As Europe's Cultural Capital 2009, Linz Faces Nazi Past
Some European Capitals of Culture are luckier than others. While this year Liverpool banked on the Beatles, the Austrian town of Linz has to grapple with its connection to Adolf Hitler in 2009.
But besides using the opportunity to deal with the fact that Hitler planned to make Linz a major cultural center of the Third Reich, the steel town along the Danube river will offer a host of quirky cultural projects geared towards a wide public rather than a select few.
"Linz is an unknown creature even for Austrians," Mayor Franz Dobusch said of this town which was first mentioned as a medieval trading hub in 799, but which remained a small provincial center until the 20th century.
While few Austrians know about the medieval alleys of the historical center, most associate Linz with voestalpine AG, the steel producer that was founded as part of Nazi Germany's industrial complex in 1938, after Austria was annexed by the German Reich.
Hitler's cultural capital
In the exhibition "The cultural capital of the Fuehrer," which runs until March, visitors travelling some 190 kilometers west of Vienna to Linz have a chance to examine Hitler's grandiose plans to make the town into a cultural center.
Hitler spent some of his childhood and youth in Linz. His plans to build grand boulevards and the world's largest art gallery were never realized.
But the European Capital of Culture also invites locals and tourists to explore National Socialist remnants throughout town. Armed with an audio guide, one can listen to survivors while being led through a residential area and a former underground aircraft factory that were part of the Gusen concentration camp.
"Whenever you come to Linz in the coming year, you will find something related to this topic," said Ulrich Fuchs, the deputy manager of the 2009 events...
Read entire article at Deutsche Welle
But besides using the opportunity to deal with the fact that Hitler planned to make Linz a major cultural center of the Third Reich, the steel town along the Danube river will offer a host of quirky cultural projects geared towards a wide public rather than a select few.
"Linz is an unknown creature even for Austrians," Mayor Franz Dobusch said of this town which was first mentioned as a medieval trading hub in 799, but which remained a small provincial center until the 20th century.
While few Austrians know about the medieval alleys of the historical center, most associate Linz with voestalpine AG, the steel producer that was founded as part of Nazi Germany's industrial complex in 1938, after Austria was annexed by the German Reich.
Hitler's cultural capital
In the exhibition "The cultural capital of the Fuehrer," which runs until March, visitors travelling some 190 kilometers west of Vienna to Linz have a chance to examine Hitler's grandiose plans to make the town into a cultural center.
Hitler spent some of his childhood and youth in Linz. His plans to build grand boulevards and the world's largest art gallery were never realized.
But the European Capital of Culture also invites locals and tourists to explore National Socialist remnants throughout town. Armed with an audio guide, one can listen to survivors while being led through a residential area and a former underground aircraft factory that were part of the Gusen concentration camp.
"Whenever you come to Linz in the coming year, you will find something related to this topic," said Ulrich Fuchs, the deputy manager of the 2009 events...