KA:LAB

KA:LAB was an installation and an urban art piece that was opened in an empty commercial space in the district of Kalasatama. The aim of the project was to create a utopian space for knowledge sharing and communal activities. It experimented on the possible non-commercial forms that the unused spaces of Helsinki city could take. It put into practice the idea of common art spaces that could be opened in different districts.

The installation was based on a wooden map of the Kalasatama district that was completed by every visitor who entered the space. The visitors inserted wooden blocks into the map according to their ideas and notions about the district. Around the map were also recorded interviews from the residents of Kalasatama. The installation was fully completed on the last opening day of the space. The other half of the space was made into a ”living room” where the residents had the possibility to exchange ideas and bring their own activities. KA:LAB was open for two weeks.