Januar 814 – starb Karl der Große in Aachen. Aachen feiert das Karlsjahr 2014 mit einem spektakulären Ausstellungsprojekt, in dessen Mittelpunkt Karls Person und sein Wirken stehen. Der Kurzführer macht die beiden Ausstellungen 'Orte der Macht' und 'Karls Kunst' durch 57 Exponatbeschreibungen mit großformatigen Abbildungen in einer knappen und anschaulichen Form nachvollziehbar.
In the modern lexicon, ‘object’ refers to an entity that is materially constituted, spatially defined, and functionally determined. In contrast, the Latin word ‘fantasia’ has, since antiquity, referred to an apparition or the ability to imagine something that could be equally an object, an image, or a concept. This tension prompts further inquiry into the interrelations and differences between the experience of tangible objects (their perception and handling) and the creation of new objects (their conception and formation). What correlations exist between object fantasies, the self-consciousness of subjects, and the concrete and imagined conditions of human beings’ social lives? By addressing this question, this interdisciplinary book opens new perspectives in the field of object studies.