Karla Nieraad has been working for the Stadthaus since its opening in 1993. Initially as head of organisation, then she took over the overall management in 2005. The former dramaturge took her first professional steps at the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe. At the Theater Ulm and the Nationaltheater Mannheim her focus was on dance theatre, which she also promotes in Ulm.
At the Stadthaus she occasionally also enjoys curating photography exhibitions (sometimes together with Andrea Kreuzpointner): Images from North Korea, a Herlinde Koelbl retrospective, Andy Spyra's series about the victims of Boko Haram, Ann-Christine Woehrl's portraits of the so-called Witches of Ghana, Kudzu by Sabine Bungert and Stefan Dolfen, and Katharina Eglau's photographs of the Orient Fragile Dreams.
Furthermore Karla is the editor of the edition stadthaus series, and occasionally also acts as author (which she really enjoys), especially when it comes to exceptional historical events.
Christos Kalokerinos, affectionately known as ‘Kalle’, and not just at the Stadthaus, is your contact regarding venue hire and organisation. He is also responsible for our exhibition and cleaning staff, truly a task not to be underestimated (Stadthaus director’s note), both demanding and satisfying. And even more, he has been deputy director since 2024.
Time and again he proved his organisation skills as in-house and event technician at the Stadthaus for 15 years. In addition, he is a member of the team organising the Kulturnacht, and he used to work in hospitality, co-managing Salon Hansen, StrandGut, and Flussmeisterei.
Carolyn Ammann is our specialist when it comes to communication, public relations, and marketing. Her great advantage: she intuitively knows what makes Ulm tick, because Ulm is her hometown. And she has even more aces up her sleeve: She read Cultural Studies in Berlin and London, and has been covering a variety of fields in important cultural institutions in the region since 2008, such as the Ulmer Zelt, the Opera Festival in Heidenheim, and the Zehntstadel in Leipheim.
Very well connected and always interested in widening her horizon in every respect, the friendly and professional team player has been enjoying working at the Stadthaus since 2023. And the Stadthaus is enjoying her company!
Andrea Kreuzpointner studied Germanic philology in Munich. She worked for Süddeutsche Zeitung and Akademie des Deutschen Buchhandels. There she was responsible for events, marketing, sales, and sponsoring projects.
But her heart beats for cultural education programmes accompanying our exhibitions.
Occasionally she also curates exhibitions (often in collaboration). She organises the kid's book fair Kibum, which was hosted by the Stadthaus for several years and now takes place in the public library. She developed the concept for our audio guide For Kids by Kids (in cooperation with the media course at St. Hildegard-Schule), which is also available in Turkish, English and other languages.The architecture guide Von Schwimmbadleitern und fliegenden Teppichen (of swimming pool ladders and flying carpets) and the biannual photography competition Kindling Democracy presented in an exhibition and catalogue are also Andrea's projects.
By the way: All projects are also very enjoyable for adults who like learning from the younger generation.
She is torn between two things: Romanian stuffed cabbage, and Kässspätzle.
Born in Timişoara, she moved to the land of her ancestors when she was three years old. She started doing crafts at a very young age, as she grew older she started writing diaries, designed fashion and started getting into photography. She worked as location scout for television, got a degree in Cultural Studies, and used her talents as a communicator. Together with her sister and her mother Andrada founded the fashion studio lajcc. She runs a small eatery in the city centre together with her boyfriend, she is publishing her own print magazine, Uhochdrei (U cubed; featuring creative people, young photography, and good stories), and she is a freelance social media and event manager. We can only assume that somehow all this is happening at the same time. This is Andrada in a nutshell, she is always attentive, interested, and friendly, but doesn’t talk about herself much. If you follow us on Instagram or Facebook, you know what we are talking about. Instead of all of the above, Andrada would probably write: #stadthaus #ulm #donotmiss
She applied for a job as administrative assistant ("I'll do what needs do be done"), and stayed on as financial expert. Tinta - this is what she is called since childhood - came well-prepared, she completed an apprenticeship as a bank clerk and worked in a large bank for fifteen years.
