Children’s and Youth Centre Zilleklub

Gott Miau Miau Avatar Mutter (God Meow Meow Avatar Mother) is a site-specific intervention in which pencil drawings by over 200 people were transferred onto the surfaces of the Zilleklub using a hand-held engraving machine, thereby becoming permanently inscribed into the building’s architecture. They are not only to be found on the walls, but are also hidden in windows, floors and various corners of the building. The resulting archive of drawings offers an insight into contemporary local stories and the realities of life. In doing so, Jelena Fužinato deliberately refrains from making judgements, categorisations or establishing hierarchical orders within the collection. Using the frottage technique (rubbing the engravings with paper and a pencil or ballpoint pen), visitors can make selected drawings visible again, repeatedly reassemble them into new stories, reproduce them and take them home.

The artist
Jelena Fužinato works at the intersection of drawing, spatial installation and participatory practice. Negotiation lies at the heart of her work – both as a method and as a theme – and she explores how rules, laws and power structures give rise to social norms, and how artistic practice can question and transform them. Fužinato studied in Belgrade, Berlin and Helsinki and works as a lecturer at various institutions.

The Zilleklub is a leisure centre for children and young people, featuring an attached theatre, a family centre and a youth advice centre. From after school until early evening, there are a wide range of leisure and play activities here for children aged 6–12 (children’s section) and young people aged 12–21 (youth section): a playground for games, running about and sport on the premises. There is also ongoing learning support, school-leaving and exam preparation, as well as gender-specific activities. Throughout the year, there are a variety of group activities for the different age groups. There is close cooperation with the Moabit-Ost Family Centre and the sos.mitte Youth Advice Centre, including a homework programme, football and Theatre 28.