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Hemshof Boogie: A text on Apartment Project
Seit den 1960er-Jahren streben Künstler nach einer engeren
Verbindung zwischen Kunst und Leben. Besonders seit den 1990erJahren ist der Künstler Initiator, ist mehr Mitwirkender als einfach
nur Hersteller eines Kunstobjekts. Während das Kunstwerk selbst
Produkt eines fortwährenden, prozess-orientierten Projekts wird,
befindet sich das Publikum nicht mehr in der Rolle des stillen, passiven Zuschauers, sondern wird zu einem aktiven Teilnehmer und
Mitgestalter des künstlerischen Arbeitens. Diese Neudefinierung der
traditionellen Rolle von Künstler, Kunstwerk und Betrachter in der
zeitgenössischen Kunst hat Raum für neue Ausstellungsmethoden
geschaffen, in welchen der „Kunst-Raum“ auch als „sozialer Raum“
verstanden werden kann und als Plattform für gemeinschaftliches
und interdisziplinäres Arbeiten dient. Kern dieser Arbeiten formt
immer die Partizipation.
Apartment Project, 1999 als eine der ersten unabhängigen türkischen Künstlerinitiativen von Selda Asal in Instanbul gegründet,
fungiert als Plattform für gemeinsames Leben und Arbeiten mit
Mitwirkenden aus unterschiedlichen Disziplinen. Neben ihrer Arbeit
in der Türkei, hat sie in europäischen Städten wie Berlin, Kopenhagen, Stockholm und Marseille aber auch in Ländern im Kaukasus
und der Balkan-Region über einen Zeitraum von 13 Jahren wichtige
Erfahrungen gesammelt. Seit 2012 agiert die Gruppe auch von
ihrem zweiten geographischen Standbein in Neukölln, Berlin aus.
Apartment Projekt wurde im Rahmen des Projekts Hack and The
City für zweieinhalb Monate zur Durchführung eines neuen Projekts
nach Ludwigshafen eingeladen. Seit ihrem ersten vorbereitenden
Besuch im November 2013, hat die Künstlergruppe im Mai 2014 die
Rudolf-Scharpf-Galerie in einen Wohn- und Arbeitsraum verwandelt.
Ja, man könnte fast sagen sie hat die Galerie besetzt, um dort, im
Hemshof, ganz nah am Betrachter zu sein. Hemshof, ein Viertel im
Norden Ludwigshafens, ist ein Ort an dem 40% der Einwohner einen
Migrationshintergrund haben, die meisten dieser stammen aus der
Türkei.
Auch die Mitglieder von Apartment Project haben verschiedene
Hintergründe. Neben Künstlern sind eine Autorin, ein Produktdesigner und eine Kulturanthropologin, am Projekt im Hemshof
beteiligt. Je nach der Ausrichtung des aktuellen Projekts lädt die
Gruppe außerdem Gastteilnehmer ein. Während jedes Gruppenmitglied an seiner/ihrer individuellen Recherche über die städtische
Umgebung arbeitet, ist jeder einzelne immerzu mit den anderen
im Dialog, um kollektive Produktionsprozesse entstehen zu lassen.
Indem ein Kunstwerk als „kollektive“ Arbeit bezeichnet wird, bezieht
sich die Gruppe vor allem auf den angewandten Arbeitsprozess, statt
auf eine bestimmte Ästhetik, die das Projekt, das Kunstwerk, annehmen soll.
Zu Beginn jeder neuen Arbeit der Künstlerinitiative steht ein neuer
Ort, ein neues Stadtbild in dem die Mitwirkenden Materialien
sammeln, die erste Eindrücke und Beobachtungen widerspiegeln.
Selda Asal nennt diese Phase einen „free-flow“. Später werden diese
Materialien mit der gesamten Gruppe geteilt. Außerdem bietet diese
Projektphase den Künstlern die Möglichkeit durch Begegnungen
im Viertel, neue Beziehungen zu knüpfen, Geschichten zu hören
und Vertrauen aufzubauen, um die Öffentlichkeit in das Projekt mit
einzubeziehen.
Die Praktiken von Apartment Project nehmen Gestalt an in dem
Versuch, eine „offene Form“ zu erschaffen, ein Konzept, das 1959
erstmals von dem Architekten Oskar Hansen theorisiert wurde.
Im Versuch eine „offene Form“ zu schaffen, orientieren sich die Praktiken von Apartment Projekt an einem Konzept, das 1959 erstmals
von dem Architekten Oskar Hansen theorisiert wurde. Eine „offene
Form“ ermöglicht es in einer bereits existierenden Realität neue
Strukturen zu erschaffen und bestärkt die Teilnahme sowie eine
lebendigere Beziehung zu der spezifischen Situation.
Dies steht im Kontrast zu einer „geschlossenen Form“, wo das
Einbeziehen von zusätzlichen Strukturen nicht möglich ist. Diese
Theorie hat nicht nur architektonische, sondern auch künstlerische
Praktiken beeinflusst. Einer der wichtigsten Grundsätze der „offenen
Form“ ist demnach der Gedanke, dass „kein künstlerischer Ausdruck
vollkommen ist, wird er nicht von seinen Betrachtern oder Nutzern
bewilligt“1 , wo hingegen die „geschlossene Form“ Subjektivität auf
ein passives Element in einer größeren hierarchischen Struktur
reduziert.2
Apartment Project ermöglicht es der einbezogenen Gemeinschaft
sich selbst frei auszudrücken und die künstlerische Richtung des
Projekts mitzubestimmen. Durch gegenseitige Kommunikation
zwischen der Gemeinschaft und dem Künstler wird die Öffentlichkeit
zum Mitgestalter des Projekts und ergänzt so dessen Ergebnis.
Fünf Kunstprojekte wurden auf diese Weise im Hemshof realisiert.
Die Projekte sind hauptsächlich mit Jugendlichen und Kindern
verschiedener Schulen entstanden. Die Künstler wurden jedoch auch
von anderen Bewohnern des Hemshofs während ihrer Recherche in
der Nachbarschaft unterstützt. Zusätzlich sind Schablonendrucke
und Poster über ganz Ludwigshafen verteilt worden, man könnte
sagen als eine Art „Guerilla Aktion“, die verschiedene Stimmen
und Meinungen über soziale Fragestellungen unter den Jugendlichen repräsentieren. Auf diesen Schablonen und Postern sind ihre
Zukunftswünsche und -ängste, ihre Beziehungen zu Ludwigshafen
und ihr Leben in der Hemshofer Nachbarschaft gestaltet und werden
so in der ganzen Stadt sichtbar. Indem sie den ephemeren Raum
der Straße nutzen, erreicht Apartment Project Passanten in ihrem
urbanen Alltag, macht so eine Begegnung mit dem Selbst und Mitmenschen möglich und initiiert zugleich einen demokratischen und
formlosen Dialog.
Außerdem werden zwei Rap Videos gezeigt, das Ergebnis einer
Reihe von Workshops mit Jugendlichen, die Texte schrieben, vor
der Kamera performten und eigene Melodien komponierten. Durch
ihre traditionelle Verbindung mit der Straßenkultur eröffnet die
Rap-Musik einen populären Weg die Probleme, Gefühle, Wünsche und
Ärger des urbanen Lebens auszudrücken; sie erzählt Geschichten auf
ihre eigene poetisch-rhythmische Weise. In Ludwigshafen sollen auch
sie, ähnlich wie die Poster, den Stadtraum einnehmen (sie werden an
die Galeriefenster und auf Fernseher in Elektrogeschäften in der Innenstadt projiziert), um Themen, die die Jugendlichen beschäftigen,
sichtbar zu machen.
Parallel zu den Musikvideos wird in der Ausstellung außerdem eine
„Klangkarte“ zu sehen sein. Dieses „Klangkarte“ zeigt die persönlichen Erfahrungen der Künstler im Viertel auf, verfolgt ihre alltägliche Routine und erzählt ganz individuellen „gehörten“ Erfahrungen.
Als letztes Projekt richtet sich die Möbelwerkstatt von Berk Asal als
pädagogische Arbeit an die Schüler der Gräfenauschule. Zusammen
mit dem Industriedesigner bauen die Kinder einzelne Blöcke aus
Holz, die später je nach Bedarf in verschieden Formen zusammen
gesteckt werden können. Während die Kinder der Designvorlage
des Künstlers folgen, ist es vor allem der Verlauf der Arbeit, auf den
besonders Wert gelegt wird und laut Berk Asal die Kommunikationsfähigkeit der Kinder fördern soll. Es ist diese Gegenseitigkeit, die
das Projekt ausmacht und welches somit einem Gedanken Roland
Barthes‘ folgt, wonach „ein Lehrverhältnis sich nicht durch die
Beziehung des Lehrers zum Schüler auszeichnet, sondern durch die
Beziehungen von Schüler zu Schüler.“ 3 Des Weiteren entsteht durch
das Herstellen und Zusammenfügen der Holzblöcke auch die Möglichkeit, die Idee des Besitzes zu überwinden und dadurch Alternativen zu unserem kapitalistischen System zu schaffen. Die zusammengebauten Blöcke ergeben letztendlich ein großes Werk, in dem
nicht das Individuum, sondern die Kollektivität treibende Kraft ist.
Apartment Project ist in den Hemshof gezogen, um dem Leben der
Bewohner zu begegnen, hat auf seinen Wegen im Viertel Spuren
hinterlassen und somit im Rhythmus der Stadt seinen eigenen Tanz
choreographiert, ganz wie es der Ausstellungstitel signalisiert: Hemshof Boogie.
1
Oskar Hansen, Towards Open Form, Warsaw: Foksal Gallery Foundation, 2004, p. 121.
2
Łukasz Ronduda, ‘Games, Actions and Interactions: Film and the Tradition of Oskar Hansen’s
Open Form’, in Łukasz Ronduda and Florian Zeyfang (eds.), 1, 2, 3... Avant- Gardes: Film/ Art between
Experiment and Archive, Warsaw and Berlin: CCA Uzajdowski Castle and Sternberg Press, 2007, p. 91.
3
Roland Barthes, ‘To the Seminar’, in The Rustle of Language,
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996, p. 333.
Artists have aimed to create a closer connection between art and life
since the 1960s. Especially, towards the 1990s the artist has taken
a position as an initiator of situations and a collaborator more than
simply a producer of an art object; while the work of art itself has
become a product of an ongoing process based projects, in
addition the role of the audience has shifted from a silent, passive
viewer into a participant or co-producer. The change of the traditional roles of the artist, the work of art and the viewer in contemporary
art has effected the exhibition practices and utilization of the space
of art as a social space which tends to create a platform of collaboration with people from different fields. Even though these post studio
practices are named in various ways, such as process based art, socially engaged art, community based art; the core feature is anchored
in its participatory characteristic.
Apartment Project, which is one of the first artist initiatives in
Turkey, founded by the artist Selda Asal in Istanbul (1999), aims to
create a platform of living, working and producing together with participants from different fields. Apart from acting as an art space in
Istanbul for 13 years, Aparment Project has been producing to produce participatory art projects in various geographies: Not only in
some European cities like Berlin, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Marseille,
but also in the countries of Caucusus and Balkan region. The group
has continued their projects in their new space located in Neukölln,
Berlin since 2012.
Apartment Project is invited to be part of Hack and the City project,
initiated by Wilhelm-Hack-Museum for producing a new project in
Hemshof. After their first site visit last November, the group has
turned (in a way occupied) Rudolf-Scharpf-Galerie in Hemshof into a
living and working space for 2,5 months starting in May, 2014. Hemshof, a neighbourhood in Ludwigshafen, where 40% of inhabitants
have immigrated background, as the majority is composed of people
from Turkey.
Apartment Project consists of professionals with different backgrounds including artists, a writer, an industrial designer and a
cultural antropologist. Depending on the needs of their projects, they
invite guest participants. While each group member works on their
individual research on the immediate surrounding, they are in a
constant communication with each other for producing collectively.
By naming their art project /work “collective”, the group refers to a
process they employ rather than a form or aesthetic that the project
/work shapes. The process develops by the social relationships: forming communication, creating possibilities of exchange and dialogue,
negotiating a multiplicity of voices and agendas to building something together for creating a new project which aims to be site and
people specific.
When Apartment Project is based in a new place to realise a project,
each of them collects materials which reflect their first impressions,
observations in the location. Selda Asal names this phase as “freeflow”. Then these materials are shared with all the members in the
group. At the same time, they meet people on the streets, cafes, restaurants, markets, parks, civil society organizations, schools. Building up relations, hearing stories, creating trust helps to involve the
public into their projects. The practice of Apartment Project takes
shape as an attempt to create an “open form”, a concept which was
first proposed by the architect Oskar Hansen in 1959. According to
him, an “open form” renders the possibility to add a structure to an
existing reality, encouraging participation and a more vivid relationship with it.
This stands in contrast to a “closed form”, where incorporating additional structures is impossible1. The theory has influenced not only
architecture, but also the artistic practice. One of the basic tenets
of the “open form” is that ‘no artistic expression is complete until it
has been appropriated by its users or beholders’, whereas the closed
form reduces subjectivity to a passive element within a larger hierarchical structure2. Apartment Project allows the community involved
in the project to express themself freely, to influence the direction
of the project and moreover, by creating a mutual communication
between community and artists which involves public to be co-producers of the project, helps them to contribute to its outcome.
