The Spinnerei – from cotton to culture
125 years ago this year, the Leipziger Baumwollspinnerei – a cotton mill company – acquired a piece of land approximately ten hectares in size in a western suburb of Leipzig. The company then spent the next few decades turning it into the biggest cotton mill in continental Europe.. The company then spent the next few decades turning it into the biggest cotton mill in continental Europe.
This fascinating factory complex, which was likened to a city within a city, contained homes, allotments and a kindergarten and remains virtually intact today. When the mill finally ceased production in 1992 the site underwent a permanent change, and it was artists – more than 100 of whom now have their studios in the former mill – who were at the forefront of this revival. International names among their number, and who still work at the Spinnerei, include Neo Rauch.
Not only artists but also musicians, dancers, artisans, architects, art dealers, printers, designers and many others have succumbed to the charms of the Spinnerei. Even some Leipzig-based galleries such as Galerie EIGEN + ART were drawn to the site, and the growing international interest in Leipzig art has lured others there too.
Eleven galleries and exhibitions – some originating from as far away as New York and Mexico City – have found a home for themselves in the Spinnerei, where together with the artists they form a ‘cosmos of art’ unparalleled worldwide.