2015 Space Design Group Meeting Minutes

Prague, Czech Republic
18 June 2015, 16:30

Download Meeting Minutes Here

• Reija introduced herself and first official meeting. She will head up the group until we decide on different leadership. All members introduced themselves.
• OISTAT Space Design Group mission was passed around.
• Origins of creating the WG. “Spatial approach to performance.”
• Introductions of attendees
  －October 2016 Conference, Spain
  

Discussion

• Reija: Do some kind of workshop? What do you want to do?
• Fiona: Let’s be sure to include the next generation of artists in the group.
• Tina: Avoid meeting against other WG groups (Aby appealed to make sure　WGs have overlap).
• Include a list of these ideas about space design on the OISTAT website
• Virtual workshop via web instead of on-site workshop
• Discovering the diagonal, inspired by choreography
• Marketa: Discovering new spaces in Prague every time she visits: Fabulous and hidden spaces.
  First task of the working group was assigned: Each and every one in attendance to take a new photo of a space in Prague and send it to Reija via email. Reija will post all on OISTAT web site.
• Gallery page on OISTAT website where members can contribute photos of potential spaces in order to make working group members visible.
• Facebook page, non-Facebook site coming.
• Peggi: Ritual of how the process evolves. Exhibition design. How does one develop a city and convert to a conference and exhibit and performance space? How is that ritual of space design formulated?
• Fiona: How is this group going to be different than any other group we are part of? Unique part of being a part of OISTAT is being comfortable getting out of our typical approaches and habits and familiarity of our own countries.
• Keep the academic side and the professional/practical side of what we do together.
• We should be a resource to other designers and each other.
• Dinesh: We should try to get to India. Getting to places that don’t have Centres. Best time is between October and March.
• Write a brief synopsis of “What is space?”
  Second task of the working group was assigned: Every one in attendance will contribute small bits of writing about space. Reija to detail in a future email.
• Yaron: How do we define spaces? Like: mental space, virtual space, etc. 
• A head of the Space Design: Reija was nominated as the head of working  group, verbal vote carried.
• Adjourned

 
Notes taken by Rob Eastman-Mullins                                                                

Addendum: José Luis Ferrara’s notes from the meeting follow below.
 
Some concepts expressed by the participants in their interventions:
- A time before MDF (Medium-density fibreboard) – Explore new materials.
 
- Space-Politics:
   Space is the main subject, you start with a space.
   All the areas eventually come into space.
 
- The qualities of space:
   Sound space
   virtual space
   ....but there is no space without light: light space (as a concept).
 
- The way to communicate space.
 
- The experience designing for a modern dance company: discovering the
   diagonal both in 2D and 3D: a changed vision of the performance space.
 
- The third dimension of space is movement.
 
- India: OISTAT pushing the boundaries Far East – another way of defining space
   Can we work without technology? Going back to the origins of theatre.
 
- Giving a form to space: ..."it is about relations"
   This group she finds overwhelming.....
   "to make space visible to others"
 
- PQ as an example of a city "becoming" a conference:
   performances all over – creating spaces.
 
- What would make this group unique? (That other groups wouldn't do).
 
- Schools moving away from professionals that are active.
 
- space vs. environment.
 
- OISTAT structure: slow, formal...so difficult to do things: as a group we can do things.