In Hemshof, Apartment Project has produced five art projects, mainly focusing on working with youngsters and children from various
schools, but at the same time with other inhabitants, who support
their research in the neighbourhood. Stencils and posters are spreading in Ludwigshafen, as a “guerilla act” that represents a range of
different voices and opinions on diverse set of social issues among
youngsters. Their wishes and fears of the future, relations with the
city and particularly their lives in the neighbourhood are written as
slogans. Using the ephemeral space of the street, Apartment Project
reaches to passers-by and invites them to face themselves and people
around them, initiating a dialogue which is formless and democratic.
Two rap music videos are a result of a series of workshops with
youngsters from various schools who write the lyrics, perform in
front of cameras and contribute to composing the music. Having a
direct connection with the street culture, rap music is a very popular
way of expressing problems, feelings, wishes and anger of urban life;
telling stories as a way of rythmic poetry. The videos tell stories of
youngsters and displaying them on the window of the gallery space,
also in couple of shops in the city, is an attempt to make visible the
hidden issues within the community. Parallel to the music videos, the
sound map which is installed in the gallery space along with a map
created by the artists, shows personal experiences of the artists and
traces their daily routine along with some stories and sounds of the
neighbourhood.
As a pedagogic project, the furniture workshop, Hemshof Blok, which
is run by Berk Asal with students in Grafenauaschule, aims to create
a series of furnitures (wooden blocks which can be formed and used
in various ways depending on user’s wish) and giving a chance to
students of producing something collectively. While students follow
the designed system of building by the artist, they experience to
communicate and assist to each other. As Roland Barthes indicates,
“teaching relation is not the relation of teacher to taught, but the
relation of those taught to each other...”3 The idea of the artist is not
only to produce a work collectively, but also, while doing so, to break
the barriers of the idea of “owning something”, as it is dictated by the
capitalist system. Once the blocks are prepared, they will be used by
the producers, in this case by students in the school.
Apartment Project moved in Hemshof, touched people’s lives, walked
and left traces in the neighbourhood, choreographed its own dance
and rhythm in the city as it is indicated in their exhibition title:
Hemshof Boogie.
1
Oskar Hansen, Towards Open Form, Warsaw: Foksal Gallery Foundation, 2004, p. 121.
2
Łukasz Ronduda, ‘Games, Actions and Interactions: Film and the Tradition of Oskar Hansen’s
Open Form’, in Łukasz Ronduda and Florian Zeyfang (eds.), 1, 2, 3... Avant- Gardes: Film/ Art between
Experiment and Archive, Warsaw and Berlin: CCA Uzajdowski Castle and Sternberg Press, 2007, p. 91.
3
Roland Barthes, ‘To the Seminar’, in The Rustle of Language,
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996, p. 333.
...
inner circle
After the arrival of Eleni on 10th June − to contribute
to our project for the rest − we cooked and started
talking about hows, whats, and whys of our project…
Göksu: Maybe we can start with the working procedure
Freeing the blocked sound of Hemshof… Giving back/
finding the voice... Basically, it is a diagram converted
from the city map with our own interpretation. This
basic map includes the places that we pass by everyday.
It is again related with the question of expression.
All our encounters generated certain relations with
specific people and places. What we hear with the
diagram with sensors are excerpts from the film that
we have/had been living here. Collages of stories… One
story, ours, depicting several lives. Intersections…
of 2+1 and how Hemshof coincides with it.
...
Selda: Our project is divided into 5-6 routes. With the
Reni: To be able to show it in the exhibition we use the
means of this map with sensors. That way it is more
personalized, actually.
help of each route, we search for several ways to express
oneself. Youngsters are encouraged to use different
methods to find their own way. Therefore, it is crucial to
have several workshops. All the experiences/the sum of
different sources are generating the project. In a way,
these workshops would like to create an environment
to translate the cultural diversity. So, the main question
is how to find the sound of Hemshof; how to build a
connection with the public in Hemshof and us as artists.
Actually, everything is related with getting to know each
other.
Through this process, there is no specific definition of
who is doing what. Everyone has a main task regarding
her/his profession and besides that everybody works as
the assistant of the other. We ask: who needs what, and
the other runs to help. Distractive but effective… One
of the main aims is to have the challenge, pushing the
limits and gaining knowledge from it.
For the previous projects, I have always been working
with people that have been defined as marginal, whose
lives are on the edge; coming from or living in conflicted
areas. People with immigrant background in countries
like Sweden, France; post-communist countries such
as Estonia, Georgia, Armenia; minorities in Turkey…
One of the crucial mediums of the project is the rap
music video. When one also considers the history
of rap, because of its bond with the street culture, it
totally fits with what we aim for. It is a vigorous way of
expressing oneself. Foremost, we start with interviews
to get to know them in a better way. We ask questions
that would make them think about their being; which
direction they would like to go, what life means to them.
The second part is posters. We use posters to highlight
what they are saying. If one is struggling, she/he has
many things to say… It also links to the rap music video.
The lyrics of the songs that are written by the kids/
youngsters, may also turn into slogans for the poster, or
vice versa.
The Sound map is again concentrating on the sound
of Hemshof. It is about the stories of the people we
came across. By reading/hearing the map one learns
more about the neighbourhood and develops a certain
relation.
G: It shows our own routes in Hemshof, and also
some parts of Ludwigshafen, in general. Through our
encounters with those people we narrate the story.
Eleni: Are you using the pre-existing map of the city?
Are you marking some special places in relation with
the sound?
Berk: Imagine a map where only the places where we
use or leave a are drawn. It is somehow utilizing the
project. We make the streets visible that we use; the
shops that we go to, places we eat, schools we work at…
They will all be in this map, plus some iconic places.
Like the “twintowers” of Hemshof.
G(to E): Have you seen it? It is the former headquarters
of BASF. Now, it is just a ghost, an abandoned building.
Lately they have started to renovate some parts of it for
some shops.
S: Ludwigshafen was planned to be a huge, rich city.
That building was also the highest building in Europe
when it was constructed. The Bahnhof is also very
appealing to see. It is built like an airport; I mean that
big. After a change in Germany’s tax law that allowed
BASF to pay its taxes not only to the city but also other
cities, then the financial situation of Ludwigshafen had
changed.
So, there is also the furniture workshop.
B: I’m making a furniture workshop with the kids to
build…
G: Hemshof Bloook!
B: Hemshof Blook!.. and I made it really easy for them
to build this module. They learn really fast. It is intuitive
how they do it. I designed a template table where all they
have to do is to put pieces together and screw… It has
been working really well.
I give an importance that it doesn’t belong to anyone.
I designed a building system, in a way, that builders
remain anonymous. Each kid builds one part and I put
it somewhere. The next class comes and builds more,
however they never know which one is built by whom.
Sometimes they hide them. When I realize that I come
around and mix them up.
E: Is it always the same module?
B: Yes. I was trying to break the barriers of owning
something. Some of the Hemshof Bloks will remain at
the school, some will go to the museum.
S: We shouldn’t skip the Stencil workshop that we
haven’t planned at the beginning.
R: :The Stencil workshop is a good example.
The question is also how the process of 2+1 changes
according to the situation(s).
G: Related to that, first I would like to ask, compared to
the previous projects how Hemshof differs. Why did we
start to do stencils, for instance?
R: For me it is pretty much about visibility. Creating
stencils, posters for this deserted area, putting their
images in the city centre where is quite grayish –
concerning the urban dynamics – is a process of
reappropriation.
S: Each place has its own dynamic that directs you
to another way. One should shift from the previous
idea if necessary. Every place that I’ve been for the
project, for sure, was a new struggle. I have been in
Stockholm, Tehran, Tblisi, Baku many other places, but
I can say that Hemshof is the toughest. It is a country
in itself; dynamic, surprising. One cannot mention
a certain linear progress. We work with different
kinds of groups in the city: youngsters of Hemshof
at Treff International, youngsters of Realschule plus
am Ebertpark and Carl Bosch Gymnasium that is on
the border of Ludwighsafen Mitte and Hemshof. Each
day you have to change, find new ways. Sometimes the
methodology you try doesn’t work. One should look into
their eyes and observe if there is still a sparkle in the
eyes or not. One day we may be disappointed, feel lost,
yet the next day would cheer us up. For instance, when
the videos and the posters didn’t work, because they
had some doubts about showing their faces or finding
slogans, we decided to go further with stencils. It is
more stylized, faces, in a way, not recognizable… No one
except the youngsters could identify. Consequently, all
of a sudden, one night, we took our cutters and started.
Öykü was also with us to help.
G: We started cutting because at Treff International it
is hard to communicate with youngsters. Occasionally,
they seem eager to work, then after 15 minutes they
may be gone. Some kids have an interest in drawing or
writing short but effective things. From those writings
such as Hemshof 67063, we started to make stencils.
S: I also made an animation video. I thought maybe
we can grab some attention. Actually, it worked.
Afterwards, more kids started to write and draw such
things. This image, Hemshof 67063, is not personal but
gives a clue about where they belong, as it is kind of a
symbol.
Dein Bild ist killa valla ya! (a youngster calls a friend
with enthusiasm after seeing his image on the stencil
page we prepared for Treff International. German,
Turkish words with Arabic influence and English in
one sentence pops up with excitement in ryhme!)
S: After the first night we did the cutting we went to
Treff with such an excitement – wondering how they
would respond. At first, they all gathered near the table.
Three minutes was enough for them, afterwards they
were all gone… Only the smaller kids stayed with us.
At least, there was a little bit of attention we got. Some
days later when they saw their faces on the windows
of Frauencafé – a meeting point for the women in the
neighborhood that once we have collaborated with, I
guess, that changed things a little. They don’t trust you
till you show something. In this project trust is really
important. Trust is the conclusion; with the conclusion
things develop.
E: Have they ever asked you questions?
When I was reading the description of the project, I
thought, it may be a tough and personal process. If you
directly ask, they may think who that person is, why
she/he asks that to me.
S: Some of the youngsters, I guess, chose to ignore us.
That’s also one of the reasons why we tried different
ways. The project manager of Treff, İbrahim Yetkin,
gave us his hand, without him it would have been very
complicated.
R: The question I heard was “what for?” and “why do you
do that?” They don’t say it directly but it is more like
asking “Is this supposed to be art?” or “why do you live
in a gallery?” “Why do you want me to share something
right now?” Of course it needs more time that we didn’t
have.
B: Why? Why do we do this?
S: We are the translator, mediator using several tools.
We ask for their dreams but we also share hopes and
ideas. In my previous projects when I had the chance to
work with a group constantly for two months, I really
helped them. Here, I don’t know yet. It is too early to say
that.
...
After our conversation, the next day early in the
morning we had guests from Realschule plus am
Ebertpark. Although we were tired from the previous
days, we had the opportunity to work for longer hours.
It was the first day of a 3-day-workshop, nevertheless,
almost all the kids worked so well with posters,
stencils and even with rap – a group of 5-6 kids wrote
a short story with rhyme and immediately started
rapping. That showed again, how important trust is.
Even though we had just met two hours ago, we had
intense moments together and therefore, had the
time to gain trust. Fatemah and Akos were really shy
in the beginning. Eventually, Fatemah did the poster
and stencils and showed her fondness for writing rap
texts. Akos will be a good writer for sure, although he
is not into performing. Afterwards we cut the stencils
and sprayed them altogether. The excitement of the
youngsters motivated us.
…
R: I feel like in Hemshof we concentrate on single
personalities. There is always a very interesting character that we
meet. Hemshof is full of idiosyncratic characters, like Hemshof
Friedel; Zafer, Adriana…
G (to R): I would also like to ask you: through the process of living
and working for an art project as an anthropologist, what are your
observations on Hemshof? You came later but you immediately
dived into a mishmash.
R: The method in anthropology is actually field
research. It was such a luxurious situation for examination,
because just in two days after my arrival I met with many people which gave me a general idea about the neighbourhood. The
Ortsvorsteher Herr Prioli, the directors, teachers, social workers
and youngsters who have several socioeconomical backgrounds…
But working in an art-context was totally new to me. Normally
I would have focused more on the context, history of the city etc.
What I have understood is that 2+1 is very much about the moment; the power of the moment…
Spontaneity as well. In Apartment Project, and 2+1, each of us has
so many responsibilities; we are the technician, the graffiti guy,
the artist, the poster maker, the writer, the cook, the cleaning person, the carrier, the translator, the pedagog, the anthropologist,
the designer, the editor… It is interdisciplinary…
I actually think Hemshof is the nicest part of Ludwigshafen because there is so much going on in the streets. There are so many
small things that you don’t understand at the beginning; chaotic
but alive. How the older generation has this powerful impact on
how the next generation talks about issues like nationality etc. is
also interesting. For example, one moment two guys from different countries may sit together and have a good time, then the
next moment they may mention really old clashes between those
two nations or reference groups.
S: Yes, one may say that the city is a segregated area in itself. To
understand Ludwigshafen it is enough to look at the map. Urban
structure, mapping of the city recounts plenty of information.
There are separated, island like neighbourhoods. Even tonight
Zafer told us that if you are a Turk you cannot go to a German
club, and visa versa. Of course there would be exceptions, nevertheless in Hemshof – as what I have observed – most of the people
tend to stay in their own cultural circle and interact with each
other very little.
G: The common structure of the families with traditional clichés
are also so apparent. In relation with Hemshof we should ask Berk
his examinations as he has done similar projects with kids for the
project Emma with Raumlabor. Considering Hemshof, how does it
differ here?
B: I think Graefenauschule is quite special in this sense. The kids
see the workshop as a gift to them, they really want to participate.
They are younger than the age groups that I’ve worked with before. Graefenausschule is a local, international school. Just in my
class, there are kids from 7-8 different nations. They seem to get
along really well. Many of them come after the school hours, waiting for me there to work together.
