From Duisburg in the West to Dortmund in the East, from Recklinghausen in the North to Hattingen in the South: once the Ruhr was Europe's largest industrial region – nicknamed the "Kohlenpott". Today, the region has been transformed into a modern cultural metropolis, not least through this year's "Ruhr 2010" project. Essen, representing the entire Ruhr Area, will hold the title of "European Capital of Culture". The 5.3 million inhabitants of the area, who originate from 140 nations, welcome culturally stimulated visitors from all over Europe.

 

The program is being rolled out across the entire area. Here is just a small taste of the fascinating cultural offerings in the four areas of action: "City of Opportunity", "City of Arts", "City of Cultures" and "City of Creativity". Our recommendation: Let's go to the Pott!

 

 

Emscher Art 2010. Emscher Island is a 34 km long, stretch of land between the Rhine-Herne canal and the river Emscher. It forms the heart of the new Emscher valley between the towns of Castrop-Rauxel and Oberhausen. The Emscher Art exhibition will allow visitors to experience this exciting area through a range of different uses of space. The spectrum ranges from art for public areas, to garden and landscape art.  

 

Shaft Signs. Many of the pits, which once shaped the townscapes, have now disappeared. Hundreds of orange balloon sculptures, which rise up into the sky, now mark these roots of the Ruhr area and are visible day and night: you will see the locations where, in the last hundred years, men have toiled underground. Perhaps one of the most memorable images of the cultural year!

 

 

Odyssey Europa. Six theatres from the region are searching for Europe’ oldest traveller, in their first collaborative project. European authors Emine S. Özdamar, Roland Schimmelpfennig, Peter Nádas, Grzegorz Jarzyna, Christoph Ransmayr, and Enda Walsh are providing a new interpretation of Homer's Odyssey.

 

!SING – Day of Song. A musical people’s movement which inspires people to sing. The largest choir concert in Europe will bring together amateur choirs from the Ruhr Area and the European twin cities, at the Veltins Arena (Gelsenkirchen). The artistic director, Steven Sloane said "We intend to invent a new holiday".

 

 

 

 

Twins. Active and creative Europeans from the Ruhr Area’s more than 150 twin towns are organising many different cultural projects. Twinning encourages partnerships between cities and seeks to establish a European creative network.

 

Melez – stories about living together. Melez aims to winoverpeople from the 140 “Ruhr Area nations" as new spectators and participants for art and culture; in order to investigate, appreciate and illustrate the cultural and social variety of the region. Including new art and cultural projects!

 

 

Creative quarters. At these locations, visitors can experience the urban development process in a metropolis – for example in the Dortmund “U” area, in the Viktoria Quarter of Bochum and in the Unna Massen. 

 

2010lab – the creative digital Ruhr city. The digital platform is the "communicating drive belt", which connects all of the projects and ideas from the cultural region and aims to connect contemporary art, culture and creativity. 2010lab also aims to be a new communication forum, on which the debate and argument will be heated!

 

 

 

 

The RUHR.2010 Ticket offers free travel on public transport: 48 hours free travel for one person on all buses and trains within an area for 19 Euro, or for 2 people on the entire NRW-Regional transport system for 48 Euro (children up to 6 years old travel free).

 

Special train ticket offer: www.bahn.de/ruhr2010

 

The Ruhr area can also be discovered by bicycle. District bicycles can be rented at over 20 bicycle stations: www.revierrad.de.

 

Five visitor centres in Bochum, Dortmund, Duisburg, Essen and Oberhausen will act as tourist hubs – ideal starting points for journeys of discovery. Addresses can be found at: http://www.essen-fuer-das-ruhrgebiet.ruhr2010.de/en/visitors/visitor-centers.html