Ever since the Middle Ages and right up to modern times, the discovery of new worlds and the establishment of trade routes have been inseparably connected to the exploration of new shipping routes. The concomitant preference on anything exotic in Europe in the late 19th century not only profoundly changed the consumer buying habits of the continent, but also largely determined the face of the globe. Still today, raw materials such as cocoa, coffee, cotton and rubber, as well as precious metals such as silver or gold and, since the 20th century, mainly fuels such as crude oil and natural gas, define the flow of goods and guarantee the added value associated with it. In contemporary artistic positions, as they are now shown at Deichtorhallen Hamburg, Europe’s largest exhibition hall in one of the largest port cities in Europe (»Gateway to the World«), questions about cultural and historical transfers are therefore closely linked to the capitalist economic system and global economic dependencies. In this complex weave of social ­relationships, water plays an important role as a network of routes and stands as a metaphor for changing as well as ever improving relations between nations. The aim of the exhibition and book is to establish connec­tions between Hamburg as the port of destination and the countries of origin of goods in Asia, Latin America, Africa and other parts of Europe using different artistic practices such as film, video, as well as sculpture, tapestry, installations and social projects. The oceans play a vital role, national and international decisions on invisible borders for goods and people will be sanctioned here.