Clubs of the Future

CLUBS of the FUTURE departs from communal spaces in different parts of the world, in particular Houses of Culture across Europe and in the GDR, and opens up a space for reflection on current projects of collectivity, commoning and reform. The project takes place in a time of transition in which practices of collaboration, alternative economies, novel networks, shared civic spaces and societies are being renegotiated and put to the test.

The project arose from research into the approximately 1,800 GDR Houses of Culture, two thirds of which were closed after reunification. This closure has created a gap that is being exploited especially by right-wing groups.

The exhibitions on display at the Kunstverein am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz and the Haus der Statistik (OTTO-Halle) in summer/autumn 2024 are spatio-temporally interlinked and present an initial collection that will be continuously expanded and shown at other locations in Eastern Europe and around the world.

Multiple levels run in parallel, spanning visual-poetic-discursive arcs between different projects. References are made to historical Houses of Culture in Eastern Europe, for example in Andreas Fogarasi’s project Kultur und Freizeit (Culture and Leisure) on cultural and educational centres in Budapest and in Enlightenment, Culture, Leisure: Houses of Culture in Czechoslovakia by Oskar Helcel & Martin Netočný.

Culture without a House – A Rose without Roots – Toward a History of Rosa’s House of Culture by Chto Delat reflects on their own project Rosa’s House of Culture in St. Petersburg, staged from 2015–2022, which actively involved the public and related to the houses of culture in the socialist countries.

CLUBS of the FUTURE collaborates with many different partners in order to introduce prototypical workshop or club formats which offer a continuing community framework for a wide range of concerns and interests.

Opening: 8.8.2024, 7 pm