The group of artists raumlaborberlin will design the square in front of the Jahrhunderthalle Bochum and give it the name Third Space. A plane crash landing or being rebuilt? A centre manufacturing or repairing public space? The empty, inhospitable area in front of the former gas-fired power plant that is now the Jahrhunderthalle will be redesigned for the duration of the festival in a manner everyone can see. At the beginning there were questions: is the only consequence of the dualism of the digital world and real public spaces that the only way I arrange to meet a potential partner in a shopping mall is on Tinder? Can I express my opinions in any other way than clicking Like buttons or posting complaints on a community blog? Can public spaces and what is performed there contribute to putting some new meaning into the idea of community? Isn’t public space the place to form opinions? A place to (re-)discover living forms of communal civic life? Shouldn’t public space be an anti-“I don’t care it doesn’t bother me” space? For Third Space in front of the Jahrhunderthalle Bochum raumlaborberlin develops a set consisting of construction elements that are repeatedly reconfigured during the Ruhrtriennale. Every year during the festival the Third Space will be reworked and new, surprising spaces created. On the biggest self-build site in the country there will be courses, workshops and chances to participate at a range of different levels of involvement.
In addition to helping build the space, all activities from taking care of the site, sourcing materials and tools, passing on knowledge and creating a good atmosphere will be examined for their participatory potential: everyone should be able to find something they can contribute. Third Space is both a building site and a bar: an informal place to meet and an arena for public discussion; living room and academy in one. In short: the festival centre for the Ruhrtriennale 2018 2019 2020.
