Leipziger Baumwollspinnerei
Encyclopedia
The Leipziger Baumwollspinnerei (Leipzig Cotton Mill) is an industrial site in Leipzig
, Germany
. Parts of this 10-hectare site in the district of Lindenau are used today by art galleries, studios and restaurants.
Founded in 1884, the business developed into the largest cotton mill in continental Europe over the next quarter century. During this time, an entire industrial town with over 20 factories, workers' housing, kindergartens and a recreational area, grew in western Leipzig. The mill reached its maximum extent in 1907, with 240,000 spindle
s processing cotton across a working area of about 25 acres (101,171.5 m²). Up to 4,000 people worked there, until production of thread was halted in 1993 following the reunification of Germany several years earlier.
Subsequently, the area was repopulated by a mixture of people including craftsmen, self-employed, and above all artists, many belonging to the so-called "New Leipzig School
". More than half of the available space has since been rented out again for new purposes.
Ten galleries, a communal arts center (Halle 14), and around 100 artists (including Neo Rauch
, Jim Whiting
and Matthias Weischer
) have all settled at the site, as well as restaurants, fashion designers, architects, printers, a goldsmith, a pottery, a film club, a porcelain manufacturer, and an arts supply store.
The site contained several platform interchanges from a now-disused railway between Lindenau and Plagwitz. Parts of the platforms are still intact.
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Parts of this 10-hectare site in the district of Lindenau are used today by art galleries, studios and restaurants.
Founded in 1884, the business developed into the largest cotton mill in continental Europe over the next quarter century. During this time, an entire industrial town with over 20 factories, workers' housing, kindergartens and a recreational area, grew in western Leipzig. The mill reached its maximum extent in 1907, with 240,000 spindle
Spindle
The term spindle may refer to:In textiles and manufacturing:*Spindle , a device to spin fibres into thread*Spindle , is the main rotating part of a machine tool, woodworking machine, etc...
s processing cotton across a working area of about 25 acres (101,171.5 m²). Up to 4,000 people worked there, until production of thread was halted in 1993 following the reunification of Germany several years earlier.
Subsequently, the area was repopulated by a mixture of people including craftsmen, self-employed, and above all artists, many belonging to the so-called "New Leipzig School
New Leipzig School
The term New Leipzig School refers to a movement in modern German painting. The usage and origins of this term are debated.The "old" Leipzig School was a term used by art journalists which had became established by some time no later than 1977, and the involvement of Werner Tübke, Wolfgang...
". More than half of the available space has since been rented out again for new purposes.
Ten galleries, a communal arts center (Halle 14), and around 100 artists (including Neo Rauch
Neo Rauch
Neo Rauch is a German artist whose paintings mine the intersection of his personal history with the politics of industrial alienation. His work reflects the influence of socialist realism, and owes a debt to Surrealists Giorgio de Chirico and René Magritte, although Rauch hesitates to align...
, Jim Whiting
Jim Whiting
Jim Whiting is a British artist and inventor. He was born in Paris and spent his early childhood in Salisbury , Zimbabwe before returning to the UK with his family in 1959...
and Matthias Weischer
Matthias Weischer
Matthias Weischer is a painter living in Leipzig. Weischer is considered to be part of the New Leipzig School.- Life :...
) have all settled at the site, as well as restaurants, fashion designers, architects, printers, a goldsmith, a pottery, a film club, a porcelain manufacturer, and an arts supply store.
The site contained several platform interchanges from a now-disused railway between Lindenau and Plagwitz. Parts of the platforms are still intact.
External links
- Home page in English, including history.
- Pinsel statt Spule Nina Apin, Die TageszeitungDie tageszeitungdie tageszeitung , was founded in 1978 in Berlin. It is a cooperative-owned German daily newspaper which is administrated by a workers' self-management...
, 6 April 2005. - 'The hottest place on earth' Gordon Burn, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 1 February 2007 - 'Wunderbar! The best of Germany' Andrew Eames and Barbara Geier, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 19 March 2011. - Mit vielen Wassern gewaschen: Leipzigs neue Ufer Beatrice Härig, Monumente Online, February 2008.
- International Hotspot, Hip Community or Art Ghetto? – the Leipziger Baumwollspinnerei Sigrun Hellmich, Goethe Institut, July 2009.