With the Internationale Bauausstellung (IBA) Hamburg
the Free and Hanseatic City dares a leap across the Elbe
– to the Elbe islands Wilhelmsburg, Veddel, Kleiner
Grasbrook and the Harburg castle island. From Hamburg’s
“forgotten backyard” to the future lab of the metropolis:
the IBA Hamburg focuses on the potentials of the
international urban society – the COSMOPOLIS –, the
design of the „inner peripheries“ – the METROZONES –
and the CITY UNDER CLIMATE CHANGE. Until the year
2013, when the Elbe islands will not only host the final
presentation, but also an International Garden Show,
numerous participants will work on the future of the
metropolis. A series of publications will accompany the
IBA on its way. Volume 1 features a retrospective of former
International Building Exhibitions in Germany, an
outlook on projects of the IBA Hamburg, and complex
considerations of the metropolis phenomenon.