Stuttgart water stories
Stuttgart's longing for water is greater than its knowledge of the actual wealth of mineral springs, fountains, baths, streams, rivers, lakes and ideas. Hardly any other major city is so richly gifted with mineral water by nature: After Budapest, Stuttgart has the second largest mineral water deposit in Europe. Around 170 kilometers of rivers and streams and 63 hectares of lakes are located in the city area, and more than 250 'Brünnele' (wells) make Stuttgart one of the cities with the most springs in Germany. But the Neckar is a road and drinking water is scarce; Stuttgart is in a water shortage area.
Christina Schmid and Aida Nejad (Studio Malta) set off on a 'source research' with their interdisciplinary art project. They roam through the city's history and its bathing culture, immerse themselves in swimming pool technology, drinking water supply and the sewer system of the city's drainage system, and fathom the longing for water as a characteristic feature of the city. The project aims to strengthen the perception of water in the city and use it as a site for artistic research, intervention and encounter.
Water dreams and water gossip
Stuttgart waters as a wish map bobs on the floor and spills over the entrance to Stuttgart's House of Literature. Here, over a glass of mineral water, secret springs are revealed, hidden water locations are mapped, wish dreams and visions are collected, and water from 4 mineral wells from Cannstatt is tasted.
Water walks with drinking breaks and reading
Guided water walks through the city provide insight into the source research and lead to known and hidden water places in the city, raise awareness and strengthen the perception of Stuttgart's water places. During the performative drinking breaks, homemade syrup is served with the fountain water in specially created glasses made from mineral water bottles.
›Plitsch Platsch - Stuttgarter Wassergeschichten‹
After a summer of research on Stuttgart's water, the results flow into an artist's book: a logbook that chronologically documents the journey to water. It brings together 140 experimental texts, fountain poems and water dreams by Christina Schmid and, in turquoise ink, 100 water drawings and fountain choreographies by Aida Nejad, with a foreword by Jan Snela. A hand-drawn water map lies loose in the turquoise pool as a bookmark. It lists the mineral springs, fountains, rivers, streams, lakes and spas in Stuttgart. Here the wealth as well as the longing becomes visible.
Exhibition in the offspace ›Lagune‹
For World Water Day on March 22, 2023, the book was published by Prima.Publikationen with an exhibition of the drawings as a water map and Christine Joos' photographs from the water walk in the offspace ›Lagune‹.
Place
Stuttgart und surrounding
Period
March - December 2022
Text and book design
Christina Schmid
Drawings, map, water vessels
Aida Nejad (Studio Malta)
Photos
Christine Joos
Project partner book
Lithography: Alex Kern
Foreword: Jan Snela
Editing: Isabel Hartwig
Sponsors
Kulturamt Stuttgart
Stiftung Erlebnis Kunst
Prima.Publikationen
Further water walks in planning
Dates
Links
→ Book available for order via Prima.Publikationen