On Art und Netart in Frankfurt 1996 - 2002

The -litterally- coolest thing in Frankfurt is now the swimming pool built by Dirk Paschke, the guy, who brought us the underground clubs "Gartners" and "Hafenbar" (Harbor Bar). His new installation "Hafenbad" (Harbor Bath) is a full sized pool (12x4m) constructed from two freight containers, cut up from their side walls and then welded together, which makes up to 135 cubic meters of fresh cool water.

The installation is near perfect, with a spatious terrace around the pool at about 2.5m above ground (because the containers holding the water stand simply on the ground) some nice chairs around and a small bar where you´ll get chilly drinks served. Construction took nearly a year for Dirk and his collaborators. In a proposition to Kasper Koenig whose Artschool "Städelschule" owns the ground, he wrote:"Dear Mr. Koenig, on the empty area beside the sculptors´ studios we´re going to build a swimming pool with a hotel complex." He didn´t have to build the Hotel, since "it" consists of the industrials building which hostels the studios, but he installed a huge neon sign "Hotel" on the roof, visible from the nearby highway. I have to mention that all these things are built into an industrial waste land of Frankfurts East Harbor, circumsized by oil tanks, railways, harbor pools and storage buildings. The "Hotel" is here absolutely misleading and ironical for such an environment. But the pool is for real, and Dirk expects everyone to come and test it.
For me it´s a great installation both as an artwork and as a contribution to the club scene of Frankfurt, which after all proves that there´re some real talents here. I think it´s no exaggeration to call Dirk Paschke the Chris Burden of the 90s.
The "Hafenbad" is located at the East Harbor of Frankfurt, Daimlerstr. 32 (via streetcar No. 11 till "Daimlerstrasse") open every day from 11am to 9pm, excpt Mondays.