What is Pochen?

The word pochen has many meanings in German. It is polysemous. There is a knocking when one taps rhythmically against a surface. We insist unwaveringly on our ideals. If we think of something that inspires us, our hearts thump. We have a throbbing headache when we worry. In the mines, miners pounded the ore for decades, e.g., in the nearby Ore Mountains. In addition to all this, Pochen is also the name of a festival for multimedia art and its cultural mediation in Chemnitz. It is a space for critical and collaborative engagement with the upheavals that affect our society.

Pochen, that's us: a team of different people, but all with the same drive. We don't just want to show art, we don't just want to communicate art, we want to achieve an impact through the exhibition of art — with visitors and with cooperating institutions and contributors — in Chemnitz, in the region, in Europe.

We organize a major art exhibition (Biennale) every two years and an artistic conference (symposium) the year before to get into conversation with the team, curators, artists, and other protagonists. It started in 2018 when we worked on the topic of "Wismut", followed by Treuhand and the collection of data. A new topic, a new location, and new curations every two years.

In between, we organize events, participate in KOSMOS in Chemnitz, organize educational trips or artist residencies. All of this is always done with partners and friends from Pochen.

If you would also like to rethink art and art mediation, get involved and participate, please write to us at info@pochen.eu.