Name of the space
Temporary spaces Trienal de Luanda

on the concept
A precise strategy of the Triennial of Luanda was the occupation and recuperation of vacant spaces, in buildings that were considered patrimonio (“heritage”). But the State had to participate with minimal costs: for the first Triennial, for example, through the minister of telecommunications, some rooms of the post office were given to the Triennial under the deal of restoring the spaces and returning them to the official owner after the event.
The Triennial of Luanda looked for vacant spaces and found 3’000 squared metres: the Globo hotel, the Correios de Angola, Vivenda, the Armazen, the Baleizão. They were old buildings from different periods. After two years they were given back in a perfect state after restoring them.

on the spaces / location
All the spaces of the different editions of the Triennial were located in the city center and were freely accessible during the Triennial period.

level of significance
The idea was starting a process, a mechanism in order to create a space to be filled in. “When we live in chaos we become used to it, we know how to handle it and then when we find places under control it is easier for us” (Alvim, 2013). Similarly, Simon Njami argues that the spaces used by the Triennial were by no means chosen for any specific deep meaning connected to the place itself, but he highlights the effects that using institutional spaces like a bank or a post office have produced on the general public.
“The spaces used by the Triennial, after that event became part of everyday life again, but the important aspect is the effect they produced when people could enter the bank and find an exhibition. Even the most institutional and hard spaces could become something else, could be open to culture” (Njami 2012).
Moreover, the anonymous character given to those spaces is reinforced by their set up that follows the same rules: white and gray paint on the walls and floors in order to create a neutral box.