Franziska Böhmer and Thomas Kilpper founded the exhibition space after the butcher in May 2006. Ina Wudtke was part of the curatorial team from 2015 to 2021 and Alice Creischer and Andreas Siekmann from 2022 to 2024. Since April 2025 we are an association in foundation: ATB. Association for Contemporary Art and Social Issues . We are independent artists and theorists and will develop a diverse exhibition and discourse programme for the exhibition space after the butcher in independent project groups. The association’s programme will begin in 2026. Founding members of the association are Michael Baers, Franziska Böhmer, Alice Creischer, Thomas Kilpper (artistic director), Gergely László, Dieter Lesage, Thomas Locher, Nóra Lukacs, Karolin Meunier, Kaj Osteroth, Konstanze Schmitt, Katarina Šević, Andreas Siekmann, Norbert Witzgall, Ina Wudtke and Florian Zeyfang.
The house at Spittastraße 25 was built between 1870 and 1875 as one of the first concrete buildings in Europe. At that time, around 60 dwellings made of slag concrete were built in the small neighbourhood – Viktoriastadt. It was an early experiment in sustainable and ecological building: slag, a waste product from the steel production of the nearby “Knorr-Bremsen” factory, was recycled, mixed with cement and tamped into approx. 70cm high formwork: a building material with amazingly good physical insulating properties. Today, only six of these houses still exist, which are listed and under ensemble protection due to their new and experimental construction method.
In the 1960s, the ground floor was converted into a butcher’s shop with a shop door facing the street, framed by two large shop windows. During and until shortly after the GDR, about 15 employees worked here and in the rear building, processing up to 20 tonnes of meat a week and producing all kinds of sausage products for the canteens of various VEBs. Then the house stood empty for a few years…
after the butcher is a project space by artists for artists and at the same time open to people interested in art from all social groups. We ask those we invite to an exhibition to develop a project for this space. The exhibition space is intended to offer young or lesser-known artists, in combination with more established positions, an opportunity and platform to present their work in a non-commercial setting. Our focus is on artistic strategies that critically reflect social issues and social contradictions.