Elbe Islands Creative Quarter

The IBA Hamburg was relying on the power of art and culture – for the designing of urban space, the creation of participation and for the strengthening of tolerance and openness in social interaction. With the aid of artistic and cultural projects and creative economic offers tailor-made for the location, a development was been triggered that will anchor the Elbe Islands permanently in the Hamburg cultural scene.

What is the Elbe Islands Creative Quarter?

The prerequisites for a creative laboratory on the Elbe Islands of Hamburg were favourable. Their intercultural atmosphere, their undiscovered free space and continually growing cultural scene make the Elbe Islands are the ideal location to try out new, experimental working and living models. Vastly differing life plans encounter each other here, creating friction but also creative energy. With the aid of the IBA Hamburg, a quarter emerged here that offers inspiring and experimental free space. Secure working and living conditions have been created, which are interesting for artists and people outside the conventional qualification pattern and will continue to have an effect far beyond 2013.

It was never the intention of the IBA Hamburg to 'decree' the creative development within the quarter. In truth, it rather aimed to get back to a testing strategy of structural merging of art, culture, creative industry and urban development — with the aid of five fields of action:

1.  Strengthening and extending creative structures locally by means of the sustainable infrastructure support for spaces of art.

2.  The field of action for creative industry promoted classical players of the sector, supplemented by unconventional alliances: The project range „Art makes Work“ involved the formation of innovative alliances of artists and creative artists with qualification partners, people who are unemployed or non-profit organisations.

3.  Creative structures have been established and extended locally by means of the sustainable infrastructure support and funding Space for Art.

4.  The special involvement of the people in Wilhelmsburg and "auf der Veddel" as well as the professionalization of their projects has been the focus of projects in contexts of cultural diversity. 

5.  All formats have been supplemented and reflected by the laboratory for art and urban development – a platform, which in erratic intervals brought together the artists and creative artists with urban developers, citizens and scientists.

The book: Kreativität trifft Stadt [Creativity meets City]

The book „Kreativität trifft Stadt“ describes the individual projects triggered from 2008 to 2010 by the IBA Hamburg, but also shows the problems encountered during their development. In the reflective articles, Adrienne Göhler, Martin Heller, Klaus R. Kunzmann and many other experts scrutinise the theoretical and strategic approach of the IBA concept in relation to their structural efficiency and put them into relation with comparable formats at home and abroad.

The questions focus on: What are the targets associated with the debate on „Creative City“? What is the role of creative economy and of art? Are there any guiding opportunities to initiate „creative urban environments?  And are these applicable to the Elbe Islands of Hamburg?

Kreativität trifft Stadt. [Creativity meets City]

On the relationship between art, culture and urban development in the framework of IBA Hamburg

Publisher: IBA Hamburg

240 pages with 85 colour illustrations

Euro 18.00  

ISBN: 978-3-86859-095-1