Generation Köln meets CIAV Meisenthal

A Lockdown exhibition

From January 18th–23rd 2021, the designers of Generation Köln will present the results of their cooperation with the glass culture center CIAV Meisenthal in the church of St. Gertrud in Cologne, built by Gottfried Böhm.

In search of production sites that put people and materials first, designers Karoline Fesser, Klemens Grund, Tim Kerp and Thomas Schnur traveled to Meisenthal, France. The border region of the Northern Vosges is home to a centuries-long glass tradition, preserved by the Centre International d'Art Verrier (CIAV) cultural site.

The designers met glass artisans who have practiced their craft for decades, yet challenge it every day. Confronted with contradictory impressions of a region on the move, they worked hand-in-hand with master glassmakers Jean-Marc and Momo to design objects that celebrate glassas a material as well as portray the region. In keeping with the experience and skills of the glassblowers and the malleability of glass, some 25 objects were created, reflecting the designers' different approaches. Some are based on one of the 2,000 steel molds in the in-house mold library, for others entirely new molds were made from wood, sheet metal, or stone, and still others manage entirely or without molds at all.

The glass objects will be exhibited in 2021 in the Church of St. Gertrud in Cologne, built by Cologne architect Gottfried Böhm - a structure that translates the rubble of the past into a hopeful meeting place.

The project is curated by Passagen founder Sabine Voggenreiter and supported by KölnBusiness Wirtschaftsförderungs-GmbH.

ZOOM-TALK

GENERATION KÖLN X CIAV MEISENTHAL / DE / Monday, Jan. 18th 2021, 4 pm

GENERATION KÖLN X CIAV MEISENTHAL / EN / Tuesday, Jan. 19th 2021, 11 am

GENERATION KÖLN X CIAV MEISENTHAL X GOTTFRIED BÖHM / DE / Saturday, Jan. 23rd 2021, 7 pm