The Alte Akademie was founded as a Jesuit college in the 1500s. Over the centuries it went through a range of users and uses: from garrison to university, police headquarters to library, art school to state statistical office. Situated in the (shopping-)heart of Munich – prime real estate in every sense – the buildings were leased to a private property group by the state, and now await a controversial “regeneration” scheme. In the build-up to the conversion, the now empty structure was temporarily turned into studios for the so-called creative industries – providing the users with affordable space for six months, and the developer with perfectly marketable stories and images…
As actors in this pervasive charade, we felt that “promo images” would form a fitting conceptual backdrop for the interior. Consequently, all of the room’s furniture was uniformly wallpapered with a repeating pattern, reminding of the generic sponsor walls at “events” around the globe. The former office had retained its built-in cabinets and – as it could not be locked – everything slightly valuable had to be stored in these on a daily basis. The cabinets formed the main structuring element of the interior design, along with a long bench inserted under the windows and a set of stowable tables – both built out of recycled cabinet doors from other disused rooms in the building.
Room 417 became a temporary work and event space for Sorry Press and CPWH. The cost of the refurbishment was limited to the labour, the printing of the posters and the slight feeling of having been used…