Moreover, her calmness is the perfect counterweight to our lively team. Toughened through her daily life with three school-age kids, hardly anything throws her off balance. She is creative as well: advanced course in arts at grammar school, and ten years of running her own shop selling fabrics and offering sewing classes. She has written a children's book, and due to her family she got involved early in organising cultural events in her home town near Ulm. It is very reassuring, that she supervises our creative powers and keeps them under control financially.
She was born in the city famous for the merchant family Fugger, grew up on a farm surrounded by nature and animals, and went to school in Neu-Ulm. And then: Carpenter. After that: Teacher for technology, PE and fine arts at a secondary school, freelance art educator at Badisches Landesmuseum in Karlsruhe (exhibition on Carthage) and BA in Art History. One of her subjects was multi-media. Further on: Employed by the SWR to establish the media library and as a photo editor for online news. Thereafter: Photo editor at Südwest Presse. Then: Getting qualified as a childcare-worker, employed by a kindergarten in Ulm. Today: Office Assistant at the Stadthaus. By the way: She is also a high ropes instructor.
Katrin Stern’s first appearance at the Stadthaus was in 2014 as moderator. In 2024 she curated the exhibition Fragile Dreams Photographs of the Orient by Katharina Eglau in co-operation with Karla Nieraad. She has been part of our team since January 2024.
Walking the Camino de Santiago through Spain and Portugal, backpacking from Istanbul to Georgia, olive harvest in Greece, or travelling across Armenia - Katja Mayer loves alternative travel. She is fascinated by people and different cultures.
Another passion became DIY, after renovating an old flat. In her mind she is already planning the restoration of her great-grandfather's stonemason's house. She was born and raised in Unterroth, Bavaria. She started working when she was 16, and gained experience in an old people's home and a kindergarten. After working for the newspaper Augsburger Allgemeine for several years, the media assistant felt drawn to the Stadthaus. Working in a creative environment is just her thing.
Despite the great variety of tasks she always remains clear-headed and enriches our daily routine at the office with her good mood and kindness. This is why we are very happy we managed to encourage Katja to start working at the Stadthaus after her maternal leave.
He is a carpenter by trade, former master carpenter at the theatre, a master of event technology and, an enthusiastic lighting manager. The Stadthaus greatly benefits from Paul Stauber’s vast experience. When Strado Compagnia Danza performs at the Stadthaus, he is part of the ensemble as their lighting designer. Installing an exhibition within Richard Meier’s challenging architecture, Paul Stauber could do it blindfolded. He also morally and practically supports organisers of guest events.
Would you like to see Paul Stauber in action? Join him on a tour of the mechanical room in the Stadthaus' basement. It’s free (but in German), just follow this link.
It is a great advantage for the Stadthaus that Franz is a jack of all trades: electrician, beekeeper, and experienced musician. Franz also looks after two bee colonies he moves from his hives to the Stadthaus terrace every summer, producing the nectar for our popular Stadthaus honey. And as drummer for the band Jesus George he is well known beyond the Stadthaus.
Nico Bulla, the youngest member of our team of event managers and technicians, is an old hand at the turntables and has already been active for 15 years in Ulm's club scene. After proving his worth as DJ/producer in the collective Eins Tiefer, and as restaurateur with St. Mauli in Germany’s capital, he returned to the south in 2020 to study Innovative Music Technology. He feels at home between synthesisers and turntables, and visual media art is also his thing. When he saw there was a vacant position at the Stadthaus, there was no holding him back.
Now he is part of our team, and we are very happy to have him.
He was born in 1987 to German-Cuban parents in Karl-Marx-Stadt (today: Chemnitz), and moved to Munderkingen with his family in 1994. This is where, as drummer in the fire and rescue marching band, Daniel Stiller discovered his love for music. He found his passion for the technology involved, when he disassembled his father’s record player without permission. Later he got the chance to legally explore the world of sound, light, and event technology in Ulm. First, as a member of the Subtone crew at Club Schilli, then as an intern at Roxy, and finally during his apprenticeship at Audio Express. Daniel’s life is all about music, ranging from Hip Hop and Rock to Electronica, or playing his classical guitar. Besides his job at the Stadthaus he runs a recording studio with a friend, publishes his tech blog, or freelances in stage setup, as rigger, and lighting designer.
