Cultural venues as urban spaces of opportunity
2026-02-05 Where and how do cultural spaces of possibility arise in urban areas? As places where cultural practices are negotiated and urban gaps are filled, cultural spaces open up unique perspectives on the city. As part of a series of experiments conducted by the Leuphana Innovation Community Arts & Culture, students developed artistic and research-based approaches to these very topics.
When knowledge production spreads from the university into practice, spaces for dialogue are created that have an impact far beyond the seminar room. In a project seminar in the Bachelor's program in Cultural Studies led by Duygu Örs and Lana Bartusch, students explored culture in urban spaces using qualitative and creative research approaches. They approached train station concourses, squares, literary houses, and trendy neighborhoods through photography, drawing, and performance. They were also guided by the question of how methodological approaches familiar from the arts can enable new forms of observation.
Based on their research findings, they developed a ‘flash exhibition’ that opened on February 5, 2026, in the Halle für Kunst. The exhibition objects resulting from their research deal with topics such as sitting in urban spaces, the formation of temporary societies, the marking of public space with stickers and dogs, and the unwritten rules and norms of cultural institutions. The exhibition objects entered into a dialogue with an exhibition by Samuel Bich, which questioned the conditions of production and presentation of contemporary art based on archival research.
The ‘flash exhibition’ follows on from a series of events in which the Community of Art and Culture is testing new formats in collaboration with partners in the field, such as the learning labs. Opening up new spaces for knowledge production and collaborating with partners enables new approaches to research questions and is an important part of the community's work.
The pop-up exhibition Cultural Sites as Urban Spaces of Possibility featured works by: Alina Kaiser, Amelie Müller, Bibiana Rosiñol Prieto, Elena Anton, Emily Wolf, Ine Johanna Johannsen, Jasmin Zorn, Leif Jacobs, Lucas Kroschwitz, Luna Loppenthien, Merle Trapp, Milo Schäfer, Noah Burtscheidt, Pia Stankewitz, Semiha Wendt, Stella Bosink, and Wiebke Tüchter.
Further information:
These local art and cultural venues are partners in the Leuphana Innovation Community Arts and Culture project “Spaces of Art Organization”:
- Kunstverein Lüneburg e.V.
- Halle für Kunst Lüneburg e.V.
- mosaique - Haus der Kulturen
- Kulturzentrum Düne
- Kulturfabrik Kampnagel