Leipziger Baumwollspinnerei

Founded in 1884, the business developed into the largest cotton mill in continental Europe over the next quarter century.

During this time, an entire industrial town with over 20 factories, workers' housing, kindergartens and a recreational area, grew in western Leipzig.

The mill reached its maximum extent in 1907, with 240,000 spindles processing cotton across a working area of about 25 acres (100,000 m2).

Subsequently, the area was repopulated by a mixture of people including craftsmen, self-employed, and above all artists, many belonging to the so-called "New Leipzig School".

Ten galleries, a communal arts center (Halle 14), and around 100 artists (including Neo Rauch, Jim Whiting, Hans Aichinger, and Matthias Weischer) have all settled at the site, as well as restaurants, fashion designers, architects, printers, a goldsmith, a pottery, a film club, a porcelain manufacturer, and an arts supply store.