Working in between the fields of architecture and public art, Raumlabor, whose name means ‘space laboratory’, create projects based around events, performance and theatre. Raumlabor are a group of architects based in Berlin, who came together in 1999 in response to the rapid and unrestrained development of the city following the fall of the Berlin wall. Their playful approach critiques this dominant mode of architectural production, proposing instead temporary projects that transform the urban landscape through what they call ‘urban prototypes’. This approach is not only used to critique official planning processes but also to influence them.
Collaboration is a key part of their strategy with specialists including engineers, sociologists, local experts, ethnographers and citizens, being brought together around specific projects. Their projects try to open up a space of communication and negotiation in which relations can be made and conflicts played out, and they acknowledge that for them architecture is first and foremost a social phenomenon.