Ice Melt – 
Voices of the Past  

Voices of the Past in the Altenberge Ice Cellar

Deep beneath the Borndal in Altenberge lies a place where history, architecture and art merge into a distinctive experience: the ice cellar of the former Gebrüder Beuing brewery. Once used to cool beer, it is now a walk-in monument and a complex of chambers that, at irregular intervals, opens its doors for musical performances, art exhibitions, readings or sound art projects.

As part of his project Klangwelt Kreis Steinfurt, the Austrian media artist Hans-Jürgen Poëtz chose this remarkable site as the starting point for his work. He explored the acoustic traces of the past and transformed the historic cellar into a resonance chamber for sound and artistic reflection.

Before the invention of industrial refrigeration, ice cellars were essential for storing perishable food. The Altenberge ice cellar is rooted in this building tradition. In 1860, the brothers Johann Hermann and Franz Beuing purchased the property on the slope of the Borndal and, on 1 February 1860, applied for permission to construct a bottom-fermented “Bavarian-style” brewery. Production began on 31 January 1861.

The ice required for cooling was harvested in winter from the flooded meadows of the Borndal and brought into the underground cellars by horse-drawn carts. The capacity of the facility exceeded 900 m³. Once filled with ice, the fermentation and storage cellars maintained a constant temperature between two and seven degrees Celsius – conditions essential for producing bottom‑fermented beer. Over the decades, the brewery was expanded to include an additional storage cellar and a two-storey ice cellar, parts of which were demolished again in 1904.

The global economic crisis forced Alfred Beuing, the son of Johann Hermann, to sell the brewery in 1929. The buildings were later used for a grain distillery, which operated until 1980. After that, the cellars fell into obscurity – hidden, damp and dark. Only after the municipality of Altenberge purchased the site were the cellars uncovered, restored and, in 1996, listed as a protected monument. Following extensive renovation, the ice cellars were reopened to the public in September 2004 as a walk‑in historical site.

Today, the three-storey vaulted complex can be visited throughout the year on guided tours organised by the municipality of Altenberge. Walking through the cool, arched corridors offers a vivid impression of how the ice was once stored and the beer matured. From 1 October to 30 April, the lowest level becomes a winter refuge for bats. During this period the cellar is partially closed, though this does little to diminish its unusual atmosphere.

On 13 September 2025, visitors entered the dark red brick vault through the entrance to the lowest storage cellar to immerse themselves in Poëtz’s sound installation Eisschmelze (Ice Melt). His spatial sound intervention turned the physical presence of the site – its dampness, its temperature, its history – into the central protagonist.

This was once the concealed entrance to the cellar before its restoration and transformation into a museum site. Many children from Altenberge once crossed that threshold as an act of daring, not wanting to be labelled “cowards” by their friends. Back then the cellars lay in total darkness, mysterious and unpredictable. Today a concrete ramp and a softly lit wooden walkway guide visitors through the building. And yet, the feeling of those childhood trials of courage can still be imagined: the light remains subdued, one steps through a heavy steel door into darkness, and is immediately enveloped by noticeably cooler, moisture‑laden air.

This moment of entry conveyed an intense sense of immersion on the exhibition day as well – into the past, into darkness, and into sound. Several days of rain preceded the event; the brick walls gleamed with moisture, water collected on the stairs, droplets echoed from the vaults. This natural acoustics became part of Poëtz’s composition.

Wherever visitors moved within the three-storey complex – whether in the arched storage cellars, in the oldest round ice cellar, or in the large hall once filled with ice almost to the ceiling—droplets could be heard falling, water gurgling or flowing, and even the cracking of ice. Sometimes gentle and flowing, sometimes eruptive and loud, the invisible sounds unfolded from all directions and openings, making the history of the cellar, the energy of the ice and the unique atmosphere of the place sensually perceptible.

More than one hundred people experienced an ambience that afternoon suspended between archaic stillness and vibrating presence. The ice cellar became a place where history was not only audible but physically tangible – a space with breath, permeated by the echoes of the past. Once again, the Altenberge ice cellar revealed itself as what it is today: a resonant chamber between history and the present, between nature and art.

Franziska Mahlmann is the Cultural and Gender Equality Officer of the municipality of Altenberge. She studied Journalism and Ethnology and has lived in Altenberge with her family since 2004. 

Thomas Harbich has been an ice‑cellar guide since 2009 and is the spokesperson for the eleven‑member team of volunteer guides. He is a board member of the Altenberge Heritage Association and has lived in Altenberge since birth.