At the Karl Kücher Knitwear Factory, fabric used to roll off the assembly line. Today it’s called the Apolda Cultural Factory. At the cultural centre, creative young people from the surrounding area in the German federal state of Thuringia meet locally established artists and artists from the “Freie Akademie Köln” who work in spacious, affordable studios. The up-and-coming talent receive professional support and present their works to an audience. Advertising contracts that the Factory wins are also attractive for the young artists, who learn how to impact the art scene outside of big urban art centres. With its activities, the Apolda Cultural Factory is pushing the rural area forward culturally.