"Vestiges of Industry" highlights industrial heritage

In a country full of medieval castles and Renaissance palaces it is sometimes easy to overlook the Czech Republic's rich industrial heritage: abandoned 19th century breweries, forgotten mines, and massive steel or textile factories now left to rust and crumble brick by brick. But, the last five years have seen a major turn-around: investors in the Czech Republic have at last been attracted into buying industrial space and turning factories into fashionable galleries, studios, or living space. This week, the 3rd "Vestiges of Industry" biennale maps some of the successes - but also some of the risks.

Saving 19th century industrial sites from oblivion has long been a trend in other countries like the U.S. and Great Britain, but at long last it has come here to the Czech Republic. This year's Vestiges of Industry biennale offers a wide cultural overview: theatre performances, tours, and lectures as well as a gorgeous exhibition and catalogue that show some of the most beautiful sites in town: former steam plants and machine works, slaughterhouses and foundries, reinvented as residential areas, private companies, and even public libraries.

Dr Benjamin Fragner is the director of the Research Centre for Industrial Heritage, the main organiser of the biennale:

"Admiration for industrial buildings and industrial heritage is very strong, especially in the arts community. And, perhaps as a result, the approach by some builders and investors has also changed. At first developers didn't really care to preserve areas as they used to be, and there were some bad examples. But, it's getting better and now it's something of a commodity: pure style and history that sets such buildings apart from a lot of bland architecture today."

Not all projects have been success stories but even in some worse scenarios at least partially preserved buildings seem a better alterative than caved in buildings going to dust.

As Dr Fragner says, industrial heritage has traditionally had strong resonance within the arts scene and some are taking things even further: stage designer and performer Tomas Zizka, from the artists' organisation mamapapa, has organised a tour of an old factory site in the steel town of Kladno, just outside of Prague. As he indicates, visitors will be able to explore the social meaning of the space.

"Not many people have an idea what to do with such beautiful buildings, letting them fall down, letting them collapse. Saying they were dirty, they were contaminated, there was criminality there. That is already a very interesting point of 'drama' from which to start doing something in this area. We have put together what we have called an 'industrial safari'. People will be transported through the territory. We will go through the area which is not just dirty but dangerous: many open holes, electrical contacts. From inside the bus we'll get a sense of dramatic feeling, we'll see sleeping buildings, lights, sound. Like I said, an industrial safari!"

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Kladno and Prague are the two cities highlighted in "Vestiges of Industry" this week. You can find full listings of activities and presentations at: industrialnistopy.cz