SWOT-Analysis of Halle 14 in the Cotton Spinning ... - Central Europe

Status of the public culture sector as well as the intermediary sector as well as networks
5.5 Status of the cultural activities
Halle 14’s cultural activities were described by all the interviewees as generally good, with activities like ‘Kreative
Spinner’, the library and the organisation of symposia coming in for special mention.
‘Kreativen Spinner’ is an art education and appreciation programme organised by Halle 14 for children and older
youngsters. According to the interview partners, this programme is already well established in the region’s cultural
education and cooperation is about to be launched with similar projects in Berlin and Munich.
The library in Halle 14 containing 36,000 books and other media on contemporary art is one of the biggest of its kind
anywhere in Germany. However, its profile needs to be raised both locally and nationally.
More and more use is being made of the possibility to hire rooms in Halle 14 for functions and other events. In the
opinion of one of the interviewees, this profile could be intensified in order to further establish Halle 14 as a venue
and to create an additional source of income.
When asked what could be done to improve Halle 14, the interviewees listed increasing its external perception, staging
events which create more effective publicity, and better artistic coordination with key local figures in contemporary
art. According to various interviewees, the Leipzig Cotton Spinning Mill – and hence also Halle 14 – do not attract
casual passers-by because of their virtual island location. A number of interviewees recommended opening up the
site to the surrounding area and the city as a whole in order to generate synergies with other local actors and events.
At the moment, there is an almost complete lack of such links.
In particular, festivals and events were mentioned as a way of connecting the site to West Leipzig and the rest of the
city. To this end, events could for example be organised or at least combined with interest groups in West Leipzig.
The current gallery open days, workshops for children and youngsters, and exhibitions are organised almost completely
independently of each other. The regular arts and street festival ‘Westbesuch’ for instance could also provide
a platform for the activities staged by Halle 14’s ‘Kreative Spinner’. Joint gallery open days and the distribution of
advertising for exhibitions and talks would also be conceivable, increasing the existing clientele of Halle 14 and
enabling the activities offered to be used more intensively.
Another way of opening up Halle 14 to Leipzig as a whole would be to organise activities boosting its image and
perception in conjunction with other cultural beacons in the city. For instance, a ‘Night of Visual arts’ could be initiated
together with the Leipzig Art Society, the Grassi Museum of Applied Art, the HGB Leipzig Academy of Visual Arts,
and the Museum of Fine Arts. Association with cultural events such as already exists with the Leipzig Book Fair
would also make sense. Alongside practical networking with institutions, taking part in more festivals would sharpen
Halle 14’s profile and attract a broader range of visitors.
5.6 Summary
The public sector of Leipzig’s culture is very diverse and well defined. A prominent role is played by the City of Leipzig’s
cultural institutions. Within the cultural and creative industries, the intermediary sector and the creative networks
are especially decisive. Whereas the intermediary sector for the cultural and creative industries is still at the development
stage but looks promising, the creative networks in Leipzig are mostly very well developed.
Halle 14 only participates to a small extent in the public and intermediary sectors as well as in networks. Due to the
resulting low connections between Halle 14 and local actors, the perception of its artistic profile was unclear to some
of the interviewees.
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