All Expectations Exceeded for denkmal and MUTEC
Summary Report
The 12th edition of the historic preservation sector’s leading European trade fair, denkmal, and the international trade fair MUTEC have ended with outstanding results. 13,900 visitors made use of the opportunity to get up to speed on the latest developments and current trends at the two trade fairs. Markus Geisenberger, Chief Executive Officer of Leipziger Messe, declared: “By achieving a significant increase in the number of its visitors, denkmal has proven admirably that it is Europe’s most important event for the historic monument preservation sector. MUTEC was able to register growing visitor numbers too. It was for the first time organised by Leipziger Messe itself, which turned out to be a great success. In combination, these two international trade fairs have come to take the role of a vanguard for the preservation of cultural heritage.”
Featuring more than 435 exhibitors from 17 countries, denkmal covered the whole breadth of historic monument preservation and restoration. The participating companies and institutions were very content with the way things went: “This was the best denkmal since its inception in 1994. Our stand was very well attended and we were able to make many new contacts, many of them on an international level. We were able to initiate quite a few sales and business deals. What makes denkmal so interesting is the fact that the most varied target groups are represented at the trade fair,” said Ralph-Uwe Johann, managing director of Deffner & Johann.
The percentage in trade visitors is traditionally very high, and one in eight visitors came from outside Germany. Visitors also professed to be very satisfied with the event: 88 percent intend to return next time and 90 percent want to recommend the trade fair to their peers.
Quality and international flair are the big draw
International flair was what made the professional programme so distinctive, too. It comprised more than 150 individual events and attracted thousands of visitors. Various panel discussions and expert talks took place in addition to all the high-calibre conferences, workshops and presentations. Furthermore, many events presented best-practice examples from national and international projects.
Kersten Bunke, project director for denkmal, said: “This year’s denkmal has certainly made its mark in all aspects of quality, quantity and international flair. It featured a wealth of traditional artisan methods, professional expert knowledge and passionate commitment, uniting all that historic monument preservation and restoration stands for.”
Numerous coveted awards beside the denkmal Gold Medal were handed out at the trade fair. Some of the highlights were the awards given to the laureates of the 9th trade fair academy, the Bernhard Remmers Award ceremony, and the 12th Award of the Leipzig Chamber of Crafts for Historic Monument Preservation. “Our Bernhard Remmers Award ceremony met with overwhelming interest, with more than 1,000 registrations. There was a unique atmosphere at the trade fair and we had many fruitful discussions. The exchange with Russia was particularly dynamic. We were able to exceed our goals for the event as early as on the second day. Planners and craftspersons visiting denkmal for the first time at our suggestion were enthusiastic about their participation,” said Christian Hecker, planner and object manager for the field of building preservation with Remmers Fachplanung.
11th Gold Medal awards demonstrate the core values of denkmal
Its lively atmosphere, diversity and international exchange are denkmal’s trademark features. These three features were particularly resonant this year. They are embodied by the ten winners of the denkmal Gold Medal, which this year was awarded for the 11th time.
The laureates include, among others, Dörr Histoglas glaziery and the Holzmanufaktur Rottweil wood workshop, whose impressive skills become visible in the manufacture of historical windows. The Federal Association of German Masons received a Gold Medal for preserving the traditional masonry craft, which makes them representative of many other crafts associations and their passionate commitment.
Innovation had a very important role to play at denkmal, too, as was demonstrated by the winners Linsinger ZT and Hiss Reet, a reet supplier. Linsinger received the Gold Medal for the development and application of innovative methods for documenting historic building substance. “For 20 years, we have time and again decided to return to the trade fair as the perfect networking platform. The structure and flow of the event with its well-conceived clusters of exhibitors is one of the features that we find very appealing. Another aspect is how perfectly the trade fair is organised, winning us over year after year,” said Stefan Linsinger, the company’s managing director.
In Hiss Reet, the organisers decorated a representative of the Lehmbau trade show on mudbrick construction, for which denkmal has been the backdrop since 2004. The company stands for innovative solutions made from reet, the traditional building material.