The historian, art historian, political scientist, and former director of The Walther Collection in Neu-Ulm has curated numerous photography exhibitions. For example Structures of Identity: Photography from The Walther Collection, which also travelled to the USA, Mexico, Spain and the Netherlands. She co-edited the catalogue Recent Histories: Contemporary African Photography and Video Art. It was listed among the New York Times Magazine's top ten of the Best Photo Books of 2017, and nominated for the ICP Infinity Award in the category ‘Critical Writing and Research’ in 2018.
In 2022 Daniela Baumann curated the exhibition Welcome to Camp America: Inside Guantánamo Bay by the US-American photographer Debi Cornwall and Rebecca Sampson's Apples for Sale. Followed by Like a Bird by Johanna-Maria Fritz, and a project called Costume and Masquerade with photographs by Suzanne Jongmans and Jason Gardner in 2023. Please also visit Daniela Yvonne Baumann's Homepage!
Jürgen Grözinger, who comes from Ulm but lives in Berlin, is a renowned percussionist and composer. Besides being active in the realm of classical music, he initiates ensembles and projects that strive to blur the lines between contemporary classical music and improvisation, between traditional concert hall settings and the club and lounge scene. He has been the artistic director of neue musik im stadthaus (contemporary music at the Stadthaus) since its inauguration in 1996, which is now called KlangHaus (SoundHouse). He is also one of the hosts of Klassik Klub, a classical radio show, airing on WDR 3. Jürgen Grözinger’s talents as a photographer became evident in his series Luminous - the Light in Icelandic Winter, which was shown as part of the exhibition Bright Moments, commemorating the Stadthaus’ 25th anniversary.
Cultural manager, art historian, and literary scholar – he is a jack of all trades and has been curating exhibitions of contemporary art at the Stadthaus since 1996. He is also responsible for the programme in cooperation with Verein für moderne Musik Ulm/Neu-Ulm (society for contemporary music), where he is the chairman. He is on the advisory board of pro arte ulmer kunststiftung (Ulm arts foundation) and runs his own culture office, organising concerts all over Europe that bridge the gap between Jazz and contemporary classical music. To try and list all his exhibitions at the Stadthaus would require way too much space. To name a few, he worked on Bright Moments, commemorating the Stadthaus’ 25th anniversary (2018), the FLATZ exhibition Hitler. A Dog’s Life, an exhibition of Douglas Kirkland’s photographs of Monroe and Chanel (both in 2019), as well as the retrospective of Ulm artist Thomas Kahl (2020). In 2022/23 he curated Ursula Kaufmann's Pina Bausch photographies and Peter Bialobrzeski's Urban Spaces, as well as 40 Years of laif, an exhibition on documentary photography.
As a child in the Ukrainian village Milove near Novoberislav you never had to search for her. You virtually always found her outside in the garden, with the animals. Her father used to be a professional musician and director of the local House of Culture (just like the Stadthaus - open daily, free admission). He kept showing her all kinds of instruments, a ukulele, a guitar, a keybord, etc., but for the sake of nature Swetlana persistenly stayed unmusical. She was seven when the Kreinerts moved to the country of her father's ancestors. Fortunately for the daughter they moved to a rural area at the foot of the Swabian Alb.
Years later: Swetlana Kreinert writes her doctoral thesis on the topic of plant physiology. Whether it comes to ecology, agronomy, the structure of cells transporting water, or mainly the protection of our environment - the modest multilingual biologist by nature always looks beyond borders. At the Stadthaus she cares for the themed beds on the terrace (see BUND Hochschulgruppe) and teaches botany (warmly recommended!). She is co-curating her first exhibition in 2025, "In Costa Rica's Virgin Forest", presenting photography by Alexander Honold a biologist from Ulm. She also has a deep passion for linoleum prints.
