1. INTRODUCTION
For the first two years of the Startup
to help emerging cultural centres
Support Programme, we were guided
at the European borders towards a
through crumbling army barracks,
sustainable future – and towards a full
two refurnished factory buildings,
membership of our vibrant network.
two dilapidated cinema halls, a neglected apartment building with
We are the mentors: four people
a large courtyard and rooftop terrace.
who know what it is to start, run
For the next two years, during the
and consolidate spaces like these.
pandemic, we enjoyed digital tours
Chris Keulemans (Amsterdam)
around a former prayer house with a
has been there throughout the four
demolished ground floor, the ruins of a
years of the SUSP. In the Balkans,
concert hall, a deserted primary school,
he was joined by Irena Boljunčić
a renovated power plant, a historical
Gracin (Pula, Croatia). In Eastern
building hiding its exhibition space
Europe, by Mykhailo Glubokyi
behind locked doors, a storage hall
(Donetsk and Kyiv, Ukraine).
turned into a bookshop-café and an
And in Southern Europe,
empty newspaper kiosk serving as a
by Ada Arduini (Verona, Italy).
contemporary art gallery.
Together, we have written this story.
All of these buildings are being
This publication is a summary of the
transformed into independent
discoveries we made and the lessons
cultural and social centres by crews
we learned. It zooms in on the main
of young, smart and fearless people
challenges along the way, highlighting
who are looking for international
the centres we visited.
connections and knowledge. The kind of connections and knowledge
Above all, we hope it will serve as a
that Trans Europe Halles is eager to
guide for other smart and fearless
share. That’s why we are running the
people in these parts of Europe who
Startup Support Programme (SUSP):
want to create their own centres.
“THE STARTUP SUPPORT PROGRAMME HAS OPENED THE DOOR TO A WORLD OF LIKE-MINDED PEOPLE. OUR KIND OF PEOPLE. DOING THE SAME THING, ESTABLISHING OPEN SPACES FOR SELF-EXPRESSION ALL ACROSS EUROPE.” — NATASSA DOURIDA, COMMUNITISM, ATHENS
6 SMART AND FEARLESS ― INTRODUCTION