G: They run to you for a hug!
S: “Berk abiiii, Berk abiii”. It is really sweet.
B: They would like to help me even with such things like picking
up screws from the floor etc. Many times they ask me what/how it
is going to be. What is it that we’re doing. Everytime I say something else, either a table, stool, shelf etc. in this case I can say it,
the modularity and the multifuntionality of the element allows
me to do so, and they always find it “cool”.
S: In the school one of the teachers gave the homework to write a
letter and some of them wrote to Berk.
B: I think it worked really well. The kids have a better understanding. Slowly, they are not saying only me anymore. They tend to
share things like tools more rather than focusing on the need to
have some sort of ownership. There is always one kid saying “but
I never did it, they have never let me”. I ask: “who is they?” One
can easily tell who is more in charge among the kids. Then I reach
to both kids and make them work together, take the tool from this
dominant kid and give it to other. Eventually, they start to collaborate. I see that none of the kids is better than the other one. When
they are allowed to have the chance to do something, they really
do it.
There are many stories to tell… There is one kid who is giving jobs
to everyone; “you sweep the floors, you carry the wood…” He also
works a lot. He started with sweeping, actually! If there is a newcomer and would like to work on something he says: “you can’t
work on that part yet, you have to sweep first.”
(Laughters…)
G: Starting from scratch and ascending…
S: Berk has his own world there whilst we are struggling with
youngsters.
(Laughters…)
G: They even make fun of us!
S: We are imitated because of our Istanbul Turkish in a very exaggerated way. Even in that kind of a situation we are very happy to
see that at least they relate to something about us! We even asked
them to rap that.
E: I think kids are also fascinated with the idea of using a saw or a
screw. As I have seen, with Hemshof Blok, there is a certain plan
of how it will look like from the beginning. Maybe therefore they
also feel excited.
G: We couldn’t work with one group constantly. Because of their
school structure, it has always changed. I agree, the kids of
Grafenauschule see the development of it day by day.
Hemshof Friedel
E: Who is Hemshof Friedel?
G: I was searching about Hemshof on google. I encountered this
book called Hemshof Boogie, however I didn’t dwell upon it at that
moment. Couple of days later I woke up and the first thing that
came to my mind was: “Wait a minute, what is this Hemshof Boogie?” Then, I started researching, actually it is a song by Hemshof
Friedel. After the Second World War she comes to Ludwigshafen to
search for her twin. Although she cannot find the twin of her, she
stays in Hemshof. She works as a welder, a prostitute but above
all she is a street musician – she writes songs and sings. She is
iconic.
In Hemshof Boogie, she says: Everyone would like to be on the
stage, and everyone would like to have applause.
R: She died after two days of nonstop drinking and singing at a big wine festival! Unfortunately, her liver broke down… It is funny to make
a research about Hemshof because one finds really weird connections such as “Hemshof Indianer” or “Wild West am Rhein”. Some of
the first western German movies were done here! I have read this in a booklet prepared for tourists with lots of exaggerations – a good
example of city marketing. The connection of how people see Hemshof nowadays as the bad place, or Ludwigshafen as a gray, dull city and
the words such as Boogie, Indianer are paradoxical. After my encounter with the booklet, there was Birgit’s workshop of laporellos with
Carl Bosch Gymnasium. One of the questions Birgit asked was “what do you dislike most about Ludwigshafen?” and most of them depicted
Hemshof. For some of the Gymnasium students visiting our studio was their first time in Hemshof. Both of them are clichés, or condensed
imaginations of how this place is supposed to be.
G: Our neighbor Gazi also said that “Hemshof is Texas” yesterday.
S: All in all, when we get back to her lyrics, actually everybody would like to be seen, be on the stage.
G: Metaphorically…
S: Yes. It fits well to our project conceptually, to highlight the voice of the youngsters in public space. Stencils, posters; showing the videos
in supermarkets, markets; using the televisions of Saturn, Media Markt… Our project is not only the translation of people, places and situations or working on this exhibition for the ‘art scene’ but also to make the youngsters be seen, emphasize their existence. That’s why the
song is relevant. Hemshof Friedel also struggled a lot to exist somehow.
G: The stage as a metaphor… When we go to Treff or Gymnasium students come here, every moment that we learn from them, contemplating on the right questions to ask, trying to find out more about their existentialist concerns… The fact that we constantly metamorphose is
also a performance in itself. Every time we are on stage, gazing directly into the eyes of the audience for an applause at the end…
Near BASF factory, one of the symbols of the city, on the
edge of the river, after passing the big LUDWIGSHAFEN letters, under the bridge. Gray, cold, dirty… Exactly, just for
that reason it is attractive. Close to Rhein Galerie, another
symbol of the city and a stamping ground for the youngsters
as well. If you stand near it and turn your head to right
you’d see Kurt Schumacher Brücke with all its monumentality. The connector between Ludwigshafen and Mannheim, a possible escape route. One of the youngsters wrote
like that: “Das beste von Ludwigshafen ist die Brücke nach
Mannheim”// The best place of Ludwigshafen is the bridge
to Mannheim”. That’s why we have chosen these not-sexybut-blinking-to-us-dusty walls for our second stencil station. İbrahim Bey, near Herr Priolo; Aytaç, Leyla, Mervan,
Cumali, İbo, Serhat ve Ferhat kardeşler, Fırat, Adriana and
others are on the stage now. They are ready to jump over
the walls of Hemshof and spread around several spots in the
city. HEMSHOF 67063 YO!
Şehrin sembollerinden olan BASF fabrikasının yanında,
nehrin kenarında, koca LUDWIGSHAFEN yazısını geçince,
köprünün altında… Gri, soğuk, pis… Tam da bu nedenle
çekici. Gençler tarafından sıklıkla ziyaret edilen ve şehrin
önemli sembollerinden biri olan alışveriş merkezi Rhein
Galerie’nin biraz ötesinde. Hemen yanında durup nehre
bakarken kafanızı sağa çevirdiğinizde Kurt Schumacher
Köprüsü heybetiyle duruyor. Ludwigshafen’i Mannheim’a
bağlayan kaçış yolu. Gençlerin biri şöyle yazmış: “Das
beste von Ludwigshafen ist die Brücke nach Mannheim”//
Ludwigshafen’ın en iyi yeri Mannheim’a giden köprü”
Bu nedenle 2. Stencil istasyonumuz için bu pek de seksi olmayan ama bize göz kırpan tozlu duvarları seçtik. İbrahim
Bey, Herr Priolo’nun yanında; Aytaç, Leyla, Mervan,
Cumali, İbo, Serhat ve Ferhat kardeşler, Fırat, Adriana ve
diğerleri sahneye çıktı. Hemshof’un duvarlarının üstünden
atlayıp şehrin farklı yerlerine dağılmaya hazırlar.
HEMSHOF 67063 YO!
Unweit des BASF-Betriebsgeländes, einem Emblem der
Stadt, am Flussufer, vorbei am großen LUDWIGSHAFENSchriftzug, unter der Brücke. Grau, kühl, schmutzig...
Genau aus diesem Grund ist es reizvoll. In der Nähe der
Rhein-Galerie, einem weiteren Wahrzeichen und Treffpunkt
für die Jugendlichen. Stehst du ganz nah daran und drehst
deinen Kopf zur Seite, kannst du die Kurt Schumacher
Brücke in ihrer ganzen Monumentalität sehen. Das Bindeglied zwischen Ludwigshafen und Mannheim, ein möglicher
Fluchtweg. Einer der Jugendlichen schrieb: “Das beste
von Ludwigshafen ist die Brücke nach Mannheim.” Darum
haben wir diese Wände (nicht sexy - aber mit dem gewissen
Etwas) als unsere zweite Stencil-Station gewählt.
> İbrahim Bey, gleich neben Herr Priolo; Aytaç, Leyla,
Mervan, Cumali, İbo, die Brüder Serhat und Ferhat, Fırat,
Adriana und die anderen sind jetzt auf der Bühne. Sie sind
bereit über die Mauern von Hemshof zu springen und sich
an etlichen Stellen der Stadt breitzumachen. HEMSHOF
67063 YO!
Tonight I dream that we all go together to several parts of LU and note the missing things – spatially. We’re in a garden near the exit of an underground –
there is no metro in the city – inside the green the first thing we say is: there is no sign for exit. No signage. In my notes from that night:
“we wrote the notes in English. I clearly remember what I write:
Parçalı metinlerden oluşan parçalı hayatlar.
Pieces of lives appearing from/as pieces of texts
Haphazard. Timbre of the continuation
Tremor
A Wavering voice
Karışık ve ayrık. Baeckerei’daki kız nişanını anlattı. İki bir olmaya çalışırken 400 kişi çağrıldı – diller karıştı, birbirine girdi. Karışmış dilleri ayaklarına dolandı,
eteklerindekiler saçıldı. Kelimeler aktı, yerlerini bulamadı. Debelendi, kalktı, geri düştü. Kelime kendini ifade edecek uygun cümleyle (daha) (henüz) (hiç)
tanış(a)madı. Duruldu, üzüldü. Regalden kendine uygun bir kitap aradı. Cümlesini bulabilmişlere gıptayla baktı. Amaçsızca salındığını farketti. Erreichen
Amaçla! Yürü! Ulaş! Şirket sistemi kafalarımızın içinde. Hemen bir verim tablosu yapması gerektiği kararına vardı. İnsan Kaynaklarına başvurmalıydı, ama o
mertebeye ulaşabilmesi için önce entegrasyon sınavını geçmesi ya da müzeden izin alması gerekliydi. Kendi kendisini doğru bir telaffuzla tekrarlarsa bir
şans doğabilirdi. Birden farketti ki; daha ne anlama geldiği konusunda hiçbir fikri yoktu. Kendine dair hikayeler için sözlük açmaya karar verdi. AlmancaTürkçe mi yoksa Türkçe-Almanca üzerinden mi ilerlemeliydi? Geçmişini düşündü; annesinin, babasının; anneanne, babanne ve dedelerinin ne anlama
geldiklerini hatırlamaya çalıştı. Annesine, misal, hep anne dediği için hiç gerçekte ne olduğunu sormadığını farketti. Kökünü bulursa ismini ve anlamını
o köke bağlanan eklerden çıkarabilir miydi? Kaybolunmuş, yabancı olunan bir yerde atılacak doğru adımların önemini daha iyi kavradı. Birden adını/
kendini/anlamını hatırladı: Auswahl. Mixed and disconnected/segregated/apart. The girl in the Baeckerei talked about her engagement. Whilst two was
trying to be one, 400 people were invited – languages were mixed// fusion. Their fusion entwined around their feet. The words leaked, however they
couldn’t find a proper place for themselves. Floundered, got up, fell back. The word could (have) (never) me(e)t with the genuine sentence that would
fit with itself/her/him-self. Slacked up, felt the sorrow. Searched for an appropriate book for itself/ her/him-self. It/S/he looked at the ones who could
have found their unique sentences with envy. It/S/he realized that it/sh/e is dawdling without purpose. Erreichen! DO have a purpose! Walk! Reach! The
system of corporates is inside our Kopfs. It/s/he had the decision of preparing an efficiency diagram. Insane Delusion. It/s/he had to make an application
to Human Resources, however, in order to attain that level the INTEGRATION test had to be passed or a permission should have been gotten from the
museum. There would have been a chance if it/s/he would repeat itself with the right accent/pronunciation. All of a sudden it/s/he realized that it/s/he
had even no idea what it/s/he means. A decision came to its/h/er-is mind to open up a dictionary to gather the stories on it/h-er/im-self. German-Turkish
or Turkish-German? Thought about the past; tried to figure out the meanings of its/h-er/is mom, dad; grandmas, grandpas. For instance, as it/s/he was
always calling mom ‘mom’, it/s/he never ever asked what she is. If it/s/he could have found the root of the word that it/s/he is, would it have been possible to comprehend the exact word from the appendixes that this word has? Realization of the importance of the accurate step in an alien space/place…
Suddenly it/s/he recalled its/h-er/is name/being/meaning.
S/he was on the road. Bewegung. Contemplating. Looked around. Wondered/wandered. W-on/an-dered. Is it real? Her/his body − corporeality. Is it a
real hand/thumb – waiting her/him to catch, grab – help to move from A to B. Those well known places that we have all once been… Will s/he get into
contact with me or pretend that I don’t even exist? Bataille points out that communication is a risk. A possible pain that I/you/s/he/ it/ we/you/they take
the risk to feel. Moments of what ifs… Probieren… We try several ways to attach ourselves to the other, despite knowing the impossibility of a pure
gaze; a gaze that is not filtered with comments – either positive or negative – or prejudices. The knife in the flesh is a metaphor explaining the pain when
occurs at the instant of an attempt to touch.
Kein Kontakt zu haben…
Sadece tek biri bana geri gülümsedi. Only one of them smiled back at me. Neden?Why? Korku mu?Fear? Birbirimize yabancı oluşumuz mu? The fact that we’re strangers
(to eachother/ourselves)? Bir kadın ile, muhtemelen oğlu olan bir çocuk masalardan birinde oturuyordu. A woman and a boy – most probably his son – were sitting at one
of the tables. İkisinin de gözleri tek bir noktaya sabitlenmiş, donuk. Both eyes are fixed at one point, frozen. It is looked but not seen; in fact, they are not t/here. Bakıyorlar
ama görmüyorlar ; orada değiller aslında. Hayallerinde kapalı kalmışlar sanki. As if they are enclosed in their own dreams. Wachtraum. Hemshof’un sokakları
şirin mi şirin, ama garip bir his veriyor bana. The streets of Hemshof are so cute, however I feel weird in them. The streets are all familiar; same bodies wander around the same
spots – again again. Sokaklar hep aşina; aynı bedenler arşınlıyor aynı noktaları – tekrar ve tekrar. Belki de potansiyelleri olan insanlar aynı sokaklarda, bu
labirent içinde yer almaktan bunalmışlar. Maybe those who have ‘the potential’ but not being able to use are stultified as a result of being in the same labyrinth.
