May 12, 2023 | Review: Futur[AHR] Exhibition

Futur[AHR] – Future Perspectives for the Ahr Valley after the Flood Disaster 2021

A review by Yannick Ley

To present the results of the Futur[AHR] student research project, the Chair of Architectural History organized two exhibition openings in spring 2023: At the end of March in the foyer of the Reiff Museum in Aachen and at the beginning of May in the Bürgerhaus Dernau in the Ahr Valley.

During the opening in Aachen, the participating students explained their impulse-giving concepts for the reconstruction as well as the new developments of the villages of Altenahr, Mayschoß, Rech and Dernau in the area of the Middle Ahr by means of short presentations, which were recorded and can still be accessed via QR code on the Chair's website in the course of the further exhibition. It resulted in an impressive tour according to the motif of the course of the river Ahr through the diverse designs, which partly offered urban developments on the basis of a deep analysis of the individually grown village structures, but partly already extended into the architectural detail and provided promising solutions. After the presentations, the project participants were available for comments, questions, and one-on-one discussions over a glass of red wine from the Ahr Valley, so that a fruitful exchange with the interested faculty members and visitors could take place. Some ideas could even be further developed and specified directly on site.

After being set up in the Reiff Foyer for a week, the exhibition was then transported to the Bürgerhaus Dernau in the heart of the Ahr Valley. There, on the evening of May 5th, it was ceremoniously opened as a complete exhibition and presented to the public in the Ahr Valley. Among the visitors were the local politicians responsible for the reconstruction and project developers of the individual villages, representatives of the local press and a large audience of interested citizens. Yannick Ley, project initiator of Futur[AHR] and research assistant of the Chair, who comes from the Ahr Valley, first welcomed all participants of the exhibition opening and then offered a guided tour with insights into the impulse-giving concept drafts. In the subsequent one-on-one discussion with the architects and urban planners planning on site as well as the local council leaders, an intensive exchange followed about feasibility as well as advantages and disadvantages of the manifold ideas to be included in the future developments in the context of the reconstruction.

After the opening in the Bürgerhaus Dernau, the exhibition sections were taken to the respective villages and continue to be displayed for public viewing at the locations listed below. We cordially invite you to visit!