Sketch of the old town hall of the warehouse complex

© Marc Volquardsen

The port of Hamburg has changed tremendously over the course of the past years. Due to the change from the time when dockers worked with crates and handcarts to discharge a freighter to the times of modern automated container ship trade, most of the old docklands and complexes of warehouses from the sixties aren’t needed any more. A city development team came up with ideas to tear down the old parts and started a project called Hamburger Harbor City. A mixture of working and living side by side will replace the old harbor.

On one of our tours we discovered that the construction stage in one part is almost completed and gives such a lovely view to the very old complex of warehouses (Speicherstadt) which of course hadn’t been torn down.

My sketch shows the view to the so called town hall of the warehouse complex.

Sketch on Moleskine watercolor paper (taken out of a sketchbook)
© Astrid Volquardsen

© Astrid Volquardsen

© Astrid Volquardsen 2014

I love to take my gouache gear with me when exploring the city. No need to carry the pastel equipement with me, a much lighter travelling gear.

Back in my studio I had of course to explore this with pastels as well.

Speicherstadtrathaus, 13×13, Pastell,
© Astrid Volquardsen 2014