WORD: STULTIFY: 1) cause to lose enthusiasm and initiative, especially as a result of a tedious or restrictive
routine 2) cause (someone) to appear foolish or absurd: Aslında bizden değil ‘an’larından uzaklar. Actually, they are not aware from us but
their moments/memories. Bizimle iletişim kurmadıklarını düşündüğümüz Treff’teki o gençler, kabuklarına çekilmişler. The youngsters that we assume that they don’t
communicate with us have hidden themselves in the cores. Hep bir performans hali. Sahneler değişiyor, akıyor; provalar belli ki haşin geçiyor. Yönetmen diyor ki “mış”
gibi yapma. Role girmiş tiyatro oyuncuları gibi, kaybolmuşlar belki de. Constant state of a performance. Scenes change, leake, flow; apparently rehearsals are harsh. Diyar,
mesela, elimizi sıkıyor; sırf İbrahim bey söylemiş olduğu için. Son seferinde elimi sıkıp yine gözümün içine bakmadığında “Buradayım Diyar!” diyorum…
ama nichts! Neden bakmıyor bana? Ausprobieren. Diyar, as an example, shakes our hands, just because İbrahim Bey has told so. The last time when he shook my hand and
didn’t look into my eyes, again, I said: “I’m here Diyar!” however, NICHTS. Why doesn’t he…
;
Richtung 30.05 This is a rewriting of a dream/narration. Redreaming: Night (I don’t know the exact time. I wrote in the dark; scratchy – some sentences
are rearranged.)
Since the day I arrived, I’ve been seeing dreams related with here. Last night I dreamed that Zeynep, whom I know since 7, one of my best friends, was
sitting silently near me. I call Selda and she mentions they are in number 9 with Berk. I go in front of number 9. Such nice houses, small and colorful, just
like the ones in Hemshof. At that moment, I realized that all the streets are the same: the street we’re staying is an extension of my grandmother’s street
and the part after Sbahn Sonnenallee in Berlin, where is really close to my home but I have never been, as well. Close, familiar, nevertheless never been
visited…
- “I wanna learn which direction is the exit?” ich würde gern wissen welche Richtung die Ein/Aus-gang ist.
(still the notes from that night). A trial for affiliation with my surroundings that is now not familiar. The extension of a familiar place that has never been
gone. Endeavoring to feel the “actually, it is not that foreign.” One day before I contemplated on why Zeynep was silently near me. After I wake from that
dream tetris pieces find their spots. Zeynep is so attached with our hometown.
Her friend’s that she knows for all those years, the streets she passes almost everyday, the routine, has a meaning that I can never understand. She cannot cut the ties, leave. Guess, she was there to show my path when I felt quivery; not being able to coordinate/orientate in this new stomping ground.
Burası ile bir çeşit tanıdıklık kurma, yol/yön arama ihtiyacı her gece kafamda.
Tekrar söylüyorum:
I wanna learn which direction is the exit. Hemshof bana bu hissi veriyor. Gençlerle iletişim kurmakta bazen zorlanıyoruz. Nedenlerini, niçinlerini sorguluyoruz. Selda’nın sözleri geliyor aklıma “Kendi gençliğini hatırla!” Silmişim sanırım. Bulunan coğrafya, sosyo-kültürel durum, hayaller, bakış farklı (mı?). 10
sene sonra Hemshof’a geri gelmeli, Cumali’yi, Aytaç’ı, Mervan’ı, Leyla’yı (sahi Leyla görünmüyor bir süredir), Sabri’yi ve diğerlerini ziyaret etmeli. Nereye
yönelecekler? Kimi zaman üzüntü kimi zaman kızgınlık… Remember your teenage years, Selda, says. I cannot. I have troubles to have connections with the youngsters sometimes. “I wanna learn which direction is the exit”, Hemshof gives that feeling to me.
What/how/when to add? To be sure… sicher sein.
It seems the best way to go out from this situation is to keep working, so that we may keep believing in ourselves.
To believe in oneself. Oliwia and Anica… der Druck… neden/nasıl bu kadar baskı hissediyorlar? Geleceğin, yetişkinlerin üzerlerinde kurduğu baskıdan
söz ediyorlar sıkça. Sorduğum derin sorulara, güvenle, hiç tereddütleri olmadan cevap veriyorlar. Akıllarında bir fikirle bize gelip, bunu yazmak istiyoruz,
diyorlar. Ne yöne gidecek bu metinler? Kendilerini iyi ifade etmelerine ragmen, bedenleriyle birlikte kaybolmuş hissediyorlar. Verloren(fühlen). Soruyorlar: does spirit follow the body? Bu baskı kendi kendilerine oluşturdukları, ama kökünün çevrelerindekilerinin beklentilerine dayandığı bir korku içindeler.
Merve, Ayla ve Angielika… Angelika değil. Özellikle düzelttiler beni. Video çekmek istediklerini söylediler. Merve patron, hikayeyi anlatıyor: bir prenses
var rüyalarında zombiler görüyor. Kabus! Ayla Zombi olacak, diyor Merve. Ayla atlıyor:
“Hayır ben prenses olacağım!” “No I’ll be the princess!” says Ayla. Merve, 10 years old, the bossy girl of three, mentions their idea of shooting a video. A princess is seeing zombies in her dreams. Merve says, Ayla will play the zombie.
Zukunft… Prenses… Pürüssüz teni, güzel elbiseleri ve onu bekleyen, sonsuza kadar mutlu mesut yaşayacağı erkeği… Pale, velvet skin, beauteous.
But why does the princess dream about living deads? Peki prenses neden rüyasında yaşayan ölüleri görüyor? Gelecek kaygısı mı var? Zombiler
küçük kızların korkmakta oldukları gelecekleri mi? Kesinleşmiş bir gelecek korkusu mu, değiştirmeye güçlerinin yetmeyeceği? Are those zombies the
metaphor for the future of those girls that they won’t be able to direct by their own wills? The fear of the future?
………………………………
İbrahim Bey Treff’e gelen çok az kız olduğunu anlatmıştı ilk tanışmamızda. Çoğunun mahalle baskısı altında olduğunu da eklemişti. Leyla, ablası ve
kuzeni bu baskıya aldırmayan, mahalledeki nispeten daha rahat kızlardan. Freiwillig?? Mercimek çorbamı içerken yanımdan geçiveren çıplak ayakla
bisiklet süren kızıl saçlı kıza inanılmaz şaşırıyorum. Buradan olmamalı diyorum.
………………………………
Life in Hemshof is hidden in film sequences. Ali Baba- çorba-pide. The well-known song that I cannot figure out where it is played: “Now I’m a believer!”
one of those that come in most unexpected times to place hope in the soul. The construction in the abandoned head-quarters. Cursed rice. 15 minutes
of bell ringing. Tatlı, bilindik şarkı yok oluveriyor birden. Lanetli pirinçler peşimi(zi) bırakmıyor. Alle ist renoviert, die Decken sind isoliert. Kilisenin çanları
15 dk. boyunca çalıyor. Yanında mahalledeki sarhoşlar toplanıyor. İleride bir çocuğa birilerinin birşeyler sattığını görüyorum. Bakışımdan rahatsız olma
halleri illegal bir durumu işaret ediyor. Palavra… L waited A to pass by, her cousin on the side. Adamın beni onaylamayan bakışları.
Footage knowledges. Abandoned memories. Cold but idiosyncratic Hemshof. Im flow zu sein. Immer immer immer im Zimmer logisch zu sein. Yüzünü
aktaran/anlatan tarih; yüz okumaları. Ges-chi/si-cht-e
Almanca yüz ve tarih kelimeleri çok benzer: Geschichte/ Gesicht
Yüz, kimliği, karakteri anlatan; ona bakmadığım zaman aslında beden kendiliğinden yok olmuş halde. Parçalı. O bana/benim gözümün içine bakmadığı
anda ben yok ol-du/uru-m. faces limning the beings. An existence without a face. How come this is (not) me? Dancing the moment// through the moment// forgotten. Was ist der Sinn. Wohin wollen wir ROLLEN.Gliding slightly into the space of the other. Ein Wort das dir viel bedeutet. How to melt in/
with eachother?
Deadlock. Abruptness. Congeal: take shape or coalesce especially to form a satisfying whole. Wissen, weinen: wissen wie zu weinen. Zum Weinen
gegangen. Kimi zaman ‘şans/kader’ deyip geçerken
Swelling as a result of condemnation. Segregation.
Discussion – diskutieren… to think is another ‘way’ of moving. A sudden breach causing a sudden catatonia. Rastlantısal duygu karmaşaları. Fortuitous
ambivalence. Toil and moil. Noisy-random instants…
Let rain fall,
let it rain.
Rain without whims,
and rain without suffering.
every footstep of earth speaks and breathes
yet of one’s ancestors (Jonas Mekas)
kumm roi
Ludwigshafen in pieces
A significant parameter for a place’s identity is – I would think next to the odd pictures on postcards – our own orientation in the
city through using certain places on an everyday basis. This compulsory or voluntary use triggers for me most of all emotional attachment or detachment, culminating in a personal and unofficial urban identity (maybe more fabric like) that won’t be found on
the city council homepage or tourist information.
Regarding the latter, I asked myself how to gather a bigger urban picture but remaining polyphonic. So to speak: How could I
continue to create with another artistic medium, the urban polyphony, Apartment Project is celebrating in their rap videos?
My self-assignment was to collect through collaborative drawing cityscapes, allowing space for controversy, identification and
criticism of Ludwigshafen from the perspectives of young people. A fruitful challenge was that I knew hardly anything about the
city itself. So I couldn’t contest or criticize what was brought up in the drawings session by the youngsters.
On the other hand, this triggered real questions and real discussions, not rhetoric educational settings often get trapped in.
My drawing tasks allowed the personal latitude and longitudes of orientation in the city to emerge from the pencil. Places that
were missing, avoided, sought after or representative.
All drawings, lines of formation and disintegration into singularities like sausages, chemical molecules or palm trees suspended
in a place -- “nowhere to be found” -- that can be combined, cut up, mashed up and constructed into a myriad of maps or urban
panoramas. On the other page, you can find one suggestions of assembling them.
For now I would like to thank all the young people who participated from the Carl Bosch Gymnasium and the district of Hemshof.
You all rock and will find your way through this fantastic jungle of highways, high lines, high buildings and eventual high water of
the river next to you.
Birgit Auf der Lauer, June 2014 (all rights reserved)
Ludwigshafen zerstückelt
Ein wichtiger Parameter für die Identität eines Ortes ist – neben den gemeinen Bildern auf Postkarten – unsere eigene Orientierung in
der Stadt durch das Nutzen von Orten auf einer alltäglichen Ebene. Dieses Nutzen, ob freiwillig oder obligatorisch, erzeugt für mich vor
allem eine emotionale Bindung oder Befremdung, die in einer persönlichen und inoffizielle urbane Identität mündet – unauffindbar auf
der Homepage der Stadtverwaltung oder in der Touristeninformation.
In Bezug auf letzteres fragte ich mich wie ich ein Großes Ganzes dieser Stadt erfassen kann, dass dennoch polyphon ist?
Sozusagen die urbane Polyphonie aufgreift, die Apartment Project in ihren Rap-Videos mit Jugendlichen zelebriert?
Meine selbst auferlegte Aufgabe war durch kollaboratives Zeichnen Stadtansichten zu sammeln, das einen Raum für Widerspruch,
Identifikation und Kritik von Ludwigshafen aus der Perspektive von Jugendlichen erzeugt. Eine fruchtbare Herausforderung war, dass ich
selber fast nichts über die Stadt wusste. So konnte ich kaum widersprechen oder das kritisieren, was mir während der Zeichenstunden
von den jungen Leuten entgegen gebracht wurde. Auf der anderen Seite wurden gerade dadurch reale Fragen und Diskussionen getriggert, die in Bildungssituationen oft im Rhetorischen verfangen bleiben.
Meine Zeichenaufgaben ermöglichten den Teilnehmern ihre persönlichen Breiten- und Längengerade ihrer Orientierung in der Stadt
durch den Zeichenstift in Erscheinung treten zu lassen. Orte, die man vermisst, meidet, aufsucht und repräsentativ sind.
Alle Zeichnungen, Linien der Formation und Disintegration zu Einzelheiten wie Würstchen, chemische Moleküle oder Palmen, die in
einem nicht auffindbaren Ort schweben, können kombiniert, vermischt und zu Myriaden von neuen Karten oder Stadtpanoramen konstruiert werden. Auf der gegenüberliegenden Seite findet man eine Möglichkeit der Assemblage dieser Zeichnungen.
Jetzt möchte ich mich vor allem bei den jungen Leute des Carl Bosch Gymnasiums und aus dem Stadtteil Hemshof
bedanken, die mit mir gezeichnet haben. Ihr rockt alle und werdet euren Weg finden – durch diesen großartigen Jungle aus Autobahnen,
Hochbahnen, Hochhäusern und dem gelegentlichen Hochwasser des Flusses neben euch.
