L’Espace Féminin brings together women from a diverse range of spatial practices - architects, curators, artists, publishers, cultural managers- to interrogate the role of women in the future of architecture, when that discipline is understood as being a socially, politically, critically engaged practice.
The initiative reframes the space in which traditional protocols and practices of professional networks are repurposed, developing according to the needs of the women within them. It engages participants through activities such as dinners, walks, residencies and conversations, fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange, with an emphasis upon face-to-face encounter.
In L’Espace Féminin women are given the space to present their projects to an interested public, to question their practice and to develop understanding of not only their own work, but - owing to the international scope of participants - its place in the wider constellation of contemporary spatial practice.
Responses to a set of questions, which change every event in response to the evolution of the project, appear on placemats, reflecting the project as an open, reflexive format.
Dinner events brought together more than 30 women from all over Europe. Within the informal setting of a dinner, placemats were used as a device for initiating conversation and debate.
The Wir können Kunst! kids workshops brought together children staying in Wedding’s refugee camps and artists based in the area, engaging the young newcomers with their neighbourhood whilst offering the artists a new perspective on their locale.
Hand-drawn map produced by architect-in-residence Merril Sinéus, as part of her exploratory exercises undertaken within our urban laboratory: the Soldiner Kiez.
L’Espace Féminin kick off event: a tour by Niche as part of the 2015 Make City Festival, that explored “Feminine Spaces” in Berlin-Wedding. Image: V. Abelson / Courtesy Make City Festival
