The World of Tierra del Fuego

On Behalf of	Zoo Leipzig
Period	2025—2026

Educational Exhibits
Scenography
Concept
Implementation
Gamedesign
Prototyping

Based on our 2022 scenographic concept, we are now implementing several educational stations as part of a turnkey project. In doing so, we are breaking new ground in the areas of media stations and scenography.

Photo of the World Signpost. Many different country names can be seen on several signs pointing in different directions.

Coastal and Marine Landscape

Task and Approach

For the new coastal and marine landscape Tierra del Fuego at Leipzig Zoo, we are handling the scenographic concept as well as the design and implementation of several educational exhibits. The key themes here include not only the basics about penguins and seals, but also the issue of ocean pollution caused by plastic waste. We are designing multiple interactive educational exhibits that incorporate both analogue and digital elements, developing a game on the theme of ocean pollution, taking charge of all the signage, and planning a series of lifelike sculptures of penguins and a maned seal.

Photo of the educational exhibit ‘Species and Nature Conservation at the End of the World’. Four information boards are mounted on a rusty metal frame. To the right of these is an interactive coin-operated machine.

Photograph of the educational exhibit ‘Seals in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea’ and ‘Seals worldwide’. A total of six rotating panels are incorporated into the two information boards; the front of each panel features a specific seal species, whilst the reverse side provides relevant facts about that species.

Nature conquers Human

Our Approach

Our scenographic leitmotif is “Nature conquers human”. In the coastal landscape of Tierra del Fuego, traces of former settlement and relics of an era of seafaring can be found. We design a visitor entrance in the form of an upside-down wooden ship’s hull and a walkway leading to the coastal aviary designed as a rusty shipwreck.

Inside the wreck, we are setting up a ship’s cargo of old wooden crates containing several interactive educational exhibits. These are complemented by a penguin parade featuring displays of all known penguin species and a photo spot with life-sized penguin statues. A sound stele made of solid, rusty ship’s steel provides information on distribution ranges and penguin calls. We are expanding the area in front of the aviary with a 5-metre-high World Waymarker that pinpoints Zoo Leipzig’s global species conservation projects.

A photograph of the enclosure showing one of the replica shipwrecks. Several pelicans can be seen in the foreground.

Photograph of four educational exhibits side by side inside the replica shipwreck. The exhibits appear to be standing on wooden crates. A recessed screen can be seen on the left.

Photo of the penguin parade. Several life-size penguin figures are lined up one behind the other.

Photo of the ‘Penguins of the World’ educational exhibit. On a large round board, under the heading ‘Who’s calling?’, there are several pictures of different species of penguin. In the centre is a picture of a globe.

A photo of a rotating element at the educational exhibit. There is a polar bear at the top and a penguin at the bottom. In the middle it says, ‘No matter how you turn it, penguins and polar bears never meet.’

Lifelike Replicas

Our Approach

Inside the aviary, a replica penguin nesting cave is being created, featuring a lifelike breeding pair of penguins, as well as an educational exhibit on the threats to penguins. In the enclosure’s underground marble cave, we install two multimedia stations to explain how seals adapt to life underwater.

As a deliberate visual contrast, we develop an oversized interactive plastic bottle that raises awareness of ocean pollution caused by plastic waste. This is complemented by a life-size replica of a male maned seal that has become entangled in a fishing net.

Photo of a replica penguin sculpture featuring a small penguin chick in a nesting burrow.

A photo of a yellow road sign featuring three penguins and the words ‘Penguins crossing’. Beneath it is the word ‘slow’.

Photo of the educational exhibits ‘Like an arrow through the water’, ‘Hunting prey with whiskers’ and ‘Hold your breath!’. The stations are set into a replica cave wall made of stone and are dark blue with organic shapes. At the first two stations, you can see screens, as well as rotating wheels and a device on which you can rest your hand. On the right, there is a screen with a stopwatch and a large buzzer button.

A photograph of a lifelike sculpture of a maned seal caught in a green fishing net.

Interaction and
Media Elements

Creative Implementation

Several educational exhibits feature classic interactive rotating elements. Inside the ship, there is a display case for examining a penguin feather, as well as a large display case with a rotating penguin sculpture.

We use crank mechanisms to allow visitors to experience the drag resistance of seals and a vibration-sensitive surface shows the function of the seal's vibrissae. An interactive buzzer measures how long visitors can hold their breath.

The giant blue plastic bottle offers a total of three interactive features: a pull-out cylinder displays a small exhibit and tracks current ocean pollution levels; slide viewers are upgraded with moving images and a specially developed cooperative reaction game allows visitors to clean up the ocean of rubbish. In addition, we are building a playful coin dispenser to support Zoo Leipzig’s species conservation projects in Chile.

A photograph of an educational exhibit. A lifelike sculpture of a penguin is set into a display case. In front of it is a built-in display that can be used for interactive learning.

Close-up of the coin roll game featuring a colorful illustration

A person places their hand on a designated device. A school of fish can be seen on the screen above it.

Photograph of the blue replica plastic bottle. A screen is embedded on the left.

A close-up of the screen inside the replica oversized plastic bottle. Beneath the screen are four buttons in different colours.

In the photo, on the right, a person is pulling a round tube out of the blue plastic bottle replica by its handle. In the centre, above a picture of a tortoise, three peepholes can be seen. On the left, a person is turning a crank.

Close
Coordination

Special Features and Challenges

A particular challenge in this project was the prototyping of the “Seals Underwater” media stations as well as the creation of the plastic bottle. Due to its size, construction and the integration of several interactive and multimedia elements within a very confined space, the implementation proved to be complex. At the same time, a wide variety of trades were involved in the realisation of the individual stations: landscape architects, theatre set designers, rock sculptors, media technicians, planners and the one or other craftsperson. Bringing together the diverse requirements and visions of the curators at Leipzig Zoo required close consultation and diplomatic coordination amongst all those involved.

Photo of the educational exhibit ‘What threats do penguins face?’. Several information panels are attached to a rusty frame. A replica penguin sculpture can be seen in the background.

A close-up of one of the display panels at the visitor centre. An orca can be seen. The panel can be rotated.

A close-up of one of the enclosure signs. The sign is framed by a wooden replica and attached to a replica stone wall.

Imprint

Exhibition and Metal Fabrication: ScheinWelt Baubühne Leipzig
Print Production: com.cores GmbH
Media Production AI: Frank Just, Leipzig
Media Technology: panFX, Leipzig
Sculptures: Robert Frenzel