The 'Kafka: Making of an Icon' exhibition at the Weston Library, University of Oxford ran from May to October 2024, before relocation to the Morgan Library on Madison Avenue in New York City from November 2024 to April 2025. The exhibition was planned and curated by a team at the Bodleian Library, including the Co-Directors of the Oxford Kafka Research Centre, Professor Carolin Duttlinger, Professor Katrin Kohl, and Professor Barry Murnane; along with Dr. Meindert Peters; Dr. Karolina Watroba; Madeleine Slaven; and Sallyanne Gilchrist. It was supported by Malgorzata Czepiel, Archivist at the Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford.
It was well received in the national and international press:
The Daily Telegraph (Tim Smith-Laing) has published a 5 star review of the exhibition, calling it 'serious, funny, and brilliant all at once'.
The Cherwell (Adam Saxon) called the exhibition ‘poignant and incredibly personal’.
The Jewish Chronicle (David Herman) described the exhibition as a 'testimony to how libraries and archives can now collaborate to build up their collections put together extraordinary exhibitions'.
The Economist included the exhibition in a piece exploring the contemporary relevance of Kafka's work
Deutsche Welle's episode of Inside Europe focusing on the exhibition has been broadcast, with coverage beginning around the 25 minute mark
Salman Rushdie revealed in an interview in the Los Angeles Times that his short story 'Oklahoma' from his new collection The Eleventh Hour: A Quintet of Stories was inspired by visiting the exhibition at the Morgan Library
The exhibition at the Bodleian was viewed by 104,854 visitors, including 493 pupils on 17 school visits. The Bodleian teamed up with third sector organisations including Tandem (an Oxford-based charity that works with people living with mental ill-health) and Age UK on engagement activities including Silver Sunday, a national day to encourage older people to try new activities, meet new people and visit new places.
Visitor comments:
'I had an in-depth look at the Kafka exhibition yesterday morning... It’s a wonderful exhibition, so interesting and engaging. I read everything and thought that the text was very accessible and informative which is an incredible achievement when you consider that it’s describing manuscripts in a foreign language. Before viewing the exhibition I thought that this would be a real barrier but it’s a challenge you’ve definitely overcome. The whole exhibition was visually arresting as well: enhanced by the objects, the artist collaborations, multimedia and interactives...I must admit that I’ve never read any Kafka but I will now!'
'It was one of those rare exhibitions where you allow yourself a certain amount of time and then find that you simply can't drag yourself away when the time is, as you don't want to miss any of the exhibits and captions and texts. Many congratulations on it - it's a real tour de force!'
'I just wanted to get in touch to say how much I enjoyed the Kafka exhibition at the Bodleian, which I visited this week. It was fascinating and moving to read so many original letters and postcards between Kafka and his friends and family, and to learn about some of the things which might have informed his writing (e.g. the real 'hunger artists' and Konsul Peter, the ape). Thanks to you and your colleagues for curating such a wonderful exhibition! '
