The vision of Alte Mu: a creative village in the town

The Alte Mu in Kiel occupies the former site of the Muthesius Academy of Art and offers space for art, culture and creativity on almost 8,000 m2 of land. The vision that guided the development of this cultural and creative centre, defined as “MU-topia”, is the creation of a “Creative Village in the City”, a meeting place combining life, work, education, art and culture.
The project has grown over ten years, moving from its initial temporary uses to a non-profit organisation and the establishment of a cooperative, creating a solidarity-based, largely self-sufficient economic system supported by funding from the city and the federal state.

Milestones in the development of the project

2012: Informal use; after and in the interim, the Muthesius Kunsthochschule (mkh) in Kiel largely vacates its buildings in Lorentzendamm. Some of the spaces continue to be used by students. The first creative and ecological projects are moving into the vacant spaces for interim use through rental agreements: for example, Kieler Honig (Kiel honey shop), Goldeimer (composting toilet) and Werk Statt Konsum (open wood workshop).

2014/2015: Foundation of the association; On 10 September 2014, the first plenary meeting is held, the starting signal for the Alte Mu community project. On 18 September 2015, the non-profit organisation Alte Mu Impuls-Werk e.V. is founded to further consolidate the project. Since then, the renovation and development of the site have been carried out through the efforts of the initiative itself.

2016: Sub-use agreement; The sub-use agreement with the city of Kiel (as owner of the building) and the state of Schleswig-Holstein (as owner of the land) allows the initiative to continue using the site on very favourable terms: there are no rental costs, only management costs.

2019: Coalition agreement, target agreement and lease negotiations; In December 2019, the city of Kiel and the state of Schleswig-Holstein signed a target agreement on the urban development of the Alte Mu. The goal is ‘a lasting perspective for the creative scene with its innovative concepts of living and working’.

2021: Foundation of the cooperative; On 13 April 2021, the ALTE MU eG cooperative for living and working is founded. The cooperative offers the opportunity to establish a democratic legal form together.

2022: A new long-term agreement; In April 2022, ALTE MU signed a leasehold agreement with the state of Schleswig-Holstein, laying the foundation for ALTE MU's long-term future. In July 2022, ALTE MU e.V. then handed over the day-to-day operations of the creative centre to the ALTE MU eG cooperative.

Future: new housing spaces; The project intends to add 4,600 m2 of residential space, in order to provide members of the ALTEN MU eG cooperative with access to affordable housing and project space in Kiel's city center. Sustainable housing options such as cluster housing and opportunities for students, trainees, and artists are intended to provide impetus for the city of tomorrow.

Media

The Past and the Future of Alte Mu

Raw extrait from COMMON SERIES documentary (EP.5) / Rendering of the future housing space
Raw extrait from COMMON SERIES documentary (EP.5): interview with Leo.
Rendering of the future housing space
Active BASICC organisations
Loghetti