2016,

Neue Berliner Räume e. V.

2016,

2011

Initiative

neueberlinerraeume.de

Jodie Carey, A Room That Was Never Meant To Be, 2013, Foto: Benjamin Busch

Robert Montgomery, Echoes of Voices in the High Towers, 2018, Foto: Benjamin Busch

The pandemic gave us a pause and became a forced hiatus. For us, it didn’t make sense to organize events or to move into the digital space during the last year. A willingness to think outside the box, to implement short-term funding, and to listen to the needs of the community. Not everyone requires long term investments; others would like to apply for EUR 500 to develop a project for next month. These quick, low-cost funding opportunities are not clearly available yet. When implementing initiatives, first think about the places and the people you are trying to serve. Requiring project spaces to have a program mapped out six months in advance, or ask for only German-language applications is not responding to the community.The word “project space” is almost misleading to me. Projects do not have to take place in spaces. Radio shows, Instagram takeovers, and outdoor screenings are also projects. To focus on the aspect of space itself is to take a narrow view of what could – and is – happening in Berlin at the moment. The ideal project space would come with a budget for production and overhead costs. Ideally, also the curators ought to get paid.Von der Kulturpolitik wünschen wir uns eine Bestätigung der Leistungen der Projektraummacher*innen durch Vernachhaltigung der Fördermöglichkeiten, gemeinsames Entwickeln neuer Tools zur Förderung und offenen Dialog auf Augenhöhe. Wir alle sind an einer lebendigen Kulturszene in Berlin interessiert; sie erzeugt Synergien und Sogwirkung. Wir alle können dazu beitragen, dass sich Lebensrealitäten von Künstler*innen und Projektmacher*innen verbessern, jede*r mit den eigenen Mitteln.