Krefeld's memories: Home squares show the 50s and 60s!

Krefeld's memories: Home squares show the 50s and 60s!

On February 1, 2025, the history of Krefeld will be alive through the impressive work of Karl Heinz Lengweningen, whose photographic documentation from the 50s and 60s still fascinate. A particularly concise work in this series is a press photo from February 1963, which shows a winter harbor basin, surrounded by ice floes. In particular, the boats of the river pioneering company 732, which was set up in the Rheinhafen Krefeld-Uerdingen in June 1959 and had a peace strength of 263 soldiers during their active time. This unit experienced several restructuring and was renamed the 832 and 1980 in 1973 in river pioneering company 801 before it was dissolved in 1989. Lengwenings, born on February 10, 1927 and died on June 18, 2017, not only photographed Krefeld in his life, but also recorded significant events in city history.

The photographic career of Lengwenings extended over more than three decades. From 1954 to 1965 he worked as a press photographer for the new Rhein/Neue Ruhr Zeitung, followed by a job as a picture journalist for the Westdeutsche Zeitung until 1970. This year he took over the management of the cityscape position, which was later renamed the press office of the city, and remained in this function until his retirement in 1989. His extensive estate includes several hundred thousand black and white negatives, which he created from 1954 to 1970 and represent the important time documents of the city of Krefeld. Nicoleklick thanks Peter Lengweningen, his son, for the digital processing of his father's photographic heritage in the series "Krefeld impressions b/w".

home squares: a new art project

In a fresh approach to the honor of Lengwening's ’artistic heritage, Krefeld photographer Annette Burbach launched the“ home square ”. These can be acquired with motifs from the period between 1950 and 1960, which come from the photographer's estate. The home squares are printed on light, square plastic blocks, and offer the possibility of individualization with your own pictures. Burbach, who had to end her career as a physiotherapist after a serious accident in 2013, found the way to corporate communication and to her job as head of the Inoges Holding marketing department.

Burbach has combined the home squares with lovingly written texts that relate to their own life stories. Around 200 different motifs, including popular photo motifs such as the city pool and the Rhine bridge under construction, are available online. The home squares are very popular and are available at the Christmas market "Made in Krefeld Special" until December 23. The process for the development of these works of art includes numerous pressure attempts and material adjustments, which ensures the quality and responsiveness of the products.

exposure and cultural heritage

The photographs of Lengweningings are not only present in printed form, but also in exhibitions, such as "Krefeld. Perspectives. In the change of time". This exhibition, which was opened in H.O.B. Gallery in 2019, showed pictures from Krefeld's past and documented the change of the city. The photographs that record everyday scenes and significant political events are particularly impressive, such as Willy Brandt's speech in front of the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum in 1961.

Overall, the photographic legacy of Karl Heinz Lengwenings offers a unique insight into the history of Krefeld and is kept alive through modern projects such as the home squares of Annette Burbach. This illustrates the essential role of photography in the documentation and maintenance of our cultural heritage.