wrapped in wooden shingles, cloud-shaped cyclist shelter ascends to views over iron curtain

kollektiv plus x and stefanie rittler create pier 1/2

A half-cloud-shaped staircase invites passersby to enjoy the view towards Slovakia, rising as a symbolic remnant of a former bridge — or a stairway to heaven. Pier ½ by Kollektiv Plus X and Stefanie Rittler is a sculptural cyclists’ shelter on the Iron Curtain Trail, a cycling path along the former Iron Curtain. Imaginary, it continues on ‘the other’ side of the curtain, overcoming border over the biotope and the river March.

The staircase perches along the waterfront, aesthetically reminiscent of the postmodern era which reached its peak in the late 80s and early 90s — when the Iron Curtain fell — but covered with wooden shingles that simultaneously lend it a traditional look.

a cyclists’ shelter under a cloud-shaped staircase

In Lower Austria, a series of works of art are being created along this route as part of the Super Natur project. Pier ½ was inaugurated in Angern an der March in June 2024, providing a space for cyclists to find shelter in the room under the stairs. Amid the structure, integrated benches and a table in a dry room invite visitors to take a break and protect them from wind and rain.

In 2017, Stefanie Rittler and Sascha Henken from Kollektiv Plus X, a German interdisciplinary studio, collaborated to craft Waiting For Water in Amsterdam and The Winner Takes It All in Bremen. The usable, interactive sculptures draw their inspiration for content and form from their surroundings — but always with a wink in their eye. Here on the Iron Curtain Trail, too, their work is inspired by the history of the place and adapts to the conditions of the terrain, with Pier ½ standing as staircase and as a gesture of connection and simultaneous separation.

project info:

name: Pier 1/2
designer: Kollektiv Plus X (@kollektivplusX), Stefanie Rittler

location: Lower Austria

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