Who has the authority to speak about the past and present of a place? Typically, it is a group of retired or nearly-retired men who have been living in the area for decades, claiming to the be the carriers of knowledge. Consequently, what is shared, what is preserved in libraries, and what is passed down to future generations represents the perspectives of a few.

The book Heimatkunde Rottal (loosely: area study Rottal) mimics a local history publication featuring multiple stories about Rottal. But there are many places called Rottal across the Alps, making the book a fictive fusion of these local histories. It assembles images sourced from various internet platforms by searching for the term “Rottal“ in made-up categories. Heimatkunde Rottal is a mockumentary in bookform that plays with notions of identities and local histories as constructions, fabricated by authors as much as by their audience.