Temporary stages in the urban space. The 'cooperative formats' of the BMW Guggenheim Lab and the Syntopic Salon.

Abstract

Temporary constructions are not a new phenomenon in reaction to contemporary urban processes. They have existed for a long time as an experimental, artistic or avant-garde format in different disciplines. This study introduces the intentions of various disciplines and movements in building temporary structures over time and to look at the position of these stages within urban space, it seems methodologically an appropriate approach to temporary stages. Therefore it presents temporary structures in four different contexts: Firstly as architectural construction: what is the intention of an architect in building the spaces, presented in academic literature about temporary architecture? Secondly as virtual stages: what does "temporality", "flexibility" and "mobility" mean in the context of scenography? How are theatre-stages installed in the city? What effect do they have on the city? Thirdly as a sociological tool in regard to the avant-garde movement Situationist International. Fourthly, as a tool for urban planning: how do temporary constructions intervene in contemporary urban structures? The last paragraph of chapter two introduces a new format of temporary stages represented by the BMW Guggenheim Lab and the Syntopic Salon, both located in Berlin / Potsdam during summer 2012. These two stages are cooperative formats involving academic institutions, private economy, cultural institutions as well as professionals from various backgrounds. These stages present an interface of their cooperative works to the public. Chapter three elaborates on the research questions and presents the methodology applied to the two case-studies. Based on the research, chapter four introduces the two stages and the actors involved. Chapter five shows the various interests of the actors in depth and looks at the impact of these interest-cooperations on the design of the two respective stages and their position in the city. The final part of the dissertation contextualizes this new format of temporary, mobile and flexible stages in the urban space and tries to outline how far these stages are typical for our time.