
TAM Museum is in the final founding phase as a gGmbH in Berlin, a non-profit institution dedicated to collecting, preserving, and showcasing the untold transcultural narratives that open up the understanding of German-Turkish heritage.
From historical archives to contemporary art, oral history projects to interactive exhibitions, TAM Museum will be a space where past and present meet, where diverse voices are heard, and where new understandings of identity and belonging emerge.
The first steps are to launch the first digital and pop-up exhibitions in Germany. Our long term goal is to give TAM Museum a physical home in Berlin and curate a new space to connect people.
TAM Museum already has a growing archive of oral histories, artifacts, and historical research and is building partnerships with cultural institutions to create a long-term impact.
TAM Museum is more than just a museum—it’s a movement for cultural memory, dialogue, and representation.
*TAM means many things in Turkish:
whole, complete, exact, full, proper, just, accurate.
whole, complete, exact, full, proper, just, accurate.
