SP_CE – 151 Days Free Space for Collaboratively Working in the Heart of Munich

For five months sculpture network was part of an exciting collaboration at the Alte Akademie in the middle of Munich: At the SP_CE, 40 artists and those involved in culture found a temporary home for projects and experiments.

The SP_CE is drawing to a close. At the beginning of June, the Alte Akademie (Old Academy) has to be vacated. Since January the collaboratively working project (in cooperation with the team of experts from the Cultural and Creative Department of the Bavarian State Capital City of Munich) has been temporarily based in the Old Academy near the Stachus.
On more than 1,200 m², around 40 artists and cultural projects had the opportunity to move into their own temporary studios, work and exhibition spaces. There was no rent, only the ancillary costs had to be covered by each individual him or herself. Once a month all participants opened their rooms to the public on the Open Thursday. In sculpture network’s room 503, the motto was: sculpt the world! We invited the visitors to use various sustainable materials and to create small and large works of art with us. Simultaneously establishing new contacts. On 16 May, the SP_CE invited visitors to its monthly exhibition series for the last time. On this evening we came up with something very special: a scavenger hunt throughout the Old Academy. 

Networking artists  

The aim of the scavenger hunt was to connect sculpture network with other exciting art projects and to give visitors the opportunity to become creative themselves. Because this is the real essence of the SP_CE project: to network and bring together artists, to create new interdisciplinary collaborations that are of interest to both participants and visitors. From music, to architecture, to fine art, a project like SP_CE offers the opportunity to connect creative people and immerse oneself in a new world.

Once right through the SP_CE  

The first puzzle was distributed at the entrance. If you managed to get to the first station, you found yourself in the room of the Embassy of the Republic of Užupis.  A project which was started in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius. In the 1990s, some inhabitants of the Užupis district proclaimed their own artistic republic. In addition to a constitution, a flag and a president, it now also has its German embassy in the middle of the Old Academy. Everyone was allowed to take material from a box in order to be able to later create their own sculpture. The second question led to a room in which seven various artists exhibited their works – from sculpture through to painting. Later even accompanied by a choir. Once they had taken the remainder of the material there, they then went to the last stop – our sculpture network room.
We firstly welcomed our visitors with a reward: a goodie bag and delicious lemonade from Wandlbeck. Then everyone could check out our other materials and create their own three-dimensional artwork. 

Intermediate Use with Long-Term Effect 

While creating the own works of art, everybody eagerly discussed what they had seen so far. The many and various projects that have settled in the SP_CE have left behind many different impressions. Hannes, who is writing his master's thesis on intermediate artistic uses, is completely convinced of the SP_CE concept. He thinks it's great that there's still a small space made available for artists in Munich. In general, the impressions are very positive. Stephanie and Marie came here by chance. They were walking by and became curious. The audience is as diverse as the projects in the building. The impressions left behind will probably be remembered by both the participants as well as by the many visitors – reflecting the motto of the SP_CE "temporary open space with long-term effect".

Many thanks to all housemates, visitors and the SP_CE team for the great time we had. Thanks also to Halm and Wandlbeck for the valuable cooperation!