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Area Duisburg
Duisburg is the starting point for unusual discoveries along the waterways of the Ruhr
Metropolis because it lies on the site where the River Ruhr meets the Rhine. The largest
inland harbour in the world connects visitors to the neighbouring towns and the tangible utopias in the Emscher Park.
From here the route links up with new paths, trails and creative environments. In 2010 the Rhine-Herne canal will be turned into a “culture canal” and the huge area of disused land between the canal and the renaturised River Emscher will become an “art island”.
Duisburg, the western gateway to the metropolitan area, brings visitors to the theatre town of Mülheim an der Ruhr, which will be presenting a huge number of projects in the “Essen for the Ruhr” programme. The internationally active “Theater an der Ruhr”, the “Mülheim Theatre Days”, the innovative programmes presented in the “Ringlokschuppen”, and the “Theater der Welt 2010” festival will all contribute to making Mülheim one of the top addresses for culture fans. If you’re a theatre-lover, Mülheim is the place for you in 2010. At the same time Duisburg is a good starting point for journeys along the River Rhine all the way to Xanten. Here on the western border of the metropolitan area, ancient Roman history and mining history unite – a contrasting mix as attractive as the surrounding rural landscape.
Other towns also have a lot to offer. In Moers the well-known “Moers Festival” will be offering much more than the usual jazzhighlights on its programme for 2010. Dinslaken, situated directly on the estuary of the River Emscher and the Rhine, is a fascinating showplace for the urban and cultural transformation of the Ruhr Metropolis. And Kamp-Lintfort and Wesel can offer fine natural surroundings and excellent insights into the preindustrial history of the Ruhr area.
The Cultural Capital Harbour
The Mediterranean flair of a harbour atmosphere, spectacular architecture and surprising artistic attractions along the waterfront – Duisburg, the cultural harbour of the metropolitan area is a dream come true in the Ruhr.
The spectacular new cubic extension to the Küppersmühle Museum, designed by Herzog & de Meuron, will soon be towering over the old corn silos in the harbour, and is due to open in 2010. Below it lies Duisburg’s inner harbour, the city’s leading symbol, and one of the meeting points for the in-crowd in the Ruhr Metropolis.
The renowned London architect, Norman Foster, has produced a master plan to redesign and realise the vision of a new harbour, suitable for residents, leisure and work alike. For Duisburg, Norman Foster is as important as Otto Wagner for Vienna or Oscar Niemeyer for Brasilia. With one nice difference: everything is happening here and not in the distant past.
In 2010 the traditional harbour suburb of Ruhrort will be transformed into a showplace for theatre, performances and special concert programmes. The North Duisburg Landscape Park, on the former site of the Thyssen Ironworks, is a core international project on how to reinvent and upvalue an old industrial area. The anchor point along the Industrial Heritage Trail is generally regarded as an extremely important example of exciting landscape architecture, since it integrates ecologically orientated projects into a disused industrial site in a playful manner. After dark the illuminated landscape park offers an especially unforgettable experience: the light installations created by the British artist, Jonathan Park, transform the impressive industrial scenery into a world-class artistic event that displays Duisburg literally as a shining example of how to transform an industrial region into a metropolitan area in the 21st century.