Zeugfärberei is located in the town center of Gutau. As I worked there, I got to know many people of the town as they just comes in and greets. It reminded me of American sitcom shows I sued to watch in 90s, like “friends” and “Seinfeld”. People just walks in the living room and start talking. Often when we are starting our lunch break, someone walks in just as you take your first bite.
The characters of my Zeugfärberei sitcom is as good as “friends”. Three Marias, the “museum guy”, the neighbor boy, Christian the repairer … even the mayor comes by often. And of course the main cast, Janina is a very special one.
Maybe every town has these unique people gathering spot? or Gutau is a special place?
What I was really impressed with this sitcom is how this small community functions. It is not that everyone agrees on same thing and homogeneous. There are differences in positions and preferences of each characters. But here, they talk to each other and deal with (or sometimes challenges) the different opinions instead of staying in ones own bubbles of agreeable people.
More than ten years ago, my friend Zoe who runs fablab in Milan said “we made communities and failed in society”. This was the time when maker community was in spotlight and gathering people with same interest was very much in trend. She said “We used to be a part of society like neighborhood and villages where you had to negotiate with ones who are not like you and who you do not agree with. Now we live in cities and participate in communities of your choice.”
Today, we are even more going into this small bubbles of one’s alike and stay comfortable within. When I saw Janina confronting with one of the guests who made anti-immigrants comment when having a coffee break at Zeugfärberei, I felt people here are still not turning away from the society.
In my next project, I should make a Zeugfärberei sitcom.