May 22 - 30, 2010
Open daily from morning to evening
Approx. 400 locations in the Ruhr Metropolis
Admission free

From 22 to 30 May 2010, places where workers once toiled will be transformed into stages large and small, formal and informal, familiar to all or yet to be discovered - depending entirely on the creative ideas and initiatives of the local people: exhibitions examining the history of the mines and urban districts, photography, discussions and talks that keep alive the memory of a living history and the stories of the Ruhr region.

Around 400 yellow balloons with long ribbons will hover like pins on a pin cushion up to 80 metres above the former mineshafts, the roots of the Ruhr region.

The balloons are a moving testament to the metamorphosis of the Ruhr Metropolis, identifying those places where it all began - where winding towers once stood, structures that defined the cityscapes for more than a century.

The 4,000 square kilometres art installation based on an idea by Volker Bandelow of Bochum tells of man's power to make change happen and to re-conquer in poetic style a landscape deformed by industry. "Shaft Signs" presents a unifying and buoyant picture. As a joint initiative organised by the participating cities, citizens and businesses, this project is intended for the people of the Ruhr region.