What do coal, crime fiction, and art have in common? More than you might think at first glance. In her reading, author Barbara Vollstedt weaves together selected passages from her mining crime novel Mord unter Kumpeln with the four elements—earth, fire, water, and air—which also form the framework of the MIX & MATCH exhibition.

This creates new connections between the artworks on display, the history of mining in Ibbenbüren, and the mystery novel.

Enjoy an entertaining afternoon with thrilling crime stories, surprising connections, and fresh perspectives on the MIX & MATCH exhibition. If you’d like to combine the reading with a guided tour, please register in advance, as space is limited. Anyone interested in attending the reading itself is also welcome to drop by spontaneously.

Refreshments will be provided in the form of a “miner’s platter” specially curated for this occasion, available in your choice of sweet (dessert platter: two slices of seasonal cake and all-you-can-drink coffee for € 10.50) or savory (sandwich platter: open-faced rolls with ham and cheese, served with dark rye bread and unlimited coffee for € 12.50), available only while supplies last.
***Registration is required for the “Bergmannsgedeck.”

The reading is free of charge.
Register by August 20, 2026, at anmeldung@draiflessen.com or by phone at +49 (0)5452.9168-3500.
Those interested have the opportunity to take part in a public guided tour prior to the reading. The tour is also free of charge—only the regular museum admission fee is required.
***The reading will last approximately 1.5 hours.

Mystical forests, old tunnels, and gloomy mine buildings.
A gruesome corpse dressed as the Frog King is floating in a
sewage treatment pond on the outskirts of the old mining town of Ibbenbüren. Have environmentalists uncovered a toxic scandal involving mine water?
Is the region’s entire drinking water supply in danger, and are thousands of lives at stake? Hydraulic engineer Dr. Wila Waaters is supposed to help in the search for the motive behind the murder. She would actually be focusing entirely on the scientific investigations if it weren’t for the attractive and mysterious fire safety expert Michael Funke, with whom she is supposed to be working. Before long, strange things begin to happen: faucets start to drip, water gushes from disused city fountains, and even parts of buildings that were once submerged resurface. Not only is the water acting strangely, but some people are also behaving mysteriously, especially when it comes to Ibbenbüren’s mining past.

Barbara Vollstedt studied Latin, German, and education in Bonn. She taught for many years both in Germany and abroad and, somewhat by chance, became a resident of Ibbenbüren in 2020. Since then, she has lived there with complete conviction. She resides in a nearly 100-year-old sandstone house along one of the old mining trails, near a historic mine shaft building and the former “Kohlestraße.” Writing a mystery novel set in the old mining town of Ibbenbüren was, for her, practically inevitable.