Baumwollspinnerei
Outside of the city center, in the district of Lindenau, Leipzig merchants built a huge cotton factory that spun from 1884 until 1993, when it closed. The 25-acre site lay abandoned until a group of artists purchased the property in 2001. Today the old factories are run by an eclectic collection of craftspeople and artists. In addition to galleries run by Neo Rauch and Matthias Weischer, the factory became the center of the New Leipzig School of contemporary art. Today the Cotton Mill is an enclave of potters, a goldsmith, fashion designers, restaurants, and theaters. Self-billed as the “Hottest Place on Earth,” it is worth the trek.
