DAS FRANKFURTER BAHNHOFSVIERTEL

Frankfurt’s Bahnhosviertel or central train station district is a study in contradictions. Historically, the neighbourhood has been a diverse ethnic and cultural melting pot, embodying Frankfurt’s ‘multi-culti’ vibe. The district’s streets lined with cheap stores, barbershops, kiosks, döner restaurants and run-down infrastructure are a far cry from the rest of Frankfurt, where well-kept avenues signal a quiet and understated affluence.

In fact, the roughness of the Bahnhofsviertel is what makes it charming. The high-ceilinged Altbau apartments in the district are highly prized among Frankfurt’s younger crowd. To capitalize on its cool quotient, the last decade has seen an influx of investment in and around the neighbourhood - glitzy glass-façade apartment blocks, boutique cafés, bakeries, salad bars, speakeasys and a host of restaurants specializing in cuisine from around the world. The city’s aim was ostensibly to repair the district’s seedy reputation.

The Bahnhosviertel’s infamy comes from being home to one of Europe’s largest red-light districts. Walking around Taunusstraße – the pulsing soul of the sex trade, one might be propositioned by sex-workers, encounter a bevy of sex shops catering to every kink, notice a pornographic video store hidden behind velvety curtains, hear thumping music from bars featuring burlesque performances and look up at the well-illuminated balconies of ‘Laufhaus’ or love-hotels. The one constant is the seizure-triggering bright neon that dots the streetscape.

The Bahnhofsviertel is also a magnet to drug addicts from across Europe. It is impossible to take a walk around the streets of the district without encountering an addict, sleeping off their exertions on the sidewalk or in the (often urgent and gory) act of ‘taking a hit’. By all accounts, the addiction problem was far worse in the late 90s and early 00s, when reports suggest, that hundreds of addicts lined the district’s streets and parks every week. The Taunusanlage is now a beautiful park dotted with post-modern sculptures and surrounded by up-market residential apartments. One long-time resident recalled a time not too long ago when the park was crowded with addicts and vagrants.

The urgent gentrification drive in the Bahnhofsviertel ought to be seen in the context of its proximity to Frankfurt’s financial district. Following Brexit, Frankfurt’s stock as the financial hub of Europe is on the rise and burgeoning investment in the city has coincided with the hiring of more talent. The new hires in turn look for viable, proximate housing and many of them find the Bahnhofsviertel’s charms alluring, especially after its facelift. Much to the chagrin of long-term residents, this has not only brought an unwanted homogeneity to the character of the streets but also crucially, has increased their cost of living.

One of the visible effects of these developments has been the convergence of people on varying ends of the social and economic spectrum. On Munchener straße, some eat a fulfilling meal for as little as 3.5 Euro while some get a cocktail at a speakeasy for 15. Bankers in their crisp power suits, talking into airpods with lattes in hand, pay no heed to the torturous ramblings of a mentally ill destitute man. Sex-workers attract clients outside stores even as conservatively dressed south-Asian families haul the weeks groceries. A friend, living in a beautiful apartment in the Bahnhofsviertel and working as a steward for Lufthansa, admitted that he wouldn’t dare to venture to some streets in his uniform for fear of harassment or worse.

This documentation is from the perspective of a transient. My studio and living space provided by basis e.V. were within the Bahnhofsviertel where I spent 8 weeks. My fascination with encountering such a variety of interesting cultures, spaces and experiences contained within one district, propelled me to document a few of them. The streets of the Bahnhofsviertel are always buzzing with a sense of tension and unpredictability. With this project, I have sought to translate some of the sensory input that I experienced while walking the district’s streets. It is my hope that these photos and the accompanying audio clip give you a fleeting sense of this unique district.

This work was supported by the Goethe Institut, Bangalore under the bangaloREsidency Expanded program. I am indebted to the Institut and basis e.V.my gracious hosts in Frankfurt.