Arrival was the key theme of the 2016 German Pavilion at the Venice Biennial; Making Heimat – an Arrival Country. The exhibition identified Offenbach-am-Main as a prototype Arrival City. Historically seen as the poor neighbour to Frankfurt to its west, the messy urban blocks that form the fabric of Offenbach sit in stark contrast to the looming presence of the European Central Bank over the river. Full of life, ringed with shops and cafes below apartments housing a wide range of people, the urban blocks of Offenbach support a rich mix of urban life that have enabled an Arrival City to take hold.  Studio projects focused on a wide range of typologies ranging from alternative models of housing, cultural strategies looking to open up opportunities for cultural exchange and strategies for re-introducing industry back into the city.

The research, initially undertaken collectively, resulted in a wide range of projects exploring varying issues emerging directly from Offenbach, the wider city context and migration trends. View projects here

As a studio we would like to give special thanks to all those who were so incredibly generous with their time during our visit to Offenbach including:

Prof Kai Vockler – Professor of Urban Creativity and Urbanist, HfG Offenbach
Jan Schultz – bb22
Annika Grill – District Office Senefelder-Quartier
Marcus H. Schenk – Manager für Soziales und Kulturelles Offenbach
Tobias Kurtz  – Urban Planner, Offenbach
Luigi Masala – Integration officer, Offenbach City Council