Large yellow letters on a blue background promise "HERE WE ARE SOON" outside a beautiful 19th-century industrial building currently under construction. The Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt, one of Europe's most important exhibition venues, will temporarily relocate to the former Dondorf Printing House in Frankfurt's Bockenheim district. The ambitious timeline calls for an opening celebration on September 7th, with the old printing facility serving as the Schirn's interim home for two years while its main building at Römerberg undergoes renovation.
The temporary relocation represents an unexpected resolution to a contentious dispute over the fate of the abandoned printing house. Both squatters and a specially formed citizen initiative had fought to preserve the historic building from demolition. While the arrangement initially appears to benefit all parties involved, significant tensions remain between the different groups.
The intensity of local interest in the building's future became evident during an interview with the Dondorf Printing House Initiative, which drew five participants. The printing house had long been used by Goethe University's Institute for Art Education until the department relocated to the Westend campus at the end of 2022. Facing the threat of demolition, the initiative formed in early 2023 with the goal of preserving the building or at least achieving community consensus about its future.
Initiative members emphasize Dondorf's historical significance, which stems from its various uses over the past 135 years, according to Willy Breder. Originally owned by a Jewish merchant family, the printing house was later used by the Nazis to print propaganda materials. Large sections were destroyed during the Allied bombing of Frankfurt on February 8, 1944, and the university moved into the rebuilt structure in 1961.
The building gained renewed attention in June 2023 when it was occupied during a Bockenheim summer festival. The squatters strategically used the festival to generate broad public attention, though police cleared the building after nearly three weeks. While the occupiers worked to prevent demolition, the initiative mobilized the broader urban community. "The enlightened bourgeoisie in Frankfurt is incredibly strong," believes Konrad Götz, who lives across from the printing house. "I believe the moderate center can be activated through discourse here. This connects to the tradition of Critical Theory."
The preservation campaign included petition drives and outreach to multiple museums that also supported keeping the building. "We from the initiative also gave passionate statements supporting the occupation," adds Cordula Kähler, who worked as a conservator at the Liebieghaus Sculpture Museum before retirement. After another occupation in winter 2023 and considerable back-and-forth negotiations, officials finally decided the Schirn would temporarily move into the Dondorf Printing House.
Schirn Director Sebastian Baden highlights the building's special character: "The printing house has a unique atmosphere. Despite its previous vacancy, it remains a vibrant place that means a lot to people." He notes that the facility will allow the museum to host two simultaneous exhibitions and promises an open foyer, café, and gathering spaces in the inner courtyard.
However, "The Printing House Collective," composed of former squatters, remains less enthusiastic about the interim arrangement. "We're glad that Dondorf will be preserved," says Jule, who only provided her first name. "But we occupied the printing house to create a self-managed, non-commercial meeting place. The Schirn doesn't represent that. It's an art institution that, as a museum, naturally doesn't create low-barrier offerings that give as many people as possible access to art and culture."
When confronted with these criticisms, Baden emphasizes the need to consider the specific context. The Schirn has a public mandate to offer internationally recognized, high-quality exhibitions, he explains, noting that finances play a role since "we have a high level of self-financing. This means the Schirn must act responsibly and economically." Nevertheless, he stresses the importance of being an open institution, making culture accessible, and breaking down barriers. The programming therefore addresses "the breadth of needs of our diverse audience," with plans for free and low-cost offerings alongside ticketed exhibitions.
The transformation of formerly occupied buildings into commercial uses without involvement of the original squatters represents a classic feature of gentrification, with countless historical and global examples. In New York, artists used vacant industrial buildings in SoHo as lofts, exhibition spaces, and party venues during the 1960s and 1970s; today the neighborhood features high-end boutiques and stores from Louis Vuitton and Stella McCartney. Similar developments occurred a few blocks away in the East Village during the 1980s, when artists converted ground-floor apartments in buildings slated for demolition into small galleries. American geographer Neil Smith prominently highlighted in the 1970s how such informal art spaces accelerate urban upgrading.
Alternative outcomes are possible, as demonstrated by a Rome example. A former salami factory occupied in 2009 now houses 200 people and has hosted an alternative museum since 2012 with the wonderfully unwieldy name "Museum of the Other and Elsewhere of Metropoliz." The factory had been shuttered in 1978 and sold to an Italian construction company in 2003. The approximately 100 initial occupiers included primarily people from Latin America, Africa, and Roma communities; three years after the occupation, this collective of artists and refugees opened the museum.
This venue not only displays contemporary art but also hosts performances and political events. The city of Rome has since decided to legalize the occupation. Current plans call for converting the factory into a building complex with social housing, with existing residents receiving preferential access - though they complain about insufficient inclusion in the planning process. In Ljubljana, artists and squatters have successfully established an autonomously run cultural center at Metelkova, a former barracks occupied since 1993.
Frankfurt itself provides relevant precedents for examining the consequences of occupations. The housing struggles of the 1970s were fought more bitterly in Frankfurt's Westend, the neighborhood adjacent to Bockenheim, than almost anywhere else in West Germany. Today, the Westend, with its magnificent late 19th-century and Art Nouveau villas, ranks as the city's most expensive district. Considering these developments, the Schirn's move into the Dondorf Printing House likely represents the best possible solution - the building will neither be demolished nor converted into luxury apartments.
Despite this outcome, the collective expresses disappointment that "the tremendous effort and work that went into preserving the building, which enables the Schirn to use it at all, is being negated." The initiative, meanwhile, feels relieved that "the constant wrangling," as Götz describes it, has ended and clarity now exists. "The Schirn will set standards that future use - after the Schirn, the University of Music and Performing Arts will move in - cannot fall behind in terms of openness, vibrant atmosphere, and culture," Breder explains.
The three parties do find common ground on one issue: initiatives and associations, including the collective, will be allowed to program the second floor themselves. The Dondorf Printing House Initiative also hopes for a memorial space permanently dedicated to Dondorf's history. On a personal level, however, the squatters remain the losers in this arrangement. As Jule observes: "What leaves us feeling unsettled is that the Schirn will soon move in and celebrate parties while we're in court and receiving penalty notices. We're still waiting in vain for support from the Schirn."
