Under construction

Humboldt Forum, from 7th August to 27th September 2021, Berlin.

With the claim “under construction “ a pop-up architecture opposes grassroots, ephemeral and constantly evolving space to architectures as a representation of political power. A series of blocks reminds us of construction materials, but also rubbles, highlighting the fact that as for ruins, nothing lasts forever.

“Under construction” is a pop-up architecture in the courtyard of one of the most discussed architecture projects of recent years, the reconstruction of Berliner Schloss following the demolition of the famous Palast der Republik. The site where the building stands has been the center of political power and his representation, from Prussia and DDR to the present day. The pop-up architecture emphasized the constant evolution of the city and how different ideologies use architecture as propaganda and representation of power. A series of bricks and blocks, camouflaged as different constructions materials, can be constantly moved around using a pallet jack, creating a landscape in continuous transformation. The citizenship is invited to take part in the process, contributing to an ongoing debate around the role of this new institution. On the other side the elements, marked with a series of progressive numbers, remind us of rubbles and ruins in an archeological site. The sign of time together with human actions and aim, remember us of how these symbols of power are fragile and can/have to be constantly transformed.

After the first installation, the pop-up architecture had been reallocated within the courtyard of the museum on the occasion of the opening of the Ethnologisches Museum and the Museum für Asiatische Kunst. A series of abstracted symbols were applied as stickers on the bricks in order to hack them with just a soft touch. Their final disposition, with the aim to re-create horizontally and vertically different geometrical layouts, completely changed the aspect of the courtyard and its atmosphere for the audience.

In this way, the reuse of the whole project, minimized the first economic effort, avoiding that common waste of resources typical of temporary installations. Furthermore, the museum decided to store all the elements in order to re-use them again during the following spring/summer events.

 

 

Curator of the pop-up architecture project: Caroline Spellenberg
Curator of the reallocation of the pop-up architecture project: Ibou Diop, Katharina Kepplinger, Roman Schmitz.
Concept and Scenography: Parasite 2.0
Production manager: Franz Schumacher
Construction: Hildebrandt Veranstaltungstechnik
Ph: Stefano Colombo