Birgit Auf der Lauer, Juni 2014 (alle Rechte vorbehalten)
hemshof-blok
The project hemshof-blok begins with a simple dialog in November, 2013
with an unusual level of open-mindedness of the community, Gräfenau
Schule and its mathematician director Herr Nessling.
That too was replaced with more useful activities in short time as the special
task force started to train those who lacked the experience. This became a
tradition down the road.
The day after our arrival, there was a kids fest in Ludwigshafen. Herr
Nessling was also organising parts of it, which gave the chance to chat
about the project. The idea of chess came up several times, it was actually
‘viking chess’ which doesn’t involve much building. Instead a chessboard
made up of 64 ‘boxes’, a bit like a stage seemed more building-workshopworthy. The kids could later build chess pieces for it in their art classes and
so on, making this chess idea a good starting point. I simply wanted it to
be a building block, some multipurpose element the kids and the teachers
could utilise in their own work and play environments.
Everyday after school, going back and setting up the miter saw station to get
ready for the next day for more building materials had to become a routine.
Running out of material during a workshop is really frustrating plus doing
all of this mostly alone adds to it.
With still 2 weeks ahead for the material to arrive, time was not too scarce
at the beginning.
In the first week of waiting, the box idea evolved into a multi-functional
element, able to stack and lock into one another.
After lots of CAD models and playing around with different constellations
of these elements, the design was finalised, screws re-counted. It was now
time to breakdown the building process and design some templates for
optimisation in a class setting, in which multiple teams of students could
be utilised.
The wood finally arrived! later on the screws! thousands of them! bits and
pieces…
After a few days, there was enough wood cut to size and 2 fully functioning
templates to kick off the workshop with!
Template 1 is used to build 2 different parts of the element, top and the
bottom. After they are built, they are stacked at the material storage or
passed on to the teams at template 2. At template 2, teams attach legs to
the bottom parts and then stack them at the material storage or passed to
the teams at table 3. Template 3 is used to combine the top and the bottom.
The finished element would then be stacked onto other elements as the
initial test. At the end of the day the special task force would inspect them
and make the necessary corrections.
building-workshops with kids has been a growing interest in my recent
professional self, but it sure is more than a bread and butter situation. from my
personal experience, i have noticed a high quality of social bonds (as in friendship,
but more of a comradeship) with those whom i have built with in the past. being
such a freelance design professional can place you in situations where having to
build with strangers becomes a recurring event, those who in short time become
comrades. Not having experienced this phenomenon wouldn’t have allowed one
to imagine such a possibility of high level of communication, trust and temporary
companionship otherwise. therefore, it would be utmost beneficial to those who
are exposed to this sort of an experience without having to wait for it to happen
later on. Witnessing the reality of its possibility is already a good basis to have
some sort of positive outlook in a team environment.
the elements which have evolved for the workshop also have their stance in the
matter, being modular and multi functional units, give them a wide range of use. a
top surface could be used as a table, stool, stand, step… the interior is adequate to
hold a few standard size folders, books, bags, vegetables or whatever. they can be
stacked on top of each other or in a linear fashion, could be used to build shelves,
tribunes, stairs…
in either case it is important that the kids don’t build the elements by themselves,
but together. since they will be building the same element over and over, there is
no need to make these objects personal but the situation itself. it should be more
about doing something as a team. realising how each built element works together
flawlessly, like the team who built them.
on another note, it is important to acknowledge that most of these kids come from
different ethnic backgrounds, cultures and situations, yet they are all a part of this
neighbourhood trying to become a citizen of this world. It would be a successful
belief to admit that these elements they build will be a building block to help
them step up into their own futures above what is proposed.
These templates were instrumental in building with kids. It was even
intuitive for some of them. Holding the pieces in position and waiting for
the kids to screw them correctly, like we did in previous workshops was
now history. This also provided less distractions, shrinking the window for
naivetés significantly and leading to results within the workable tolerances,
almost every time! A true boost of self confidence for the whole team!
Running two workshops per day, 10 to 11:30 then 12 to 13:30, four days a
week for two weeks almost alone was really intense. In the first two days,
we were constantly running out of pre cut materials. In that case, spending
the time to check for errors with those kids who were interested in figuring
out what went wrong really paid back with evermore build quality. These
kids later formed the first special task force. The others who didn’t care,
only drained some batteries pretending to shoot each other with the drills.
After school hours, some kids would already be there playing ball or hide
and seek… most of them would come around to watch, asking if they could
build more or help…that’s really motivating and all, but taking serious safety
measures with 8 year olds near a miter saw can be distracting, therefore
dangerous. To control this situation was taking most of the energy. Soon,
Faruk, a valuable member of the special task force took the initiative of not
letting anyone near while it was in use, for this duty he proudly got to wear
ear muffs which highlighted the significance of his duty. At the end of each
day, he stayed extra to help me sweep up.
Within a few days, more students started to come by to build or help out.
Knowing the limited amount of tools, Faruk intervened and didn’t allow
them all to build, he made some sweep, some organise the wood and
engaged them in other small chores. He always had a good overview on his
newly formed workforce. As the initiator of the project, this was a priding
moment, to be able to see how these kids moved up from fighting over tools
to sharing duties.
The team was becoming bigger, stronger and more efficient by day!
I could never ask them to do the dirty work, didn’t want to scare them away
since I wanted them to build more. In the case of ‘too many builders, not
enough drills’ i’d pair them up and do demos how they could work efficiently
in a team.
At the beginning the kids would really want to build them alone, priding
themselves over their learning curve and build quality. Some of them
wouldn’t even let others sit on theirs. However, this mentality was frowned
upon by other young builders and really went against the ideology of the
workshop. This didn’t last very long as the social spirit of the workshop
engulfed most of these rather selfish thoughts. One time I found a girl who
kept stashing the parts she built, she would let anyone use them to build
further. She really felt a great deal of ownership over these parts, which
changed after teaching her how to inspect and repair those which were not
built as well.
Although most wanted to do it solo at first, they learned to work in teams.
This really affected the social spirit positively.
When it came to building, they all wanted to use the freshest piece cut. They
were even getting in conflicts over them although there were piles next to
me. So i asked Faruk to organise someone to organise and stack these piles
of pre cut wood into our newly build elements. When we ran out of space,
Faruk would make sure another hemshof-blok is built to use as additional
shelving! The whole thing worked out really smooth. Soon i had many kids
already waiting for me to arrive at the schoolyard long after school hours!
I spent more time training those with the most potential to become group
leaders, in turn they would train their teammates in return buying me time
to help those who needed more assistance. This went on like this to the end.
face-spaces
i
MAP
we
Tracing a line,
a palm. Noting
spoken languages, thoughts,
wishes and
fears. Marking
trajectories,
displacements.
Hands, gestures,
ways and stories
crossing. An
individual and a
collective mapping exercise
with the group
of students of
Realschule plus
am Ebertpark.
Oliwia and Anica wrote such beautiful texts,
and because of that we have some
difficulty to rearrange the texts in relation
to rhythm of the rap music. Leroy a.k.a
Orely has been producing the music.
back stage -defter notları // drafts
- bunu kendi dilimizde anlatmak /
> to initate a dialog (between the specific
cultural localities)
Segregation / division / waves
POSSIBLE NEW DIRECTIONS
Challenge
Puzzles
Words puzzles // Words / Collages / collecting
words
WHAT?
Hybrid
Diverse field
specific cultural localities
transnational
-to tell your own story >>> journey to your
innerselves
changing the directions into realizing ‘linguistic
performance’ (maybe?)
Creating the new meanings out of it. Maybe
absurd???
Du wirst dich stetig schlechter fühlen,
Weil du keine Kontrolle hast
Trotzdem tust du so als wäre alles super
Wie soll die Jugend überleben,
Wenn sie völlig ausgesaugt wird?
Wenn es der Seele schlecht geht,
Macht das der Körper mit?
Nein, er spielt nicht mehr mit
Immer zählt nur die Leistung
Und nicht mehr die Persönlichkeit
Doch warum will keiner wissen
Niemand schaut hinter die Kulissen
Wie machst du weiter, wenn dich jeder missversteht
Und niemand zu dir steht
Es ist nicht leicht mit den Steinen im Weg
Keine Ahnung, wie hier Spaß geht
Zwischen Brücken und Straßen
lebt es sich so einigermaßen
How can the youth survive,
If it’s completely sucked dry?
When the soul’s draining,
Can the body still hold on?
No, it doesn’t follow anymore
Only performance counts
Personality no more
Früher hab ich woanders gewohnt
Hat sich der Weg hierher gelohnt?
Ich verließ Ungarn nur ungern
Für mein neues Zuhause,
ich brauch mal ’ne Pause
Yet no one wants to know why
Nobody looks behind the scenes
How do you go on, if everybody misunderstands you
And no one supports you
It’s not easy with the stones in your
way
The questions that we ask are always
the same
Yet what counts are not the questions
But rather the moment
Unser Leben müssen wir genießen
Versuch den Druck auszublenden
Für einen Moment
Er soll unser Leben nicht bestimmen
Wir bestimmen unser Leben
Doch der Druck zerfrisst die Seele, zerfrisst
deinen Körper
Ich versuche weiter alles zu geben
We should enjoy our lives
Try to get rid off stress
For a moment
Stress shouldn’t determine our lives
We determine our life
Yet stress eats away the soul, devours
your body
I keep trying to give everything
Nur warum will keiner wissen
Niemand schaut hinter die Kulissen
Wie machst du weiter, wenn dich jeder missversteht
Und niemand zu dir steht
Es ist nicht leicht mit den Steinen
im Weg
How can things go on like this?
How can things come to an end?
Who can stop them?
How can we get out of this deep hole?
So viele Fragen und nur eine Antwort:
Lass dich nicht unterkriegen,
Kämpf für deinen Traum
Keine Ahnung, wie die Welt geht
Keine Ahnung, wie sie sich dreht
You will constantly feel worse
Cause you ain’t got control
Even so you act as if there’s nothing
wrong
Die Fragen die wir uns stellen sind immer die
gleichen
Doch was zählt sind nicht die Fragen
Sondern der Moment.
Wie soll das nur weitergehen?
Wie soll das nur enden?
Wer gibt einem Halt?
Wie kommt man aus diesem tiefen Loch
heraus?
akos’s lyric
Only performance counts
Personality no more
So many questions and only one
answer:
Hang in there,
Fight for your dream
Macht dir etwas keinen Spaß
Warum machst du dann das?
In der Stadt am Fluss
wo ich jetzt leben muss
Egal, was ich mache
und wenn ich nur lache
Das mit der Sprache
ist ’ne schwierige Sache
In der Stadt am Rhein
werd’ ich ab jetzt sein
Neben der Fabrik –
wer zeigt mir den Trick?
(Zwischen den Brücken,
will Blumen ich pflücken)
(Between the bridges,
I want to pick flowers)
Trials:
Open up an in-between space..
mission / dedication
Trying to understand the value /
variations of being / Diverse culture
Immer zählt nur die Leistung
Nicht mehr die Persönlichkeit
In the city of Rhine
Next to the factory –
where I’ll be from now on
Who can show me the way?
Nasıl yeni bir yöntem bulmalı?
oliwia & anica
Whatever I do
even if it’s only laughing
That language thing
is really hard
dönüştürmek
Kendi yolumuzda nasıl ilerleyebiliriz?
Different trials to find our own way in LU?
Neler olabilir?
What could it be?
How to find a new methodology?
In the city by the river
where I now have to live
O anda nasıl bir noktada oldukları ve oradan çıkmak istiyorlarsa neyin gerekli
olduğu üzerine sorular, kayıtlar, çekimler…
Yöntemler her an, her gün ve her yere göre değişken aslında.
Çalıştığımız grubu anlamak, tanımak çok önemli..
Kendimizi anlatmak ve ne yapmak istediğimizi , sonuçların neler olabileceğini
örneklerle uzun uzun anlatmak …(da)
Güven önemli. Onların varoluşlarına / çıkarlarına ters düşecek bir niyetimizin
olmadığını sağlamak.
güven olmayınca proje gerçekleşmeyebilir.
Yüzlerini göstermek istemeyebilirler, ailelerden gerekli izni alana kadar yüzlerini flu
göstermek bir yöntem olabilir, vs...
Metinlerle çalışmalar, : farklı gençlere ait metinlerden bir kolaj metin oluşturmak.
Ve rap ritmine göre, bazı kelimelerin alternatiflerini düşünmek.
En sonunda da bunun profesyonel ses kayıtlarını alıp, müzisyenlerle birlikte
çalışmaya başlamak ve eş zamanlı olarak, metne uygun bazı yerler saptamak
ve orada film çekimlerini tamamlamak. Çizeceğimiz rota bu. Sonunda, iki ayrı
okuldan gençlerle (Realschule plus am Ebertpark , Carl Bosh Gymnasium) ve
Hemshof’lu iki gençle yapacığımız rap müzik videosu ile toplam üç adet olacak.
bir diyalog başlatabilmek
If you’re not having fun
Then why do you do it?
Gerçek nerede durmakta?
- bu çok ‘özel ‘ mahalle insanlarıyla
I’ve left Hungary unwillingly
For my new home,
Now I need a break
Müzik kolay bir iletişim yolu . Kültürel çeşitliliği, neyin nasıl olduğunu anlatabilmek
için daha geçerli ve herkesin kendini daha rahat ifade edebileceği bir yöntem. Bu
nedenle, biz ‘rap´i bir yöntem olarak kullanıyoruz. Tanı(ş)mak için röportajlardan
daha etkili .
Rap müzik videosuna başlamak için once o kişinin kim olduğunu, neyi nasıl
düşündüğünü bilmek gerekiyor. hayalleri nedir, nelerle ilgili
kuşkuları vardır.Neyle mücadele ederler? ederler mi?
değişen görevler : kendini ada!
