The German city of Chemnitz, pronounced “Kem-nitz,” and formerly known as Karl Marx Stadt, is basking in the spotlight of being chosen, along with Nova Gorica, Slovenia, as one of the two 2025 European Capitals of Culture.

Before World War II, Chemnitz was close, at least geographically, to two dynamic Saxon cities – Dresden on the Elbe River, known for its revitalized, post-war Baroque and rococo city center, and Leipzig for its music, as the birthplace of Richard Wagner and the city where Bach, Mendelssohn, the Schumanns and Mahler composed.

© Chemnitzer Wirtschaftsförderungs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH_Dirk Hanus

“During the cold war, while Dresden and Leipzig held their own culturally, Chemnitz (or Karl Marx Stadt), was left behind,” said writer William Cook. “It’s at the end of a single line of railway track that runs from Leipzig, and the contrast between Leipzig’s huge, busy central station and the Chemnitz Hauptbahnhof was stark. With its quiet concourse and deserted platforms, getting off the train in Karl Marx Stadt felt like stepping into the past.”

In 1953, the communist government in Berlin changed the name of Chemnitz to Karl Marx Stadt and installed a huge, 23-foot bronze sculpture of Marx’s head, rising 42 feet above the sidewalk (including the base) in the center of the city. Of course, Marx had no connection to Chemnitz, and he died in 1883 without ever visiting the city.

After the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 and East Germany was reunited with the West, the residents of Karl Marx Stadt voted to restore its original name, Chemnitz, but the huge sculpture of Karl Marx remains in the same city center location, a major attraction now for tourists.

© German Tourism Board

Although many factories in Chemnitz closed during reunification, and thousands of workers left East Germany to find better paying jobs in the West, companies in Western Europe eventually took advantage of Chemnitz’s long industrial and technical experience, lower living costs, and the presence of talented artists and craft workers by reversing the brain drain. The revitalization of Chemnitz is continuing.

In 2020, as news broke Chemnitz won its bid to become a 2025 European Capital of Culture, the city’s marketing and tourism organizations, as well as Germany’s tourist board, immediately began plans to feature the city’s “off-the-beaten-track” reputation, coming up with the clever slogan “C the Unseen,” and working on more than 100 projects and 1,000 cultural exhibits for 2025.

Four main Cultural Capital projects will entice business and leisure travelers to visit Chemnitz in 2025, probably a first-time visit for many. #3000Garages is a commitment to transform small public spaces into community hubs for creativity and urban development. Another project, Generous Neighbors, now brings together individuals, corporations and educational institutions to green its city with hundreds of new gardens and tree plantings.

© Ron Bernthal

The Purple Path is an innovative art and sculpture trail that will connect Chemnitz with 38 towns and villages by country roads in municipalities part of the German State of Saxony, all located within a circle surrounding Chemnitz, from 10 to 50 minutes driving time at the most distant locations. About 70 contemporary art installations by international and Saxon artists will be displayed, with opportunities to also visit small crafts shops, bakeries, cafés and unique businesses in rural or urban destinations shown on the Purple Path map. Visitors to Chemnitz can reach these locations via private or rental car, train, local buses or tour buses.

Another 2025 Capital of Culture project, one already organizing meetings and building infrastructure, is called Maker Hubs for the Cultural Region, where designers, craftspeople, entrepreneurs, the skilled workers of tomorrow and “makers” from all over the world can meet in metro Chemnitz to learn from each other and create something new together. A jury of nine experts selected eight locations for the Makerhubs, and each Makerhub is part of the Purple Trail.

For instance, the small town of Schneeberg, located in a beautiful, mountainous region just 40 minutes southwest of Chemnitz, is one of the eight Makerhubs. A historic building on Fürstenplatz is to become a future as a “makersspace,” a center open to all for research, experiments, production, co-production and cultural initiatives. This makerhub has been initiated by the town of Schneeberg with support from West Saxon University of Applied Sciences, the local arts and crafts scene, and youth organizations.

Lars Neubert © Ron Bernthal

Schneeberg, with a population of 16,000, welcomes visitors this year to meet with local owners and designers, including Pia Hackner and Wilhelm Reichel in their small design and crafts shop Atelier-Haengengeblieben; Nils Bergauer, whose handmade leather gloves business is one of the last four custom leather glove manufacturers in Germany; and to watch wood sculptor Lars Neubert at Holz & Kunst Erleben (Wood & Art Experience) use his hand tools to design beautiful art objects.

“With the Makerhubs, places are being created in the region that will have an impact long beyond the Capital of Culture year,” said Stefan Schmidtke, managing director, European Capital of Culture Chemnitz2025 GmbH. “Here, European maker spirit can be experienced in a very practical way.”