Kathrin Wörwag

längs und quer zum fluss – along and across the river
ARTISTS RESEARCH & EXHIBITION

Attuning the Senses to Potential Futures in the Anthropocene

The Neckarspinnerei, a landmarked historic spinning mill that is being redeveloped as a sustainable residential and commercial complex as part of IBA’27, presents a place in transition where questions of the future are collaboratively negotiated, explored in creative ventures, and discussed with the local public. Initiated and curated by the artist Kathrin Wörwag, the temporary exhibition and community space along and across the river was set up at the compound in 2023 as a laboratory of collective exchange. For the IBA’27 festival, she has gathered artists who examine the traces of the yarn production of the past in the transcontinental network of the textile and cotton industries. She has also brought representatives of the business and architecture communities into the open-ended engagement. Key concerns include the social and ecological transformation of the industrial cultural heritage, the persistent structural legacy of colonialism, and the fragility and coexistence of diverse human and nonhuman environments.

The publication offers comprehensive insight into the interdisciplinary project, the works of the contributing artists, and the action lectures and events. Archival materials, accompanying writings, and interviews complement the panoply of perspectives. With contributions by Christian Gögger, Hartmut Landauer, Philip Kojo Metz, Frank Reiner, Michael Roggon, Maria Saum, Anja Schoeller, Menja Stevenson, ststs (Stef Stagel/Steffen Schlichter), Sylvia Winkler/Stephan Köperl, Johannes Stüttgen, Stefan Werrer, and Kathrin Wörwag.