The re:future Lab is an experimental think tank and independent projectspace for art, contemporary culture and future research, initiated and curated by Madeleine Schwinge, to trigger discourse and exchange among artists and futureagents of diverse disciplines at the interfaces between art, design, architecture, fashion, film, music, literature, philosophy, science, politics, technology, economy, lifestyle, food and health.
What
we do
“More then ever we need the transformational power of art.”
Madeleine Schwinge
re:future Lab Founding director
Artist, curator, author, consultant
We research art, contemporary culture and influential disciplines to capture new visions.
We question how art can catalyse innovation and social change.
We encourage people to stretch their habitual thinking and change their perception of reality.
Our mission is to offer an extended platform for inspiration, creative strategies and transfer to share new perspectives and positive narratives for future utopias.
Our activities can be experienced in the form of art exhibitions, features, panels, talks, editions, publications, art lectures, workshops and special events.
We are headquartered in Berlin with a satellite in Paris.
The future is open,
navigating is next!
Exhibitions
Art Lectures, talks and panels
Accompanying its exhibitions, re:future Lab PROJECTS presents a diverse program of art lectures, artist talks, discussions and events. Artists and future designers from the fields of creation, culture, science, business, etc. search for and discuss new strategies and pathways to a better future in an interdisciplinary, bold and open-minded frame of mind. Here, everyone can find inspiration and new ideas for pressing issues of the time or even for their own development, and also exchange ideas with others. Art lovers, as well as all open-minded people who are looking for new solutions, will receive exciting insights and perspectives on critical topics and will be invited to reflect on them anew and broaden their thinking.
There can be no doubt, we live in times of epochal shifts. So where do we go from here? How do we prepare for and find solutions for the times ahead? In the re:future Lab we believe that art can play an important role in individual and social development. The artists featured in exhibitions curated by re.future Lab PROJECTS share a certain kinship in terms of their focus on the crucial topics of our era. The overall intention is to provide a platform for a range of voices and positions, each of them capable of challenging our habitual mindsets and transform our perspectives on future.
The project EMBARKING FUTURE is an interview project by Madeleine Schwinge, hosted by re:future Lab PUBLICATIONS. Madeleine Schwinge interviews and features artists and future designers of diverse fields who represent the Zeitgeist, deal with urgent contemporary topics and are pioneers in their respective fields of activity. The questionaire's common parenthesis are five identical questions about the power of art and narratives, interdisciplinarity, the role of contemporary art and personal creative strategies. A series of features has been published continuously as an online magazine since May 2020, and excerpts from it will culminate in an artistic book project. So far, more than thirty interviews with personalities from Berlin, Paris, London, Vienna, Los Angeles, and New York have been produced. The idea is to filter commonalities and critical differences in the thinking of a time-determining elite and at the same time to provide impulses for personal further thinking. The central thesis is that today, more than ever, the core competencies of artistic creation are needed to master the immense upheavals and challenges of our epoch; including the spirit of exploring, the willingness to take risks, sensitive perception, the capability of association, self-efficacy, resilience and the ability to cooperate.
Features
Mentoring & Workshops
In a time of unprecedented uncertainty, many of us are looking for a sense of understanding and direction to think about their personal lifes, relationships or businesses. re:future Lab COLLEGE presents a workshop program with a strong focus on mindshift and future design - conducted in the current exhibition. Theoretical art knowledge, artistic practices and curatorial structures are combined with approaches from philosophy, life coaching, design thinking and strategic planning. Whether one-to-one mentoring sessions, workshops in small groups or online master classes, there is always a suitable format for everyone, no matter whether it is about practical questions of day-to-day life or developing sustainable future plans.
Art Editions
Art can provide impulses, encouragement and strength on a very personal level. re:future Lab PUBLICATIONS presents exclusive, yet affordable, limited editions by artists that are showcased in our exhibitions. Each item is an original, exclusively produced for the re:future Lab's editions and signed by the artist. Get your personal dose of inspiration and thus help to support our engagement for a better future for all of us.
