The drill-core archive currently under construction on Lessingstraße in Freiberg is still a building site – from 2027, it will house the drill cores and geological findings of the TU Bergakademie Freiberg and the State Office for the Environment, Agriculture and Geology. International artists were invited to submit their proposals for the design of the entrance area. The winner was the Leipzig-based artist Franziska Möbius with her design ‘INSIGHTS’ – a glass installation reminiscent of the shape and analysis of drill cores.
“I drew inspiration for my work from a scientific technique: multispectral imaging,” says Franziska Möbius at the opening of an exhibition of competition entries in the foyer of terra mineralia at Friedenstein Castle. In multispectral imaging, drill cores are analysed using UV light, thereby revealing their hidden structures. Franziska Möbius’s work, a vertical glass column, breaks through the wall in the entrance area of the drill core archive. The column will consist of individual panes of glass and allow light to enter the interior of the building. The jury’s assessment states: “The work impresses with a clear yet sensuous presence. The glass column is reminiscent of a drill core, but with an aesthetic all of its own.”
Sparking interest and raising the profile of science
Jury member Professor Gerhard Heide, Director of the Geoscientific Collections at the TU Bergakademie Freiberg, emphasises the concept of knowledge transfer that underpins the ‘Art in Architecture’ competition for the drill core archive: “When public funds are used for construction, this should also have an impact on society. In this context, art in architecture is intended to make science visible and spark interest. The use of glass as a material is particularly exciting, as it involves the transformation of raw materials into entirely new materials through thermal energy – which is very much in line with the ethos of our ‘Resources University’.” The artist herself sees art as a translator of science, offering people outside universities and research institutions access to scientific topics. “I was also fascinated by the concept of an archive,” explains Franziska Möbius, “that something is being created here which future generations can make use of. Archives are not intended to look to the past, but forwards, into the future.”
Franziska Möbius’s design was selected from among six other proposals. The participating artists come from Germany, Austria and South-East Asia. The Free State of Saxony is providing €70,000 to realise the artistic concept.
The winning entry and other submitted proposals will be on display until 18 September 2026 in the Lila Foyer of terra mineralia at Freudenstein Castle. Opening hours: Tuesday to Friday, 10 am–5 pm, and Saturday, Sunday and public holidays, 10 am–6 pm.
