ABOUT
Flössern is an ongoing exploration into the complex human-river relationships shaped by the River Rhein—Europe’s busiest and most regulated waterway. Tracing the river’s course from its alpine origins in Switzerland, through industrial Germany, to its wide estuaries in the Netherlands, the project investigates the shifting ecological, industrial, and economic priorities of each nation the river traverses.
At the heart of Flossen is a raft—an adaptable, mobile structure inspired by the historic practice of timber rafting, where wooden logs were once floated downstream to the Netherlands to be traded and used in construction. This now-vanished mode of resource trade is reimagined as a contemporary method for knowledge exchange.
As the raft travels to different sites along the Rhein, it transforms into a series of site-specific interventions. Depending on the context, it becomes a platform for dialogue, a tool for sensing, or a performative element - where by object and body work together to makes visible data, knowledge and stories. Through each episode, Flossern engages with different institutions to uncover and reframe the ways we understand, use, and relate to the river.
SITES OF INVESTIGATION I
Rheinwaldhorn (CH)
Schwarzwald (GER)
Bundesanstalt für Wasserbau (GER)
BASF Chemicals Company (GER)
ICPR Koblenz (GER)
Duisburg Port (GER)
De IJsselkop (NL)
Houthaven (NL)
Schwarzwald (GER)
Bundesanstalt für Wasserbau (GER)
BASF Chemicals Company (GER)
ICPR Koblenz (GER)
Duisburg Port (GER)
De IJsselkop (NL)
Houthaven (NL)
I
RHEINWALDHORN
EPIOSDODE 01 – S01 I
A journey into Läntagletscher—one of the Rhine’s primary alpine sources—reveals a landscape shaped by tension; a glacier whose accelerated melting and water extraction remains largely unmeasured, even as it feeds major Swiss hydroelectric systems downstream. At the glacier’s edge, the raft transforms into a solitary sensing pole, anchored by the surrounding geology. Here body and object work in tandem; observing and sensing the water’s behavior—where the urgency of climate change meets the silence of missing data.
Observational activities performed:
– Water temperature, Hydro-thermometer
– River soundscape, Hydrophone
– Water flow rate, Custom vessel + piping apparatus
– Snowflake shape, 2mm gridded plate
Featuring the voices of:
– Dr. Petra Schmocker-Fackel (Chief of staff - Department of Hydrology), BAFU (Bundesamt für Umwelt / Federal Office for the Environment), Switzerland
– Dr. Elizabeth Case (Glaciologist), Utrecht University, The Netherlands
BAW: BUNDESANSTALT FÜR WASSERBAU (GER)
EPIOSDODE 02 – S01 I
A visit to Germany’s Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute (BAW) places the Rhine’s industrial presence into perspective. In this world of large-scale models, the demands of industry confront the challenges of a river that is gradually shallowing.
Set within a decommissioned 1:10 model, the raft becomes a bench—bridging hydraulic simulations with questions of embodying scale —inviting hydrological specialists to sit and engage in conversation.
Observational activities performed:
– Water temperature, Hydro-thermometer
– River soundscape, Hydrophone
– Water flow rate, Custom vessel + piping apparatus
– Riverbed granules, 2mm gridded plate
Featuring the voices of:
– Dr. Roman B. Weichert-Walthaner (Head of Department, Hydraulic Engineering in Inland Areas), Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute (BAW)
– Udo Pfrommer (civil engineer), Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute (BAW)
DE IJSSELKOP (NL)
EPIOSDODE 03 – S01 I
A trip to De IJsselkop — the point where the Rhine finally splits — reveals the invisible forces of shipping and bifurcation at a critical node in the Dutch delta, vital for navigation and flood management. Here, the raft traverses the river as both a sensing device and a performative action—moving along it’s edge while recording and making visible data from this tightly controlled stretch of water.
Observational activities performed:
– Water temperature, Hydro-thermometer
– River soundscape, Hydrophone + Zoom field recorder
Featuring the voice of:
– Dr. Christian Zumbrägel (History of technology, environment and science), TU Berlin, Germany
Research:
– Dr. Martijn AntheunisseEcological researcher), KWR Watercycle Research Institute, The Netherlands
– Dr. Christian Zumbrägel (History of technology, environment and science), TU Berlin, Germany