Special Events
re:future Lab PROJECTS organises and hosts special events, ranging from art dinners, concerts, photo productions, film screenings, product launches and more. Our space in Berlin-Oberschöneweide is a physical manifestation of the re:future Lab online platform. All events provided by re:future Lab PROJECTS reflect or are inspired by the people we work with and stories we report about.
The
space
The re:future Lab is located in the building complex Spreehalle in Oberschöneweide, literally on the river Spree in the southeast of Berlin. Here, renowned artists, creatives and cultural workers come together. Exhibitions, galleries and concerts attract a wide range of visitors and fill the former industrial area with new life. A perfect environment for pioneering projects.
The Spreehalle is part of a group of buildings, originally built in 1910 as the transformer factory of AEG by iconic architects such as Peter Behrens. It has been renovated and modernised by the awarded London based architectural bureau FeildenCleggBradleyStudios in cooperation with musician and photographer Bryan Adams. For successfully linking history with modernity, the Spreehalle in 2018 received the Otto Borst Prize for Urban Renewal and was nominated for the BDA Architecture Audience Award. The project has since been featured in numerous international magazines such as in Wallpaper.
In 2020, Madeleine Schwinge acquired a 160 sqm brutalist space there and commissioned the danish architect Sigurd Larsen with its interior design. The space merges the artist studio and the newly founded re:future Lab under one roof. The interior design reflects the future-oriented approach of these two work-spheres and shapes a perfect unity for research, studio, office, exhibition, workshop and event zones.
Who we are
Meet the team
Madeleine Schwinge
Founding Director / Head of Curation
Madeleine Schwinge is a multidisciplinary conceptual artist, curator, author and consultant focusing on identity and transformation issues.
She studied art history (Freie Universität Berlin) and curation (Universität der Künste Berlin) and has been tutored by distinguished artists. Her artwork has been published in exhibition and science contexts and was recently listed for The Social Art Award 2019.
In addition, on the basis of a diploma in economic sciences, a profound entrepreneurial experience and certified as coach, she conceived numerous strategic plannings and brand campaigns, conducted extensive training programs and was invited as a speaker at a number of congresses.
She embeds her approach in the concept of a metamodern art logic that oscillates between informed naivety and pragmatic idealism. It is about an impossible possibility.
Out of her passion for human evolution and the changing world she founded the re:future Lab in 2020 with the ambition to explore how art can catalyse a mindset revolution and help make the world a better place.
Cécile Nebbot
Contributor/ Advisory Board Member
Cécile Nebbot is a communication expert.
She holds a master’s degree in economics and in communication and has a strong expertise in brand content strategies, corporate social reponsability, diversity and inclusion. For over a decade, she has been working for a major international consulting firm, developing strategies, global communication projects and corporate events.
Not only satisfied to be born in Marseille, to have lived in London and now to be settled in Paris, she has recently been captivated by the disruptive creative power of Berlin and has made it her part-time home.
She is driven by art, architecture, philosophy, literature, music and dance - and loves to quote the choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker: 'A dancer is a musical instrument with its own sonority and colour'
Advisory Board
Masterminds and experts from various fields, each nominated for a fixed period, will enrich the re:future Lab exhibitions, talks, panel discussions and workshops with their knowledge and experience.
The first board will be convened for the 2021 program.
Contact
us
re:future Lab
Reinbeckstr. 32
12459 Berlin
Tel: +49 (0)151 50686199
Email: mail@re-f-lab.com
Internet: www.re-f-lab.com
Founding director: Madeleine Schwinge
For PRESS REQUESTS please contact us at mail@re-f-lab.com
Tax number: 34/233/00622
VAT ID: DE285072589
Responsible for content in accordance with § 10 Absatz 3 MDStV:
Madeleine Schwinge (Address see above)
Legal advice:
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