© 2020 – 2022. 2chairs artspace
28 – 30 June 2024
Jewellery box with
city's secrets
48Stunden Neukölln Festival
DirectNetworkStudio
Lenaustrasse 5, 12047 Berlin
Jewellery box with city's secrets

Like a cut diamond, urban silence reflects the multifaceted realities of city life, echoing existential dilemmas of purpose, freedom, and solitude. This recalls Sartre's concept of individual responsibility within the vast expanse of existence. Upon lifting the lid of this intricate jewellery box, you are immediately drawn into its depths. The tangible spatial dimension captivates you with a diversity of unexpected hidden spots in the urban landscape, acting as a prelude to the dance of time.


Inside this ornate box, time waltzes both graceful and agonising, revealing treasures of forgotten catastrophes, erased communities, traditions lost to the sands of time, unsolved crimes and enigmas, and whispered horrors from both ancient and recent epochs. Delving deeper, the luminous glow of personal tales comes forth. In every heartbeat, in every shadow, stories shimmer — dreams wrapped in whispers, solitary battles, moments of silent reflection, each tale an existential journey of personal meaning and confrontation with one's essence.


These intimate tales, strung together like delicate chains, infuse the city with more than just structure — they breathe life, spirit, and soul. And when these gems unite, they sculpt a radiant and profound societal narrative. Here, the postmodern pulse is palpable. The city, in its sprawling complexity, doesn't offer a monolithic truth. Beneath the city's bustling facade, in the quieter corners, vibrant subcultures and communities thrive, often unseen, like underground music or art scenes. This collective, decentralised heartbeat of the city, though often muted, resonates powerfully, becoming a testimony to both the unity and the multiplicity inherent in urban life. It champions fragmented stories, decentralised voices, and subverted norms, all of which challenge traditional grand narratives — a cityscape echoing Derrida's concept of “differance", where meaning is constantly deferred, shifted, and reinterpreted.


This collective cadence, though often muted, resonates, echoing unity, challenges, and the very essence of community. In silence, there are treasures for everyone to be found. You are cordially invited to sift through this jewellery box, unearthing the city’s secrets and enriching your own tapestry of experiences in a world that thrives on both existential quests and postmodern multiplicities.

How it was
Meet 2chairs artists
  • Camila Piana
    a Peruvian artist, currently lives and works in Berlin, educated primarily as an Industrial Engineer. Today she obsessively draws circles and tells stories in an imaginary language strictly composed by using data.
  • Jingwen Yao
    is a Chinese visual artist with 10 years of experience as a product designer, living in Europe since 2012, now based in Berlin. In her art, she addresses pressing social issues such as environmental crises and gender challenges.
  • Josephine Riemann
    lives and works between Berlin and Wien. After more than 20 years of working at school, she fully devoted herself to artistic practice. Mostly she makes objects and installations related to everyday life.
  • Sarah Schultz
    was born in Berlin and has diverse education: photography, computer graphics, fine arts, religion and philosophy. She has various teaching assignments in the field of fine arts in Brandenburg.
  • Stefano Loiacono
    born in Italy, obtained a Master's Degree in Psychology, currently based in Berlin. Inspired by murals, graffiti, mosaics and stained glass windows, he combines colours into an aggregation of organic shapes.