The TADA Manifesto
The Old Taichung Brewery is a controversial six hectare site in the centre of the city of Taichung, Taiwan. The government has earmarked it as the site for the new Taiwan Art Design and Architecture (TADA) Centre.
In an era of economic uncertainty in Taiwan, the programming of an institution to propel Taiwan into the global cultural economy, while maintaining responsiveness and flexibility to local demands and context, is a key concern of the involved parties. Without creating a fixed spatial or infrastructural plan, it is imperative to develop a system for enabling numerous people to collectively develop a vision and methodology for action for the ongoing development of the centre.
At the AR2005 Workshop in Taichung we developed the TADA Manifesto, a document containing 99 so-called guidelines for the design of programmes for the TADA site.
Rather than proposing a fixed programme, the manifesto is an evocative collection of interrelated yet ambiguous statements and images that can be used individually or collectively to stimulate ideas for the site.
The manifesto contains 99 statements, however an important clause maintains that any statement can be modified, and new statements can be added, with only one rule that none can be deleted. Thus it is intended as a participatory document that is developed by all interested parties to be used as a means for communication and generation of new ideas for the programme of the TADA site.
Introduction
The TADA Manifesto is a programmatic outline for the TADA site. It recognizes the unique opportunity for Taichung to open the TADA site to all for creative and playful activities. This manifesto is aimed at the users of the site, it architects and its owners.
The TADA Manifesto lays out 99 principles. They are the edges of the dice, rules of the game, clues to stories, trails to creation. The principles do not constrain the freedom of the actors; they stimulate imagination.
The manifesto proposes an alphabet that can be used to invent the site over again. It is a device for generating an endless number of situations. It is a multiplier of chance and a freedom machine. The Manifesto projects TADA beyond the site. It expresses the universal spirit of TADA. A protector of the singular. An oasis for nomads. A starting point to new journeys. TADA is love between multiple partners. It is promiscuous and joyous, like a Brazilian carnival. TADA creates because it dares. It dares to be alive. TADA is a deep laugh. |