-burada ki karma kültürel yapının
çeşitliliğini ayırt etmek
-onların kültürel değerlerini anlamak
I’ve lived some other place before
Was the way here worth it?
Her yöntemin/yolun yardımıyla gençlerin kendilerini ifade etmenin yollarını
arıyoruz. Bunun için çeşitli çalısma gruplarının olması önemli. Tüm bu çalışma
gruplarından edinilen deneyim projeyi oluşturacak.
kozmopolit / karma
bir ara alan oluşturmak:
Dunno how fun’s supposed to be
Between bridges and streets
life somehow still goes on
Questions; recordings, filmings contemplating at which point the youngsters
are or what is needed to change if they would like to go out from there.
Actually methods vary according to each moment, each day, and each location…It is important to understand the group we are working with, and to
really get to know them…Expressing who we are and what our intentions
are, explaining possible outcomes of the project with detailed examples (as
well)…
Trust is important; convincing them that what we have in mind will not
threaten their existence, or cause a conflict of interest in any way. Lack of
trust may hold back the project.They may not want their faces
to be seen on film; one possible solution to this may be blurring their faces
until they get the necessary permission from their parents… Working with
texts; creating a collage of texts from different youngsters...
And thinking of the best alternatives for certain words so that they fit the
rhythm of the rap in the best way possible.
Producing a professional recording of this in the end, collaborating with
the musicians, and determining the parts of the script suitable for filming,
and completing that as well. This is the path we will take. And then we
will have a total of three rap music videos, two with younsgters from schools
(Realschule plus am Ebertpark, Carl Bosch Gymnasium), and one with two
teenagers from Hemshof.
Buranın kelimelerini bulmak.
Dunno how the world works
Dunno how the globe turns
perceives life; what are her/his dreams? What concerns
does she/he have? What does she/he struggle with? Does
she/he struggle? Where does her/his reality lie?
Bir yer üzerine düşünmek.
akos’s lyric
We are in search of all means/ways through which youth can express
themselves. It is important to have various work groups for this. The cumulative experiences of these work groups will shape the project.
Music provides an easy road for communication. Its cultural richness
provides a multitude of opportunities for reflection on events, and for selfexpression. For this reason, we use “rap” as a method; it is more effective
than interviews when we meet/get to know someone. In order to start a rap
music video, first we need to know who that person is, and how she/he
Obwohl es etwas spät ist, beginnen wir auch mit der Realschule plus am EbertPark
zu arbeiten, währen wir mit Leroy a.k.a. Orely und Zafer (Sarısoy) mit den
Vorbereitungen für die Musik beschäftigt sind. Manche Schüler beginnen
Songtexte zu schreiben und so entscheiden wir, Akos wunderbaren Text für ein
Musikvideo zu benutzen. Die Zeit reicht nicht. Daniel (Herr Kirschner) hilft uns, die
Texte dem Rhythmus der Musik anzupassen und mit Furkan und Guisseppe die
Songs einzustudieren.
Eleni Mouzourou. Irene Baumann
Özgür Erkök
Moroder
Birgit Auf der Lauer
Daniel Kirschner
Göksu Kunak
Despite the fact that it is a little late, Realschule plus am EbertPark was included in
our schedule whilst we are working with Leroy a.k.a Orely and Zafer (Sarısoy) as well
for the preparation of music. Whilst working for posters and stencils, some students try
to write the lyrics for rap. We decide to make music and video with Akos’s wonderful
text. Time is running out. Daniel (Herr Kirschner) helps us to change the text for the
rhythm of the music and even to train Furkan , Ali and Guisseppe to rap.
Daniela Wagner
Finding a
slogan,
finding the
proper pose for
the poster is hard
for youngsters. It
takes some time for
them to participate in
a relaxed way. In one
of Daniela’s (Wagner) class, a
former student, Christoph, came
to our atelier because of curiosity.
Whilst other students were having
difficulties to find the right pose,
Christoph sparkled with such a
good idea. He mentioned his trip to
Rwanda and told us that despite
the hard conditions people on
the streets smile to each other
with sincerity. He thinks that in
Ludwigshafen people just stare
on their way and walk with a
shield. According to his idea he
found the slogan: Ellenbogen
runter! Take down your shields.
Selda Asal
Es ist schwer für die Jugendlichen, geeignete Posen und
Slogans für die Poster zu finden. Sie brauchen Zeit, um
sich an die Workshops zu gewöhnen. Ein ehemaliger Schüler
aus Daniela (Wagners)s Klasse, Christoph, kam in unser
Atelier, einfach weil er neugierig war. Während andere Schüler Schwierigkeiten
hatten, die richtige Pose vor der Kamera zu finden, sprühte er nur so vor Ideen.
Er erwähnt seine Reise nach Ruanda und erzählt uns, dass trotz der schweren
Lebensbedingungen dort die Menschen auf der Straße einander mit Aufrichtigkeit anlachen. Er glaubt, dass in Ludwigshafen die Menschen einander mit einem
Abwehrschild begegnen. Und so fand er seinen Slogan: Ellbogen runter! Weg mit
den Abwehrschildern.
Zafer&Ertan Sarısoy
At last, everything seems to be moving as we want. Everyone is motivated. One is writing
slogans for the posters that will be hung on the streets, whilst the other is taking photos
again for the posters. In one group, Fabio from CBG is taking the photos that would fit
with the slogans. Göksu is trying to find the pose that is most suitable for the slogans.
Rennie either keeps working on Birgit’s project, or shows how to cut stencil templates.
I run to the youngsters that are writing rap lyrics, then to the ones that are cutting the
stencils. Eleni is getting into contact with Greek origin youngsters. Some are shy, some
freeze us out, but in someway we manage to work with all. Meanwhile, Berk keeps
working with the kids of
Gräefenhauschule
for the furniture workshop.
Day turns into night. When
everyone sits near the tables
Berk constructs tables, chairs and
shelves for us with
hemshof-blok.
Actually, we work
all the time.
Anica & Oliwia
Selda Asal
We met in our studio with Zafer and Ertan to go to the studio of Zafer’s friend
Mazlum in Neustadt. Mazlum a.k.a. M.A.Z. turned one of the rooms in his house
into a small but effective studio. We immediately started to work on the music of
Zafer. It was Ertan’s first time to rap with such a recording studio, therefore he was
a little excited. On the contrary, Zafer was cool and knew exactly how to rap. Me,
Reni and Göksu felt the enthusiasm to rap and asked Zafer to help us with our
own rap lyrics. He excepted to help with the music, nevertheless insisted on not
to help with the texts because of authenticity.
Wir treffen uns mit Zafer und Ertan und gehen zum Studio von Zafers Freund,
Mazlum, in Neustadt. Mazlum a.k.a. M.A.Z. hat einer seiner Zimmer in ein kleines
und effektives Studio umgewandelt. Wir fangen sofort an, an Zafers Musik zu arbeiten. Ertan ist ein bisschen aufgeregt, weil er das erste Mal in einem Aufnahme
Studio war. Zafer hingegen war cool und wusste genau, was zu tun war. Ich, Reni
und Göksu waren enthusiastisch, wollten auch rappen und fragten Zafer uns mit
den Texten zu helfen. Er hilf mit der Musik, aber wollte mit den Texten nichts zu
tun haben, um ihre Authentizität zu bewahren.
sal
Berk A
Zum Schluss läuft alles so,
wie wir es uns vorgestellt hatten. Alle sind motiviert.
Einer schreibt Slogans für die Poster, die wir in den
Straßen aufhängen werden, während ein anderer die
Poster photographiert. In einer der Gruppen sucht Fabio
die Photos raus, die zu einem seiner Slogans passen. Göksu
versucht die richtige Pose zu finden. Rennie arbeitet entweder an
Birgits Projekt weiter, oder zeigt, wie man die Schablonen schneidet.
Ich renne zuerst zu den Jugendlichen, die den Rap schreiben, dann zu
denjenigen, die die Schablonen vorbereiten. Eleni versucht Kontakt mit
den Jugendlichen aus Griechenland aufzunehmen. Berk arbeitet immer
noch mit den Kindern der Gräfenauschule an den Möbeln. Der Tag wird zur
Nacht. Wenn alle am Tisch sitzen baut Berk immer noch für uns mit hemshof-blok:
Tische, Stühle, Regale. Eigentlich arbeiten wir die ganze Zeit.
Göksu: Uzun yıllardır Hemshof’ta çalışan biri olarak mahallenin dinamikleri ve
gençler ile ilgili neler söyleyebilirsiniz?
İbrahim Bey (Yetkin): Ludwigshafen, zamanla buraya yerleşen BASF fabrikası
sayesinde şehirleşmiş. Fabrikada işçi olarak çalışmak üzere başka ülkelerden
gelen insanların Hemshof’a yerleşmesini de beraberinde getiriyor bu durum.
Buradaki evler BASF’e yakın olduğu için çok ucuz. Son dönemde filtreleme
sistemi düzenlenmesine karşın o dönemde fabrikadaki koşulların farklı olması
nedeniyle de mahallenin kirli havası insanların buraya taşınmasını engelliyor.
Göçmen işçiler de kısa süre çalışıp geri dönmeyi düşündükleri için kiraları daha
ucuz olan Hemshof’a yerleşiyorlar.
Gezdiğinizde görmüşsünüzdür hemen hemen yabancı kökenli insanlar
Almanlar’dan daha fazla. 16.500 civarında nüfusu vardır bu semtin. Bu sayının
%54,5’u yabancı. Okullarda, şu anda, göçmen kökenli öğrencilerin çoğunlukta
olduğu görülüyor. Hatta anaokuluna bakıldığında neredeyse bu oran %100.
Tabii ki bu durum kendi içerisinde bir dinamik barındırıyor. Ailesi göçmen
olsa bile gençler burada büyüyorlar, buranın eğitimini alıyorlar. Bu noktada
anne babaların biraz zorluklarla karşı karşıya kaldıklarını biliyoruz. Onun için
çocukların, gençlerin okullarını istedikleri başarı ile bitiremedikleri görülüyor.
Devam edemiyorlar… Bu tip sorunlara yönelik özel programlar uygulanırsa bu
çocukların da uygun mesleklere kanalize edilmesi mümkün.
Aynı zamanda çok kültürlü biçimde gençlerin iç içe
yaşamaları da kendi başına bir avantaj. Yabancı bir
insanla bir arada yaşamak kolay değildir, ama insanın
buna alışması lazım. Bu anlamda çok kültürlü, çok dilli bir toplum oluşuyor. Bu
Hemshof’un en önemli avantajıdır. Gelecekte farklı kökenlerden insanların huzur
içinde bir arada yaşamasını sağlayabilecek bir ortam oluşuyor.
ibrahim yetkin
G: Bir yandan da ailelerin içerisinde geleneksel yapının devam ettiği görülmekte.
Hemshof’ta sokağa çıkıldığında farklı kökenlerden insanların yine kendi etnik
grubuna ait insanlar ile iletişim içerisinde olduğu parçalı bir yapı görülüyor.
Bölümleşmeler var gibi.
İ: Son derece doğru. Etnik grupların kendi içerisinde birlik oluşturmaları ve
diğerleri ile iletişimlerini azaltmaları aynı zamanda kültürel yapılarından
kaynaklanıyor. Örneğin, Türkiye’den göç etmiş insanların çoğunluğu köy
kesiminden geliyor; büyük aileye, akraba ilişkilerine alışkın. Birbirleriyle daha
yoğun biçimde irtibatta olup hasreti gidermeye çalışıyorlar. Aynı zamanda bu bir
dezavantaj, topluma açılmayı engelliyor. Özellikle de yetişkin insanlarda. Dili de
yeterli bilmediği için başka toplumlarla iletişime girme açısından zorluklarla karşı
karşıya kalıyorlar. Bunun için bir arada olmayı tercih ediyorlar.
G: Sizce gençler bu noktada nasıl konumlanıyor? Nasıl sorunlarla karşılaşıyorlar?
Gençlerin sorunları biraz daha farklı. Kimlik sorunu yaşıyor bizim gençler. Anne
babasını görüyor; karşı tarafta da Alman yerlisini. İki taraf arasındaki farkın
ayırdına varıyor. Hem kendi dilini hem de Almanca’yı konuşuyor. Kendi dilini
belki tam da bilmiyor. Almanca’yı da tam öğrenememiş; onu destekleyecek,
besleyecek kültürel yapı da yok. Bu nedenle utangaçlık yaşıyor. Dikkat
ettiyseniz kendi aralarında hep Almanca konuşurlar. Hangi milletten olduklarını
bilemezsiniz; fakat anne babasıyla ya da kendi milletinden olan grupla kendi
dilinde iletişim kuruyor. Bu durumu korumaya çalışmasına karşın, diğer taraftan
Almanlaşmış, ama Alman da değil. Alman olarak kabul de görmüyor. Bu arada
derede olma; kimlik arayışı halen devam ediyor. Bence bu problemin düzelmesi
biraz daha zaman alacak.
Bunun değişik sebepleri var. Bir: güven. Çok önemli. Hem Almanlar’a hem
de kendilerine güvenmiyorlar. Almanlar da öyle; göçmenlere güvenmiyorlar.
Güvensizlik olan bir ortam birbirlerine karşı rahat davranmalarını engelliyor.
Kimlik sorunu, beraberinde, yabancılığı çeken grubun aşırı milliyetçiliğe
yönelmesine neden oluyor. Alman da aynı şekilde milliyetçi; toplumunun
dağıldığından dem vuruyor. Bu nedenle de güvensizlik çözümü erteleyen faktör
oluyor.
