Dozens of urban artists from 17 countries have converged on one of Europe's most important industrial landmarks for a show that makes full use of its sprawling spaces and ubiquitous aura of abandonment.
Germany's Völklinger Hütte, or Völklingen Ironworks, is the setting for the Urban Art Biennale 2026 which opens this Saturday.
“This location is at the core of street art and graffiti art,” said Ralf Beil, the general director of the site, which is open to the public as a museum.
“It all began in industrial places like this. [Artists] “love this place and they do works for the Völklinger Hütte, in the Völklinger Hütte, with the Völklinger Hütte,” added Beil.
This year's show features 50 artists. Among them is France-based Tomas Lacque, whose installation features a small van, a pile of tires, toys and debris covered in a coat of paint. Standing in a hall where furnaces once worked, it appears to evoke fossil-fueled mobility being covered in ash like Pompeii.