It all began with the Stadthaus presenting Wiebke Ratzeburg's exhibition Hildergar Knef - Photographs by Rico Pullman in 2007. Wiebke Ratzeburg also curated the exhibitions Cosm. The Latest Outer Space Photographs and South African Photography 1950 - 2010 - Apartheid, Struggle, Democracy for the Stadthaus. Previously the photography historian and cultural manager had been the director of the Museum für Photographie Braunschweig for four years. Then she moved to Stuttgart with her family, where she co-created the photography festival Fotosommer Stuttgart and worked as a research assistant at Stuttgart State Academy of Art (Faculty of Media Conservation - with special focus on photography). Wiebke Ratzeburg was appointed director of the Stadtmuseum Tübingen in 2012. For the Stadthaus she curated various exhibitions: photographs by Jodi Bieber (2012) and Oliver Hartung (2013), West African photography (2014), Cross Dressing (2016), photographs by Barbara Klemm (2021), and Delightful Encounters, an Angelika Platen retrospective (2025).
Robert Pupeter graduated from the State Academy for Photo Design in Munich, he is a freelance portrait photographer and photojournalist, and co-founder of FOTODOKS (international festival for contemporary documentary photography). He is a project partner for a wide range of artists and designers, and co-initiator of a multitude of projects, such as the hofHaus Weicht, a socio-cultural venue in East-Allgäu, mise-en-scène for the Jugendherbergsverband (youth hostel association), for the Tyrol advertising campaign, or for OutDoor Society by ispo, and a lot more corporate features. Speaking of a lot: Robert spends a lot of time in the mountains, he explores the perception of landscapes and the relationship between humans and space. He lives in urban proximity to the mountains (Munich).
A jury member of our photography award for young people ‘Kindling Democracy’ from the beginning, we finally convinced him to curate exhibitions with us. His debut exhibition: A journey through Germany: The NSU serial murders by Paula Markert (2024).
Find out more about Robert here: www.freieRobotrone.de oder www.RobertPupeter.de
Committed to focus and full of enthusiasm - this is how you might describe Volker Kreidler's method of working. As photographer and curator, he knows what is important: you need to keep your word. He is fully immersed in a chosen topic, and he does what needs to be done, preferably by himself.
Volker Kreidler was born in the Black Forest into a family with a 140-year-old tradition of portrait photography. He has been living in Berlin for decades, and just as long he has been enjoying exploring Eastern and Central Europe. Moved by the disruption and upheavals in society following the collapse of the communist governments, he has been photographing the long-term changes.
The first encounter with Kreidler's photographs of vegetation reclaiming the abandoned area around Chernobyl, was the motivation for trying to win him for an exhibition at the Stadthaus, on occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster (2026). As photographer - and as curator! Luckily we succeeded.
The University Group BUND (association for the preservation of environment and nature) has been responsible for the conception, planting, and maintenance of the herb and flower beds on the Stadthaus terraces since 2021. The members of the group, currently coordinated by Swetlana Kreinert, come up with themes for the beds changing with the seasons. They buy the seeds, plant herbs and flowers and write descriptions for the different plants. With this ongoing project they call our attention to sustainability, environmental protection, and biodiversity in the Ulm region. They also offer exciting lessons in botany, not only for families with children.
Her roots are in Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, where Adriana Junqueira-Brugger grew up and studied History and Linguistics. She came to Germany in 2002, and stayed because of love. At kontiki, an art school for children and young adults, she introduced the students to the culture of indigenous peoples of her home country. She teaches Portuguese at Ulm University, and completed her training as art mediator at the Frauenakademie of vh Ulm. Adriana worked as interpreter, city guide, and as pedagogic staff at the Children's Museum Neu-Ulm. If you would like to hear her talk, we recommend tuning in to radio free fm, where Adriana Junqueira-Brugger hosts the show ‘Caravelas’ – mostly in Portuguese.
She first joined the Stadthaus team for the big Brasilia exhibition in 2012/13. Today she gets children excited about our contemporary photography projects in formats such as Kultur auf der Spur (hot on culture’s trail) and Kulturlöwen (lions of culture).
Silvia Keppler first fragments the Stadthaus into 48 basic bodies, before working out the properties of the building: She uses her modular Stadthaus replica to initiate visitors into architecture in a playful way. It is not easy to assemble the building ‘correctly’ – and this is not only true for children and teenagers. Keppler proficiently explains, for example during guided architecture tours, what the deal is with swimming pool ladders and flying carpets at the Stadthaus. The photographer is also predestined to offer occasional guided tours of the photography exhibitions at the Stadthaus.
