Z-Bau (House for Contemporary Culture)

Z-building, courtyard entrance

The Z-Bau - House for Contemporary Culture is a culture house in Nuremberg operated by the Society for Cultural Freedom . The focus is on cultural work with concerts , parties , theater performances and readings .

history

Military use

The building of today's Z-Bau has a long history: Originally built by the National Socialists as a barracks , it was taken over by the Americans after the Second World War until the last soldier left the so-called Merrell Barracks in 1991 .

Cultural use

Z-Bau GmbH

In 1999, the Kunstverein Hintere Cramergasse eV moved into the Z-Bau, which was in dire need of renovation, and an operator GmbH, the "Z-Bau GmbH", was formed, which deals with the renovation of the building and letting the rooms with financial support from City cared. The art association operated its rooms independently and contributed to the variety of cultural events in the house. In addition to the many public events, artist studios found their place in the Z-Building. The structural condition of the Z-Building got worse and worse, which is why the city of Nuremberg announced a concept competition, which the Nuremberg Music Center (MUZ) won. On June 13, 2014, the "Society for cultural open spaces mbH (GkF)" was founded, in which the music center, the Kunstverein Hintere Cramergasse eV and the city of Nuremberg are shareholders. The GkF has the task of “promoting culture in its diversity and cultural workers in their development in the greater Nuremberg area. The purpose is to create and provide a support, creative and cultural center for contemporary culture and related areas from pop, sub and alternative culture. ”(Excerpt from the GmbH statutes). Thus, the development of the Z-building in the southern part of Nuremberg is the central task of GkF.

zoom

The Nuremberg DJane Marusha at the Z-Bau event received on the main market .

Since 2001, one room has also been sublet to an external operator for the operation of the Techno-Club Zoom. This existed until the renovation-related closure at the end of 2010 and, with national and international bookings, has developed into a well-known focal point for the scene across the region. At the same time, the Zoom also offered the local scene a platform on which a broader techno scene in Nuremberg developed and clubs such as Die Rakete or Haus 33 were founded. The DJs and live acts that played in Zoom include Boris Brejcha , Carl Cox , Chris Liebing , Dave Clarke , DJ Rush , Dominik Eulberg , Extrawelt , Felix Kröcher , Format: B , Gayle San , Gregor Tresher , Karotte , Marek Hemmann , Marusha , Oliver Koletzki , Richie Hawtin , Rob Acid , Sascha Braemer , Sven Väth , Tobi Neumann , Tom Clark or WestBam .

House for contemporary culture

The Z-Bau was renovated from March 2012 to October 2015 and then opened as a house for contemporary culture. The society for cultural open spaces mbH is sponsored by the city of Nuremberg and is therefore not a commercial organizer, but a cultural sponsor.

From 2017 to 2019, the development of the Z-Bau Nordgarten from a fallow area to a community garden was part of the Interreg project Forget Heritage . In a cooperation between the Office for Culture and Leisure of the City of Nuremberg and the GkF, the garden was developed by the Urban Lab using various participation formats . The garden was then handed over to a working group organized on the basis of grassroots democracy. In addition to the North Garden AK, there are other working groups in the Z-Bau (AK Program, AK Loss & Waste, ...) in which volunteers contribute to the diversity of the house.

building

The building, which appears Z-shaped in the aerial photo, with its two floors and three building wings is divided into a large (hall), a middle (gallery) and a smaller event room (red salon). There are also three seminar rooms, band rehearsal rooms, studios, project offices, breweries , workshops and, as a permanent instance, the Kunstverein Hintere Cramergasse eV (KV) with another concert room on the site. The spacious outdoor area with beer garden and the north garden facing Frankenstrasse are also part of the Z-Bau. The Z-Building is protected as an architectural monument.

program

The focus of the programs is on events with (supra) regionally and internationally known artists. Bands like Antilopen Gang , Marusha , Haiyti , Retrogott, Patrice or The Donots have already performed in the Z-Bau. A concert by the band Feine Sahne Fischfilet attracted attention when, on the initiative of CSU City Councilor Alexander Christ, his parliamentary group submitted a motion to prevent the concert. The band responded by giving away guest list places to children of CSU members. The reopening of the "Great Hall" with a capacity of 1000 spectators in December 2018 attracted attention in the local press.