G: Acaba sizce gençlerin okuldaki başarısızlığı, hatta kimi zaman kriminal
denebilecek davranışlar içerisinde bulunabilmeleri yine güven eksikliğinden
kaynaklanıyor olabilir mi?
İ: Kriminal olarak görmüyorum ben. Kriminal sözcüğünü kullanmak yerine dikkat
çekme denebilir. Gençlerin dikkat çekmek için yaptıkları bazı olumsuz olmayan
davranışlar söz konusu. Siz de deneyimlemişsinizdir tek tek konuştuğunuz
zaman son derece uygun ve olgun cevaplar alırsınız. Hiçbir çelişki kalmaz.
Ama grup halinde oldukları zaman farklı bir hava var; insan bu havada rahat
olamaz. Anlamıyorsunuz, “sen böyle değilsin, şimdi neden böyle yapıyorsun?”
diye düşünüyorsunuz kendi kendinize. O anda müdahale etmek de zor. Grup
halindeyken araya girerseniz ileride şansınız da kalmaz. Bu tip durumlarda
genç yalnız kaldığı bir zamanda birlikte konuşuyoruz. “Neyin var? Neden böyle
yapıyorsun?” diye sorduğumuzda, “Ne yapıyorum?” diyor. Kendisi bile farkında
değil aslında. Çok ilginçtir... İspatlama, bir şeyler yapma düşkünlüğü… Az önce
anlatmaya çalıştığım aile yapısının zayıflığından kaynaklanan okul başarızlığı
çocukları mutsuz ediyor. Siz de bilirsiniz insan bir yerlere ait olmak ister. Aidiyet
olmadığı zaman da elinden birşey gelmiyor. Bizim çocuklar, gençler bu durumu
ya spor ile dışavururlar veya dikkat çeken olumsuz hareketlerle. Bu nedenle
de kriminal denildiği zaman son derece damgalanmış oluyor. Bu tür davranış
bozukluklarının varolan yapı ile bağlantılı olduğu gözüküyor. Okul ya da
mesleki hayatları düzgün giderse, bu davranışları göstermezler. Orada başarı
görürler, başarı gördükleri zaman da rahatlarlar. Bu çok toplumlu olan semtte
de bu avantaj kendisini gösteriyor. Mahalleli olma hissi... “Yunan, İtalyan, Türk,
Kürt, Arap hiç önemli değil”, diyor, “komşumdur, tanıyorum” diye düşünüyorlar.
Birbirlerine güven ortamı bu şekilde oluşuyor. Eksik olan yanı ise bunun
Almanlarla olmaması. Almanlar’ın da biraz “ burada yaşayan insanlar bizden bir
parçadır” diye düşünmeleri lazım. Bu durum değişirse, gençlerin de bu tip dikkat
çekmeye çalışan hareketleri de yok olur.
Göksu: Sie haben durch ihre lange Arbeit viele Erfahrungen hier im Hemshof gesammelt,
was können sie uns über die Dynamiken zwischen den Jugendlichen und ihrem Viertel
erzählen?
Ibrahim Bey: Die Rolle der BASF ist ausschlaggebend in der Stadtentwicklung Ludwigshafens. Durch die Arbeitsplätze, die die Fabrik in der Stadt geschaffen hat, sind viele
ausländische Arbeiter nach Ludwigshafen gekommen. Die Wohnungen im Hemshof sind
so billig, weil sie so nah an der BASF sind. Vor einiger Zeit wurde das Abwassersystem
gebaut, doch für lange Zeit war das Viertel von Abgasen verschmutzt und niemand wollte
hier wohnen. Nur die Immigranten, die ursprünglich geplant hatten, nur für kurze Zeit in
Ludwigshafen zu bleiben, um dann in ihre Heimat zurück zu kehren, sind, aufgrund der
niedrigen Mieten, in den Hemshof gezogen.
Wie ihr gesehen habt, leben hier mehr Menschen mit Migrationshintergrund als Deutsche.
Das Viertel hat ungefähr 16.500 Einwohner, 54,5 % davon sind Immigranten. In den
Schulen kommt die Mehrzahl der Schüler aus Familien mit Migrationshintergrund und in
den Kindergärten sind es manchmal 100%. Natürlich erzeugt diese Situation ihre eigenen
Dynamiken. Die Kinder und Jugendliche wachsen hier in Deutschland auf, gehen hier zur
Schule, obwohl ihre Eltern aus einem anderen Land stimmen. Wir wissen, dass ihre Eltern
Schwierigkeiten haben, sich zu integrieren, was oft der Grund dafür ist, dass die Kinder und
Jugendliche keinen erfolgreichen Abschluss machen. Wenn wir Initiativen hätten, die auf
diese Probleme eingehen, würde es den Kindern gelingen, bessere Arbeitsstellen zu finden.
Auf der anderen Seite ist es auch ein Vorteil, dass die Jugendlichen in einem multikulturellen Umfeld leben. Das ist nicht immer einfach, doch man sollte sich daran gewöhnen. Für
die Jugendlichen hier ist das einfach, weil sie in dieser Umgebung aufgewachsen sind und
so daran gewöhnt sind, Teil einer multikulturellen und mehrsprachigen Gemeinschaft zu
sein. Das ist eines der größten Vorteile des Hemshofs. Hier wird ein Ethos erschaffen, der
Menschen von verschiedensten Hintergründen erlaubt, in der Zukunft miteinander zu
leben.
G: Wir haben außerdem festgestellt, dass starke traditionelle Werte immer noch einen
großen Stellenwert in den Familien haben. Im Hemshof gibt es viele separate Strukturen,
es scheint, als würden die verschiedenen Ethnien unter sich bleiben, als würden sie sich von
einander absondern.
I: Das ist richtig. Der Grund für den wenigen Kontakt, den die Gruppen untereinander
haben, ist die kulturelle Struktur hier. Die Türkischstämmigen, zum Beispiel, kommen alle
aus kleinen Dörfern in der Türkei, in denen Familie und Verwandte noch eine wichtige Rolle
spielen. Es gibt hier viel Nostalgie und Sehnsucht nach diesen Strukturen. Und deshalb
versuchen sie, die alten Familienbande aufrecht zu erhalten. Das hat zum Nachteil, dass
besonders die Erwachsen nicht viel Kontakt mit der Gemeinschaft des Viertels haben, und
eher unter sich bleiben.
G: Wie ist die momentan Situation der Jugendlichen? Mit welchen Problemen werden sie
konfrontiert?
I: Die Probleme der Jugendlichen sind anderer Art. Sie haben ein Identitätsproblem. Auf
der einen Seite beobachten sie ihre Eltern, und auf der anderen Seite die Deutschen. Sie
merken, dass es da einen Unterschied zwischen Beiden gibt. Sie sprechen ihre eigene
Sprache, genauso wie Deutsch. Es kann passieren, dass sie ihre Muttersprache nicht sehr
gut beherrschen, aber es gibt auch keine kulturelle Struktur, die ihnen erlaubt richtig
deutsch zu lernen. Deshalb sind sie schüchtern. Vielleicht habt ihr es auch schon bemerkt,
oft reden sie untereinander auf Deutsch. Trotzdem kommunizieren sie mit ihren Eltern
und Bekannten gleicher Herkunft in ihrer Muttersprache. Das hat zur folge, dass, obwohl
sie versuchen ihre ursprüngliche Herkunft zu bewahren, sie mehr und mehr assimiliert
werden, obwohl sie keine Deutschen sind. Außerdem werden sie nicht als diese akzeptiert.
Diese Zwischenposition fördert ihre Identitätssuche. Ich glaube es wird Zeit brauchen,
dieses Problem zu lösen.
Dafür gibt es mehrere Gründe. Zuallererst: Vertrauen. Das ist sehr wichtig… Sie vertrauen
weder den Deutschen, noch sich selbst. Und die Deutschen vertrauen den Immigranten
auch nicht. Eine Umgebung ohne Vertrauen macht es unmöglich sich wohlzufühlen, mit
Wohlbehagen zu handeln. Das Identitätsproblem ist die Quelle von radikalem Nationalismus unter denjenigen, die sich als der „Andere“ oder der Fremde fühlen. Der Deutsche
ist auch ein Nationalist, er hat Angst, dass seine Gesellschaft auseinander fällt. Deshalb
ist das fehlende Vertrauen der Faktor, der den Tag der Lösungsfindung immer weiter in die
Zukunft verschiebt.
G: Glaubst du, dass das fehlende Vertrauen die Quelle des fehlenden Erfolgs der Jugendlichen ist und sogar ihr negatives Verhalten, welches manchmal Kriminalität stiftet, erklärt?
Ich sehe es nicht als Kriminalität. Vielleicht ist es eher ein Versuch, Aufmerksamkeit zu
bekommen, ja, ihr Verhalten ist nicht kriminell. Wie ihr auch gesehen habt, wenn man mit
ihnen persönlich redet geben sie angemessene und erwachsene Antworten. Dann gibt
es keinen Streit. Doch wenn sie in der Gruppe sind, herrscht oft eine Atmosphäre, in der
man sich nicht wohlfühlt. Man versteht das oft nicht und denkt: „So eine Person bist du
doch gar nicht, warum tust du das?“. In diesem Moment ist es schwierig einzuschreiten.
Wenn man das macht, wenn man einschreitet wenn sie sich in der Gruppe unterhalten,
dann hat man später keine Chance. In so einer Situation redet man besser mit der/dem
Betreffende/m wenn sie/er alleine ist. Wenn wir fragen: „was ist das Problem, warum
verhältst du dich so?“ antwortet sie oder er „Was hab ich getan?“ Also merkt sie/er es nicht
mal. Für mich ist das sehr interessant. Eine Absicht, ein Prozess um etwas zu beweisen…
Die Konsequenz der familiären Strukturen ist oft der Misserfolg in der Schule, was die
Jugendlichen sehr unglücklich macht.
Wie du weißt, würde man gerne irgendwo dazugehören. Wenn man nirgendwo
dazugehört, kann man als Jugendlicher nichts tun. Es gibt zwei Wege mit dem Druck
der Jugendlichen umzugehen: Sport oder negatives Verhalten um Aufmerksamkeit zu
bekommen. Deshalb gibt man ihnen nur ein Label, wenn man sie als kriminell bezeichnet.
Man weiß, dass Fehlverhalten oft mit der existierenden sozialen Struktur zusammenhängt.
Wenn die Jugendlichen also Teil einer geordneten Struktur in der Schule sind und einen
richtigen Beruf erlernen, sieht man das Fehlverhalten nicht mehr. Dann sind sie erfolgreich
und fühlen sich wohl. In diesem multikulturellen Viertel gibt es einen großen Vorteil: die
Nachbarschaft. Meine Nachbarn sind Griechen, Italiener, Türken, Kurden, Araber…aber
das macht nichts. Sie sind alle meine Nachbarn und ich kenne sie. Das Ergebnis dieser
Nachbarschaft ist gegenseitiges Vertrauen. Das einzige das fehlt, ist die Verbindung zu den
Deutschen. Es wäre schön, wenn die Deutsche denken könnten: „ die Menschen, die hier
leben, sind auch ein Teil von uns“. Wenn das passiert, dann verschwindet auch das negative Verhalten der Jugendlichen.
adriana
A. ist beeindruckt vom Atelier, bestaunt unser Material, die elektrischen Geräte, die vollgeklebten Wände. „Was ihr macht ist so cool –
wisst ihr überhaupt wie cool das hier alles ist? Wenn ich älter bin, will ich auch so arbeiten.“ Sie ist anders als die meisten Kinder die wir
treffen: begeisterungsfähig, offenherzig und geradeheraus. Manchmal klingt die 11-Jährige ganz lebenserfahren.
„Ich habe nicht viele Freunde, vielleicht weil ich anders bin. Ich habe immer gute Laune und bin nett zu anderen. Die meisten Kinder
wollen cool sein, aber ich will nur ich sein.
Manche beleidigen mich sogar. Ich weiß nicht – ich bin nicht so wie andere. Ich bin ich und so bleib ich.“
Wir treffen sie fast jeden Tag zufällig, wenn sie im Park spielt oder mit ihrem Hund durch den Hemshof schlendert.
„Meistens nach der Schule geh ich mit Freundinnen in den Park, mit meinem Chiwawa oder alleine. Meine Mutter arbeitet in einer Bar
und mein Vater geht immer mit hin. Zuhause ist es also langweilig, weil keiner da ist. Ich bin Einzelkind.“
R: „Bist du in Hemshof geboren?“
A: „Nein, ich bin nicht hier, sondern in meinem Land [Rumänien] geboren. Erst ist mein Onkel hergezogen, dann hat meine Mutter hier
Arbeit gefunden. 2011 bin ich mit meiner Oma hergekommen.“
R: „Erst vor drei Jahren? Du sprichst sehr gut Deutsch.“
A: „Nein... Manche Wörter kann ich nicht so gut. In der Schule fragen die Lehrerinnen oft was und ich antworte gar nichts, weil ich es
nicht weiß. Wenn ich sage „Ich weiß es nicht“, dann schäm ich mich und vielleicht lachen alle.“
--R: „Jedenfalls hast du ja den Vergleich: wie findest du denn den Hemshof, hier zu leben?“
A: „Früher haben wir direkt am Hemshofpark in einem großen Haus gewohnt, das war toll. Ich mag das Kinderfest am Spielhaus und das
Hemshoffest wirklich gerne. Aber als ich gerade hergekommen war, war es komisch. Was ich am wenigsten mochte ist, dass die Kinder
nicht soviel rausgehen und spielen. In meinem Heimatland haben wir immer alle zusammen draußen gespielt, Mädchen und
Jungs, vom Morgen bis zum Abend. Manchmal vermisse ich das.”