Silvia Keppler studied fine arts at State Academy of Fine Arts Karlsruhe, she was a visiting student at HfG Karlsruhe (science of art, philosophy). She spent a year in Mexico City on a fellowship, then continued studying fine arts at HfK Bremen, where she was a master-class student in 2016. She has been working as a freelance artist and photographer since 2017. Keppler is currently studying architecture at Biberach University of Applied Sciences.
Brought up in post-Soviet Uzbekistan with Korean roots, Elsa Schröttle moved to Ulm in 2013, because of her Swabian husband. In Uzbekistan she worked as a travel guide, now she teaches English and offers guided tours through Ulm and the Stadthaus. Elsa enjoys travelling and learning foreign languages, and she also loves exploring different cultures and getting to know people. Her numerous projects keep her busy, such as projects bringing together people from different countries: She was involved in the development of Multikultour - Ulm Internationale Stadtspaziergänge (international walks through the city). The cooperation between Elsa and the Stadthaus began in 2017 during the exhibition Pictures of North Korea. As an intercultural person, she was able to convey the diversity of this mysterious country and to shine a light on its hidden side. Elsa is currently helping us to expand our international reach.
Tine Mehls has been enchanting her audience with her storytelling for 30 years. She already began telling stories in her teens. After visiting international storyteller festivals, she realised that she could turn her hobby into her job.
In the meantime her repertoire includes more than 600 fairy tales, legends, and stories from allover the word. Besides the traditional tales she has also written her own stories and plays.
The Stadthaus is very lucky to have her! Here everybody from the age of four can experience Tine Mehls throughout the year with her magical treasure hunts and all kinds of creative activities. Whether in spring, at Easter, Halloween, or on St. Nicholas' Day.
Apart from her degree in German studies, art history and sociology Tine Mehls received various further qualifications. She not only studied theatre, play and museum pedagogy, she is also a gardener and trained in herbal, environmental, and nature education.
Whether she performs on medieval markets, in old people's homes, in schools, kindergartens, at business events, or various cultural venues in Ulm, her audience is made up of all age groups. Her heart overflows with joy when children, parents, and grandparents are listening with amazement and laughing together.
Astrid Businger used to be a chemical laboratory assistant before she had her three kids, two of them twins. After taking a break in 2001 to be with her family, Astrid Businger joined our team, and now is our longest-serving member of staff.
She keeps her calm even on the busiest of days, which may be due to her being a single mom of three almost grown-up daughters.
She started studying medicine in Macedonia, played basketball, went swimming, fell in love at age 18, and became a mother at a young age, the children becoming the love of her life: ‘These two are my everything.’
She followed her husband to Germany in 2009, happy to be able to provide her teenage kids with a good environment and education opportunities. In the beginning, she had to focus on learning German (while her husband was already fluent and her son and daughter got by easily with English), then she worked in different factories. She fought through it all – and made it. That she joined the Stadthaus in 2018 was "a dream come true: the most beautiful building in the city, right in the city centre, friendly visitors, helpful colleagues, a great employer – what more could you ask for?" The children are both grown up now: Fidan graduated from business school and is considerably well off; Melita studies Data Science in Medicine and moved back to Ulm after a stint in Boston, much to her parents' delight. Biljana Coneva stays humble, her smile is as warm as they come.
Derya Eren has Turkish roots and grew up just across the Danube in Bavaria. Before training as shop assistant in a fashion store, she worked in a doctor’s office. After having her daughter Irem, she worked as a part-time cleaner at the Museum Ulm, but she was striving for a full-time job, in order to fully support herself. She says that the Stadthaus was a turning point in her life. Today Derya Eren greets visitors with her trademark warm smile, sells catalogues and offers insights into the current exhibitions, as if she had never done anything else in her life. Her daughter Irem and her family are the centre of her life, with grandmothers and aunts unconditionally supporting the single mother.
