Art at Zollverein

With the “Palace of Projects” the Russian-American artist couple Ilya and Emilia Kabakov created a “total installation”: when walking through the seven-metre high pavilion reminiscent of a snail’s shell, the visitor moves along very different objects, showcases, and sketches. One can examine the individual models in several rooms, touch some of them, and read the model description, while time seems to be standing still for a short moment.

The projects presented in the “Palace of Projects” play with the notion of utopia in various ways: they are full of fantasy and remarkable ideas, regardless of how naive or infeasible they might seem at first glance. They turn the installation into a museum of dreams, which invites to embark on a journey to foreign worlds of thought and inspires personal creativity.

“The Palace of Projects” is a permanent loan from Stiftung Industriedenkmalpflege und Geschichtskultur.

Opening hours
Fri–Sun and on public holidays 11 a.m.–5 p.m., closed from 13–15, 24–26 December 2024 and 31 December 2024 and 1 January 2025

Admission
4 € [reduced 3 €], free for children under the age of 12

Location
The Palace of Projects, Salt Store, Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, Essen

Contact
Phone +49 201 246810
Email info@zollverein.de

Frankfurt-based artists Dirk Paschke and Daniel Milohnic constructed the “Werksschwimmbad” in 2001 in the scope of the “Zeitgenössische Kunst und Kritik” art project. Ever since, the pool has allegorically represented the structural change in the Ruhr area. With their “social sculpture” the artists gave this place, which was until the 1990s only characterised by work amid deafening noise and heat, a completely new function: Today, residents and visitors go there to spend their leisure time and enjoy the welcome cooling down on hot summer’s days.

Opening hours
During summer holidays (NRW) daily 12.00 p.m.–8.00 p.m.
closed in case of bad weather and from 12 to 14 July 2024

Admission
free

Location
Works Swimming Pool, Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, Essen

Contact
Phone +49 201 246810
Email info@zollverein.de

Only a narrow slit allows daylight to enter the accessible artwork, which each visitor enters individually. On one’s own in space and time, people find themselves, depending on the weather and altitude of the sun, in a place which is exceptional in a different way each time: in a room, which only turns into an artwork the moment the visitor enters it and lets himself in for the silence and seclusion. The open space around the Boiler Ash Bunker is part of the artwork: ginkgo and sequoia, which ages and ages ago turned into coal, are planted behind the bunker. Maria Nordman, who participated in “documenta” three times, is interested in cycles, rituals, and gardens.

In a small vestibule of the installation, visitors therefore find utensils such as blankets, chairs, and a table, which they can use for a joint picnic in the garden of “La Primavera”.

Opening hours
April–September, Fri–Sun, and on public holidays 11 a.m.–6 p.m.

Admission
free

Location
Artwork „La Primavera“, Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, Essen

Contact
Phone +49 201 246810
Email info@zollverein.de

The main work of the so-called Forest of Sculptures is the “Castell”, an about two-metre tall and 10×10-metre wide split stone block standing on a clearing. Four openings between the massive stone blocks grant the visitors access to the centre of the artwork. Once the visitor has arrived there, an unusual perspective opens up: people finds themselves in an interior which is due to the unobstructed view to the horizon simultaneously an outdoor space.

When subsequently taking a walk around the slag heap, the visitor comes across other sculptures by Rückriem: one at the stairs to the upper part of the slag heap, two sculptures with the title “Granit Bleu de Vire, gespalten und geschnitten” on the way towards the highest point of the slag heap, and a square granite block at the end of the footpath. Although Rückriem’s works are geometrical, a slight movement can be discerned in the powerful sculptures. They thus remind of the Zollverein location in several ways: as a contrast to unspoilt nature, as symbol for change, and as expression of the hard physical work which once took centre stage at Zollverein.

Opening hours
daily 

Admission
free

Location
Forest of Sculptures, Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, Essen

Contact
Phone +49 201 246810
Email info@zollverein.de

In the dark, the 600-metre long coke oven battery on the so-called “black” side of the coking plant shines in red light. The colour reminds of the great heat in the ovens, in which coke was produced from coal at more than 1,000 degrees Celsius when the plant was still in operation. The “Kokereiallee” separates this side from the “white” side, where chemical by-products, a result of carbonization, were processed. Lanterns line the street and bathe it in blue light, which takes reference from the water that was used to quench the coke.

With their installation, the two British lighting designers, Jonathan Speirs and Mark Major, impressively stage the imposing architecture of the Zollverein Coking Plant. At the same time, they visualise the change of the facility towards a location for art, culture, and leisure. The former pusher machine railway line, which is now filled with water, is integrated as a reflective design element.

Opening hours
daily, when darkness falls

Admission
free

Location
Coking Plant, Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, Essen

Contact
Phone +49 201 246810
Email info@zollverein.de

Back in 1933, the “Keramische Werkstatt Margaretenhöhe” (Margaretenhöhe Ceramic Workshop) already moved from the Margarethenhöhe Estate to the Zollverein Shaft Facilities 6/9. About 50 years later, this was followed by the move to the former Building Materials Stores at Shaft 1/2/8. Lee, who was born in Korea, has directed the workshop since.

The delicate jugs, bowls, or pots, which are created by hand at Zollverein, follow a clear, timeless, and unmistakable design vocabulary. Individual items by the internationally acknowledged and repeatedly awarded master ceramist are coveted among collectors from all over the world.

Opening hours
Mon-Fri, 9 a.m.–5 p.m., Sat, 11 a.m.– 3 p.m., and by appointment

Admission
free

Location
Margaretenhöhe Ceramic Workshop, Bullmannaue 19, Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, Essen

Contact
Phone +49 201 305080
Email kontakt@kwm192

At the “Kulturwerkstatt”, participants can try out and practice almost all artistic techniques: from sketching, etching, bookbinding or sculptural design, painting in watercolours and oil to photography. Furthermore, artists, most of them coming from the region, regularly exhibit their artworks at the ARKA premises.

Opening hours
Thu, Sat and Sun 2 p.m.–4 p.m., Fri 11 a.m.–1 p-m.
during school holidays in NRW only by appointment

Admission/Participation
depending on the event

Location
ARKA Kulturwerkstatt in hall 12, Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, Essen

Contact
Phone +49 201 306140
Email arka.essen@vodafone.de

Mack preferably works with heavy handmade paper and vibrant colours. The architecture of Zollverein with its symmetric shapes has again and again served as his source of inspiration.

Opening hours
Sat and Sun 1 p.m.–6 p.m.
and by appointment

Admission
free

Location
Workshop Atelier Thomas Mack in hall 12, Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, Essen

Contact
Phone +49 162 432 96 56
Email thomasmack@nexgo.de