Consum

When: September 6 - 8, 2024, opening hours: 11:00 - 18:00

Where: Galerie Met, Mariannenstr 33, 10999 Berlin

Opening Party: September 6, 18:00 - 21:00, music & drinks

Many artists in Berlin supplement their income through freelance work or alternative sources of revenue to sustain their artistic career, despite abundant fundings and exhibitions the city can offer. This reality calls for a closer look at the economic dynamics of Berlin’s art community, prompting the initiation of this exhibition and pop-up store: CONSUM.

Equality is a fundamental principle within Berlin’s art community, ensuring fair distribution of resources and encouragement of diverse voices. While this supportive environment benefits all artists, it also results in smaller increments of resources that might not fulfill individual potential. Additionally, the competitive application processes and time-consuming paperwork add to the challenges. Although exhibition opportunities are plentiful under the equal social context, they rarely generate significant income. As a result, many artists find themselves in a cycle of relying on alternative income sources — a common struggle for artists in Berlin. Meanwhile, "commerce" remains a cultural taboo.

CONSUM draws inspiration from “Konsum”, the consumer cooperative shops from the GDR's planned economy era. These center-controlled supply facilities ensured equal resource distribution to all, but only at a subsistence level. The ironic parallel between "equality" in Konsum and the current conditions faced by Berlin artists serves as the foundation for CONSUM. It is also the testing ground to explore a neutral perspective on commerce. During the exhibition, CONSUM will transform Galerie Met into a pop-up store offering essential items for Berlin artists. All products are priced the same at 9.9 EUR, offering buyers an equal opportunity to open one of the envelopes, containing a CONSUM voucher. Every voucher is redeemable for a designated product from the inventory.

Whether you are an artist or a visitor, this is your equal chance to support Berlin artists. Have fun.