The semester programme explored performance-led design as an urgent opportunity to re-imagine the future of our high streets as diverse communal and social centres. Over the semester, students staged a series of installations along Kaiserstraße to ask how we can fill the void at the heart of our towns and cities today. Considering the city as a stage, the studio was organised into three Acts, each building upon one another:

Act I (The Life and Death of Kaiserstraße) The students created a catalogue analysing the abandoned spaces along Kaiserstrasse, revealing the street itself to be a void.

Act II (Filling the Void) Collage was used as a tool to create accidental moments. Participatory design projects engaged the community and tested spaces along Kaiserstrasse.

Act III (The Finale and the Beginning) brought together members of the community over a day-long performance. A series of installations (Ghost Town, Synthes!zer, Unframe, Unadvertised, Sensory Garden, Patchworkshop) evolved over the course of the day to encourage different activities. The Architekturschaufenster have adopted these installations, providing an afterlife for the project.

The semester was complementeda by a series of seminars, workshops, guest lectures, and a trip to London.