The research project of the Leipzig University of Applied Sciences (HTWK), which was also awarded a Gold Medal, proves that tradition and innovation need not be mutually exclusive. The project brings renewed attention to the historic Zollinger roof by updating and optimising it.
The successful protection and preservation of historic monuments and buildings would be impossible without the committed involvement of citizens. Wikimedia Deutschland e.V. has achieved great things by documenting historic monuments in depth, earning the association a denkmal Gold Medal.
International projects also received denkmal Gold Medals. The Association of Restorers in St. Petersburg was given the award for the skilful presentation of its member companies at the joint stand of this historical city. As an exemplary project that reaches across borders, the joint stand “Castle landscapes in the German-Polish border region”, set up by the National Heritage Board of Poland, was also awarded a prize.
Start of preparations for the European Cultural Heritage Year 2018
Looking toward the European Cultural Heritage Year 2018, denkmal provided the ideal stage for the international and cross-disciplinary exchange between all players. Lively talks were used to lay down the tracks for coordinated campaigns and projects which are to raise awareness for the subject of historic monument preservation in two years’ time. “denkmal has proven its status as an attractive leading event for the sector. With its open, collaborative and creative character, it will take an important place in the European Cultural Heritage Year 2018, for which preparations are underway,” declared Dr. Uwe Koch, the head of the branch office of the German National Committee for the Preservation of Historic Monuments.
Leipziger Messe has a successful premiere as MUTEC organiser
This year was the first time that MUTEC, which since 2010 has been taking place in parallel with denkmal, was organised by Leipziger Messe. Thanks to a significant increase in the number of exhibitors and the extended professional programme, the international trade fair for museum and exhibition technology was met with great interest by exhibitors and visitors alike. Nine out of ten visitors intend to return to MUTEC in 2018 and recommend the trade fair to their peers.
Operators of museums and other cultural institutions, as well as libraries and archives, learned about innovation in the various fields of museum technology from 80 exhibitors hailing from ten countries. Some highlights were the special show “Plaster Casting – Historic and Modern Techniques” by the National Museums in Berlin, which presented the restoration and preservation of works of art using analogue and digital processes. The thematic blocks in the MUTEC forum were also in high demand.
The next edition of denkmal and MUTEC will take place from 08 to 10 November 2018.
List of the Gold Medal winners
Joint stand “Castle Landscapes in the German-Polish Border Region” – set up by the National Heritage Board of Poland (NID – Narodowy Instytut Dziedzictwa)
for its compelling presentation of the German-Polish building heritage.
Association of Restorers St. Petersburg (Russia)
for their successful presentation of the association’s member companies
Dörr Histoglas glaziery, Osterburken (Baden-Württemberg, Germany)
for outstanding innovative achievements in the manufacture of historical window panes
HTWK Leipzig University of Applied Sciences (Saxony, Germany)
for their research project on the modern update to the Zollinger roof
Antik Ofen Galerie Markus Stritzinger, Burrweiler (Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany)
for their unusual idea on preserving and using historical stoves, and its outstanding application
Federal Association of German Masons
Federal Trade Guild of the German Masonry and Stone Sculptor Craft, Frankfurt on the Main (Hesse, Germany)
for the preservation of the traditional masonry craft
Linsinger ZT GmbH, St. Johann in Pongau (Austria)
for the development and application of innovative methods of documenting historic building substance
Holzmanufaktur Rottweil GmbH, Rottweil (Baden-Württemberg, Germany)
for outstanding solutions for historical windows
Wikimedia Deutschland e.V., Berlin, Germany
for its way of fostering citizen commitment
Hiss Reet Schilfrohrhandel GmbH, Bad Oldesloe (Schleswig-Holstein, Germany)
for innovative solutions made from reet, the traditional building material
Press Contact
Mr Felix Wisotzki
Phone: +49 (0)3 41 / 678 65 34
Fax: +49 (0)3 41 / 678 16 65 34
E-Mail: f.wisotzki@leipziger-messe.de
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