Edina Prošić-Vatreš, a mother of three, joined the team in February 2022. When the Yugoslavian-born first came to Ulm, the city was deeply divided about what to build on the minster square: The Stadthaus. She has been a fan of the building since its inauguration and used to visit it regularly, albeit not quite as often as she wanted. She has always been fascinated by the architecture’s quiet atmosphere, and the exhibitions that always inspired her: The broad spectrum of topics and the possibility to dive deep into the different themes, is what she loves about her job in particular. And the fact she still has enough time for her garden and for nature, for cooking and experimenting, which is appreciated by her husband and her three children, and also her dog Ola.
The former Salem student joined the Stadthaus team in February 2022. He is a good fit for the Stadthaus, which has established itself as an exhibition space for photography over the years. Jürgen Gerstmayr is an avid photographer himself. He is passionate about the "little moments of beauty, the unseen." Gerstmayr loves art and culture – "it’s what I grew up with!"
And his heart beats for animals. He has done a lot of things in his life, this is one of his strengths. He is the go-to guy if any of his many friends has a tricky problem that needs solving.
Stefan Hörr is a gardener by trade. Plants are in good hands with him, no matter if the plants are part of a show, like for instance the Berblinger exhibition, or the wild foliage on the Stadthaus terraces.
Son to a German mother and a Portuguese father, he is one of our wildcards when it comes to international visitors, since he is fluent in German, Portuguese, and Turkish.
Poetry is one of Stefan Hörr’s passions, and he has been writing since he was 12 years old.
Uwe Kristall’s career as a trained cook at the military, and later in a ball bearing manufacturing plant, abruptly ended when he developed back problems, leaving him unemployed until he joined our team in 2008. Difficult to imagine what it would be like without him.
Not only did he come up with the children’s book-corner on floor three and organised its inventory, he also became an expert of the Stadthaus architecture. He will gladly take visitors on a tour, answering all questions about our life with and in the Stadthaus - unfortunately only in German.
Sicilian-born Antonella Giuliano was only two years old, when she came to Ulm with her parents. At the age of nineteen she relocated to Olbia, Sardinia because of love, to live with her husband-to-be, and stayed in Italy until 2022, always keeping in touch with her large family in Ulm. She has seven siblings, a daughter, a son, and 15 nieces and nephews. Antonella loves her family and cooking for them is one of her favourite things to do. She enjoys listening to rock, soul, and R&B. She is is quite intimidated by the sea, but her love for it is much greater. Although Ulm ‘only’ has the Danube to offer, it is still her home and the Stadthaus is becoming more and more a part of it.
Cornelia Lapadat is a very versatile woman: At the age of six, she attended a sports boarding school near Sibiu, Romania. The Olympic gold medalist Nadia Comăneci's coach had taken her under his wings. But she didn’t like the tough competition, so she decided to study electrical engineering instead, and later trained to become a chef. When her husband got severely ill, she focused on nursing. She moved to Germany with her daughter, and her two sisters, in 2004. Here, she started working as a painter, and cooked Romanian stuffed cabbage and stuffed peppers for the visitors of the International Danube Festival. Her biggest passion however is gardening. She enjoys tending her elderly neighbours' gardens.
Milenka Orsolic from Bosnia-Herzegovina did not only experience the aftermath of the war, she also lost one of her children due to a severe illness. Today, she is a strong advocate for helping and supporting others, for example by donating blood for those who urgently need it. She also loves animals and she is a creative cook and baker.
Born in Ulm and raised in Pfuhl, she trained as dental assistant, but also worked for Hilti in manufacturing and for Dachser as order picker. Three children and fifteen years later, she now swings the mop at the Stadthaus.
"The job is perfectly compatible with having a family", she reckons, and there is even enough time for her second passion: cooking. "My favourite is Turkish!" Her husband has roots in Turkey and Rebecca Tamer keeps trying to cook the perfect Lahmacun. She is also intrigued by Chinese cooking. Some of the ingredients she grows in her allotment, and if the early bird is working in the kitchen at three in the morning, her family is not surprised at all. At the weekend she enjoys visiting markets and fairs with her husband who deals with antiques, and is fascinated by the professional buyers from foreign countries.