----A. is impressed by our studio, gazing upon our workshop material, the electronic devices, the walls full of posters. “What you’re doing is
really cool, do you even know how cool this is? I want to work like this when I’m older.“ She is different from most of the other kids we
met: enthusiastic, openhearted and outspoken. Some statements of the 11-year-old sound surprisingly experienced.
“I don’t have to many friends. It might be because I’m different. I’m always in a good mood and nice to everyone. Most
kids want to be cool, but I just want to be me.
Some of them even insult me. I don’t know – I’m not like the others. I’m me and I will stay like this.”
We would run into her almost every day, playing in the park or strolling around in Hemshof with her dog.
“After school I usually go to the park with friends, with my chiwawa or by myself. My mother works in a bar and my father always goes
along with her. That’s why it’s boring at home; no one is there. I’m the only child.”
R: „Were you born in Hemshof?“
A: „No, I wasn’t born here but in my country [Romania]. First my uncle moved here, then my mother found work. I came here in 2011
with my grandmother.”
R: “Only three years ago? Your German is great!”
A: “No... Some words are hard. In school teachers often ask me something and I don’t answer, because I don’t know it. If I say “I
don’t know“ I’m ashamed of myself and maybe everyone laughs.“
--R: “Anyway you’re able to compare: how do you like Hemshof and living here?“
A: “We used to live in a big house just next to Hemshofpark, that was great. And I really like the Kinderfest at Spielhaus and
Hemshoffest. But when I first came here it was really weird for me. The thing I liked the least was that the kids don’t go
out to play so much. In my homecountry we would all play together outside, boys and girls, from morning to evening. Sometimes I miss that.”
A. stüdyomuzdan etkilendi; workshoplar için kullandığımız malzemelerden, elektronik cihazlardan ve posterlerle dolu duvarlardan
gözlerini alamadı. “Yaptığınız şey çok cool, siz bunun ne kadar cool olduğunun farkında mısınız? Büyüyünce ben de böyle çalışmak
istiyorum.” Tanıştığımız diğer çocuklardan farklı: hevesli, açık kalpli, konuşkan. 11 yaşındaki bu kızın bazı konuşmaları şaşırtıcı biçimde
yaşından büyük.
“Pek arkadaşım yok. Çünkü ben farklıyım, bu yüzden olabilir. Hep iyi bir moddayım ve herkese karşı kibarım. Çoğu çocuk cool olmaya
çalışıyor ama ben sadece kendim olmak istiyorum. Hatta bazıları beni aşağılıyor bile. Bilmiyorum – diğerleri gibi değilim.
“Ben benim, ve böyle kalacağım.”
Neredeyse her gün, o parkta oynarken ya da köpeğiyle Hemshof sokaklarında gezinirken onunla karşılaşıyorduk.
“Okuldan sonra genellikle arkadaşlarımla, chiwawamla ya da kendi başıma parka giderim. Annem bir barda çalışıyor ve babam da hep
onunla gider. Bu nedenler ev sıkıcı, kimse yok. Ben tek çocuğum”
R: Hemshof’ta mı doğdun?
A. Hayır ama kendi ülkemde doğdum (Romanya). Önce amcam buraya taşındı, sonra annem burada bir iş buldu. Ben buraya 2011
yılında anneannemle geldim.
R: Sadece 3 sene önce mi? Almancan mükemmel!
A: Hayır. Bazı kelimeler zor. Okulda çoğu zaman öğretmenler bana birşey soruyorlar ve cevap vermiyorum, çünkü bilmiyorum. Eğer
“bilmediğimi” söylersem belki herkes güler ve utanırım.
….
R: Hemshof’ta olmak ve burada yaşamak nasıl senin için?
A: Eskiden Hemshofpark’ta büyük bir evde yaşardık, mükemmeldi. Ayrıca Spielhaus’taki çocuk festivalini ve Hemshof Festivali’ni
gerçekten seviyorum. Ama ilk geldiğimde benim için gerçekten garipti. En sevmediğim şey ise çocukların oyun oynamak için dışarı
çıkmamaları. Benim ülkemde hep birlikte sabahtan akşama kadar kızlı erkekli sokakta oynardık. Bazen bunu özlüyorum.
apartment project
KOPFKINO
In the spring of 2012 we made a series of experimental excursions into
our city, Berlin. Our idea was to activate the potentials of our urban
setting; the blank facades, the busy streets, the characters that comprise
what we understand as our city.
We designed a tool, an amplifier, that could be animated by the activity
of the people in the area. Finding ourselves with limited resources, we
turned to improvised, spontaneous methods of fabricating the object. We
used a shopping trolley as our main body, and then filled as seemed best
all the components necessary for the projection. Borrowed car batteries,
projector and laptop, fixed in place with cable ties, and recycled wood,
the new era of the amateur professionals is personified!
The Kopf Kino amplifies live actions with a camera and projects this
action 10x enlarged onto the surrounding building facades. Curious
passersby, inhabitants of the space begin to see the power of this object
and spontaneously interact with its possibilities. Suddenly they become
performers in their normal environment. They are empowered by their
discovery and are able to use the object to mediate their role in the
production of urban space.
ON/OFF are a young network of Architects, Designers, Filmakers and
Urbanists. Our curiosity lies within the city, its complexity offers the
ground for experiments into the contemporary condition and the
opportuntiy to question, to tune and to discover new realities.
With each project we draw on our combined experience and unique skills
to investigate and affect the cities live dimension. We primarily conceive
of tools; structures both physical, social and fictional, which enable
shared engagement with the citizens of the place in the experiments
carried out.
"Tools are intrinsic to social relationships. An individual relates himself in
action to his society through the use of tools that he actively masters."
Ivan Illich
Layering the actions and life of the street back onto the structures which
in-part form it, has the effect of suspending the reality of the space.
Interacting or not, when in action, by passers see their (public's) actions
played out on the walls of their local bank, the supermarket or an office
building.
Although it is a tool with certain promising functionalities, the
experimental aspects of its purpose has always been significant in the
previous urban settings it had been plugged into.
KOPFKINO is yet to discover Ludwigshafen
Selda Asal gründete Apartment Projekt eine der ersten unabhängigen türkischen
Künstlerinitiativen - 1999 in Istanbul.
Apartment Projekt, das seit 2012 auch in
Berlin als Wohn-,
Arbeits- und Ausstellungsort fungiert,
möchte eine Plattform schaffen,
deren Fundament die Kollaboration
von interdisziplinären Künstlern und
Forschern in Zusammenleben und –arbeit ist.
In den Projekten, die Apartment Projekt
entwickelt, spielen der Produktionsprozess und
die durch diesen Prozess initiierten Begegnungen
die wichtigste Rolle. Je nach den Erfordernissen des
Arbeitsablaufs kommen Zeichnungen, Skizzen,
Videos, Texte und Stimmen zusammen; aus dem Leben der
KünstlerInnen gegriffene Geschichten, Zusammenkünfte, Höhen und
Tiefen,
Zickzackkurse finden ihren Weg in den konzeptuellen Rahmen der
Projekte.
2+1 wurde 2004 von Selda Asal und Ceren Oykut als eine
Untergruppe des Apartment Projekts gebildet. Die Beteiligten
wechseln entsprechend der Dynamik der Projekte. Bis heute wurden 12
partizipative Kunstprojekte mit Jugendlichen mit Migrationshintergrund
aus Deutschland, Frankreich, Dänemark und Schweden sowie mit
Jugendlichen der kurdischen, alevitischen und lasischen Minderheiten
in der Türkei entwickelt. Außerdem wurde sowohl mit Frauen aus dem
Iran, für die das öffentliche Singen verboten ist, als auch mit alternativ
lebenden Jugendlichen in postkommunistischen Ländern in der
Transformation wie Estland, Georgien, Armenien oder Aserbaidschan
zusammengearbeitet. Von Anfang an wurde das Projekt, das sich
im Kern um Begriffe wie “erkennen, kennenlernen, verstehen, der
Stimme Gehör verschaffen” dreht, in Ausstellungen, Biennalen, lokalen
Geschäften, Supermärkten und öffentlichen Räume wie Bahnhöfen
ausgestellt.
D
A
F
B
C
E
H
G
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
projector
shopping cart
timber lenghts
IR camera
2 x 12V batteries
power inverter
galvanised cladding
Apartment Projekt wurde für das von Öykü Özsoy kuratierte und vom
Willhelm-Hack-Museum und der Kulturstiftung des Bundes unterstützte
Projekt Hack&The City für zweieinhalb Monate nach Ludwigshafen
eingeladen. Das Projekt wurde von Selda Asal, Göksu Kunak, Berk
Asal und Irene Baumann erarbeitet. Özgür Erkök Moroder, Birgit Auf
der Lauer, Eleni Mouzourou und ON/OFF (Berlin) sowie die Musiker
Zafer Sarısoy aus Hemshof und Leroy aus Mannheim unterstützen
das Team, das in der Rudolf-Scharpf-Galerie in Hemshof lebt und
arbeitet. Für dieses Projekt hat es mit dem Treff International - dem
Treffpunkt der Jugendlichen von Hemshof und auch mit SchülerInnen
des Carl-Bosch-Gymnasiums und der Realschule plus am Ebertpark
zusammengearbeitet. Kollaborationen mit Projekträumen in der
Region, Performances und Gesprächsrunden werden nach der
Ausstellungseröffnung vom 28. Juni bis 13. Juli 2014 stattfinden.
Apartment Project, one of the first artist initiatives of Turkey, is
founded by Selda Asal in 1999 in Istanbul. Apartment Project, that
is active since September 2012 as a place for living, exhibition space
and studio in Berlin, aims to form a platform based on the collaboration
of interdisciplinary artists and researchers by living and working
together. For the production based projects that Apartment Project
generates, the importance is given to the process and the encounters
through this process.
According to the needs of the working system, drawings, sketches, videos,
texts, voices come together; the stories the artists collect from life;
encounters, ups and downs, zigzags find their way in the frame of the
concept of the projects.
As one of the sub-groups of Apartment Project, 2+1 is formed by Selda
Asal and Ceren Oykut in 2004. In relation to the dynamics of the projects
participants are changing. Until now, 12 participatory art projects have
been developed with the youngsters with immigrant background from
Germany, France, Denmark and Sweden and youngsters of Kurdish,
Alaouite and Laz minorities in Turkey; women from Iran who are
forbidden to sing; youngsters with an alternative life style from postcommunist countries that are experiencing a transformation such as
Estonia, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. Since the very beginning, the
project that is focusing on notions such as “knowing, getting to know,
understanding, making the voice heard” has been shown in exhibitions,
biennials; local shops, supermarkets, markets and public spaces such as
train stations.
Apartment Project has started a 2,5 months project with an invitation
to Ludwigshafen as a part of Hack&The City curated by Öykü Özsoy
supported by Wilhelm-Hack-Museum and Kulturstiftung des Bundes.
The project is developed by Selda Asal, Göksu Kunak, Berk Asal and Irene
Baumann. Özgür Erkök Moroder, Birgit Auf der Lauer, Eleni Mouzourou
and ON/OFF – based in Berlin; musicians Zafer (Sarısoy) from Hemshof
and Orely from Mannheim contribute to the team that has been living
and working in Rudolf-Scharf-Galerie in Hemshof. For the development
of the project they have been working with Treff International – the
meeting point of youngsters of Hemshof, the youngsters of Carl Bosch
Gymnasium and Realschule plus am Ebertpark. Collaborative works with
project spaces in the region, performances and talks will be held after
the exhibition opening on 28 June till 13 July 2014.
Content: Hemshof-Blok: Berk Asal // L udwigshafen in pieces: Birgit Auf
der Lauer // i-MAP-we: Eleni Mouzourou // A Weavering voice: Göksu
Kunak // kumm roi: Irene Baumann // face-spaces: Özgür Erkök Moroder //
KOPFKINO:ONOFF //
This publication is prepared for the exhibition Hemshof Boogie by 2+1 –
subgroup of Apartment Project – as a part of Hack&The City curated by Öykü
Özsoy supported by Wilhelm-Hack-Museum and Kulturstiftung des Bundes.
Layout / Design: Selda Asal
Images: Selda Asal, Berk Asal
Translations: Irene Baumann, Göksu Kunak, Diana Noonan, Gala von Nettelbladt
Special Thanks to:
Ibrahim Yetkin - Treff International
Daniela Wagner - Carl-Bosch Gymnasium
Daniel Kirschner - Realschule plus am Ebertpark
Wolfgang Neßling - Gräfenauschule
Frauencafé Hemshof
Apartment Project
2+1 Hemshof Team:
Berk Asal , Göksu Kunak, Irene
Baumann,Selda Asal
Invited Artists:
Birgit Auf der Lauer, Eleni Mouzourou,
Özgur Erkök Moroder,
ON/OFF
Hemshof Boogie
28.06.2014 – 13.07.2014
Rudolf Sharpf Galerie
Hemshofstrasse 54
67063 Ludwigshafen
Musicians: Orely, Zafer Sarısoy, M.A.Z.
Rappers : Zafer&Ertan, Oliwia&Anica,
Guiseppe&Furkan&Ali
www.wilhelmhack.museum // www.hackandthecity.com // www.apartmentproject.org
gefördert im Programm
Fellowship Internationales
Museum der