Hamburg Take One

a week in hamburg to experience a snapshot of the work of alsterdorf assistenz nord. their landmark project is the alsterdorf market... where a former institution for handicapped people was transformed into a retail center. walking to work each day.. i crossed the street to the campus.. where categories of understanding are dissolved as clients, customers, staff members, and business employees walk side by side. alsterdorf is a neighborhood in the northern part of hamburg. once in the middle of the land.. the city grew to meet it as time passed. the asterdorf market has turned itself into THE retail center of this neighborhood.

once the kitchen of the centralized institution, the alte küche is now the center point for service oriented work for handicapped clients throughout the neighborhood.

the old wash house now hosts a restaurant, 2nd handstore and anitque book store.

to the right of this tower stands an art studio and galerie where people with handicaps create art. the work is shown worldwide, including the metropolitan museum of modern art in new york city. the gallery does not use handicapped status to gain attention, instead the art stands on its own, outside of charitable viewing that may result should the exhibitions focus on the artists' handicap. The gallery leader is always looking for new uses for the art. the latest concept comes with participation of a fashion designer in italy. the artwork is transformed to fabric, and will be used to make clothes. the art is also transferred to furniture, the three dementional transformation is truly quite stunning.

above the old kitchen lies a print press. in the latest project, the print press works with the school located on campus to create a children's book. the children write the story, the print press illustrates. The school by the way, stands out on its own, as it is integrated in grade levels and abilities, both physical and mental, creating an opportunity where individuals can learn to help one another. as with the gallery, the print press does not use handicapped status of the craftsmen to gain attention. the work is also exhibited throughout the world.


The market as seen from below the art press.

this market is not a 'project' or a 'program'. real businesses locate themselves here and hire people from the neighborhood and clients as they wish.

the standard market picture.

around the turn of the last century, hamburg had (and i would guess still has) a lot of money, and many citizens travelled throughout the world, bringing back plant life, resulting in a city filled with international trees. truly stunning! i found this old house cute.. could be in NW portland.

hamburg is home to the 2nd largest cemetary in the world. it's the size of new york's central park, and is a wonderful peaceful place to visit. my friend tells me that it's truly interesting when the family names sound familiar.. and you can see how families will come and go, as they are buried together, and for many, around the middle of the last century the family members are simply not burried there any more. we discussed this while reviewing obituaries, a well known citizen had just died, many had posted their condolences.. it was a moment.

from the friedhoff (cemetary).. they closed the gate on my way out.. luckily for me a bicycler showed me another entrance.

i lived on bebelalle.. throughout my stay in Hamburg i could not pronounce the name right, i kept putting the emphasis on the wrong syllable. regardless, i like the sign. it's supposed to indicate men at work, but its orientation suggests man under fir tree.

i came to hamburg on the last day of the world cup. 'we all became soccor fans during the world cup,' a colleague tells me, 'now it is over, and the depression begins.' hamburg was truly an international party during this time, everyone proudly carrying flags of their nations, painted in appropriate colors. what i'm standing under here is a 'goal' and these are located throughout the city on the tops of buildings. through the night a laser beams through them. stunning. at this location stands a restaurant that greets and says goodbye to every ship that passes on the Elb. on christmas they hold a party and communicate by radio with ships across the world.