Lecturers: April Gertler and Adrian Schiesser
Dates:16-17-18.05.2025
Time: 14:00- 17:30
April Gertler and Adrian Schiesser, both visual artists and cultural creators will draw from their own experiences of running socially engaged platforms for the last 15 years both collaboratively and separately.
The workshop will focus on a variety of issues concerning creating a socially engaged platform; be it a one off event or a longer term project space structure. They will consider and discuss the basics around idea generation; specifically, how one can take an idea into the public realm and all of the elements that need to be considered when doing so. Some of those elements include collaboration with others as an artistic and logistical practice; in addition to the actual logistics of running an event which include not only promotion, but generating an audience, and finally, looking at ideas around funding and the sustainability of such a premise.
This workshop is targeted at artists/makers/cultural producers who might be interested in taking their ideas more into the public realm and how to go about that.
The class will be held in English
To be part of the class please register in the link below no later than May 12: https://forms.gle/Kgfs4XPRDMpqftQm7
April Gertler and Adrian Schiesser
Adrian Schiesser, born in Germany, moved back to Germany after living abroad for 20 years. He works from a sculptural perspective. His work has taken the form of physical sculptures using a wide variety of materials including cars, tape and wood, in addition to sound scapes within the context of artist walks.
He has shown work at Berlin based venues including Scotty, Spor Klübü, tête, WIRWIR and PICTURE BERLIN.
Adrian is the co-creator, with April Gertler, of SONNTAG (since 2012) and more recently both WIRWIR and a casual corridor (since 2021 and 2023). Adrian has been living and working in Berlin since 2011.
April Gertler (US/NL) has been living and working in Berlin since 2005. Her work is rooted in social practices and has been realized in a variety of forms that include; an ongoing lecture performance series (TAKE THE CAKE), podcasts, artist walks, self-published books/zines, and cultural events using self-initiated project spaces as platforms and a hybrid artist residency (PICTURE BERLIN – started in 2010).
April and Adrian have been working collaboratively since 2012. The nomadic social sculptural project SONNTAG was developed by them in 2012. It is currently realized on a quarterly basis in apartments through out Berlin. Adrian and April invite artists to share their work in a third party’s domestic space. Since its inception, SONNTAG has been realized over 65 times with international editions having taken place in Paris, Copenhagen, New York City, London and Amsterdam. In 2019, the book; SONNTAG : A Recipe for Social Pratices was published by The Green Box.
In 2021, the team created the fixed not for profit project space WIRWIR in Berlin-Neukölln which is engaged in building community through alternative platforms including listening sessions, workshops, video viewing experiences, food related events in addition to walks, presentations and exhibitions.
Within the context of WIRWIR, the publishing arm of the project space was born in 2022 as WIRWIR PUBLISHES. The focus of the publishing component gives them the chance to spread knowledge and accessibility of printing through Risograph workshops along with their own publications which they bring to various independent zine and art book fairs and festivals worldwide; including INDEX ART BOOK FAIR (Mexico City), Wiels Art Book Fair (Brussels, Belgium), and Bergen Art Book Fair (Norway).
Finally, in 2023 the team developed the outside facing A0 vitrine space titled ‘a casual corridor’. The space came out of the observation that the neighbours of WIRWIR didn’t seem to feel comfortable enough to walk through the door of WIRWIR. The vitrine is permanently installed on the outside of the building that is WIRWIR which brings art work to the street.
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May Classes 2025 is supported by Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, KCSF, SMART Balkans