Maud Cassagne has been living in Berlin for 10 years so you could say she has earned her status as 'honorary Berliner.' She most definitely has some of that Berlin 'tude but her native France also comes through strong, in her style and manner. The media have Berlin pegged as the place for the young and creative people of the world to come to, to express their ideas or set up something entirely unique. Maud Cassagne fits this criteria. She is first and foremost an architect. As a freelancer she has worked with some well known names such as Kinzo, Karhard Architecture and Design (responsible for the design behind Berghain and Panorama.) And worked on some major projects such as The Berg, a comical idea set up to give Berlin surroundings mountains to rival the south of Germany. She specialises in interior design, architecture imaging and corporate identity.
Recently, Maud has branched out into night time culture, she has set up a bar-come-gallery space on Torstr 68 in Mitte, called systM. A venue fast becoming the new meeting point for cool locals with late plans. We caught up for an early cocktail before the crowds took over.
Tell us about the concept behind systM?
I had the idea years ago, around 2004, when I was still studying. Originally the concept was a bar within a gallery, or vice versa; a flexible space where the total interior changes every once in a while, presenting designers and artists at the same time. It would have been a complete logistical nightmare for a beginner so I just kept the idea in my head a while. I found the location in December 2008. I started the project but confronted many problems due to German bureaucracy. I won't bore you with the details. The gallery intends to present all kind of disciplines - urban art, graphic, interior, photography and product design...with a common theme - space.
What was the inspiration for systM?
One particular bar that inspired me was Karriere Bar in the meatpacking district of Copenhagen, Denmark. Co-founded by Berlin-based, Danish artist Jeppe Hein in 2007. It's a blend between bar, restaurant, music venue and alternative art gallery. The bar is designed by artists such as Olafur Eliasson, Dan Graham, Ceal floyer, and Jeppe Hein himself. A beautiful place, and the city of Copenhagen was a great inspiration too. Most of my favourite architects or designers are actually Dutch. I went there right before finding the location on Torstrasse. I found the name in the Julian Schnabel movie 'Basquiat'. There's this scene in which Basquiat and Andy Warhol (played by David Bowie) are both in Warhol´s Atelier. Basquiat is scribbling over a painting of Warhol and writes SYST M. Warhol says, “you've destroyed my painting, but I like how you write syst m without the 'e'.” That was it! With special consideration for the 'M' cause my name starts with it, that helped me decide, LOL!
Do you have any big plans for systM's future?
Always! The two last years were amazing and so exciting but at one point there was way too much to manage all by myself as I'm working daytime as an architect, then evenings and weekends at the bar. So, I decided to take two partners on board, Frederike Ruhl and Hanno Bäucker. We´re starting together in January 2011 with a new bar design and lots more ideas in the same location - Torstrasse 68.
Anything exciting in the pipe line you want to tell us about?
The new project with Frederike Ruhl and Hanno Bäucker is called 'Brut'. The re-opening will be Wednesday 19th of January. The next 2 months will be about developing the new concept step by step and fazing systM out. We want to mix our two cultures, French and German with fine wines, beer, traditional German 'abendbrot' mixed up with cultural events, lectures and exhibitions. In January we will host a showroom during Berlin Fashion Week, we will be linking up with Transmediale and CTM for 2011, in April we will be part of the Pictoplasma festival and there is way more to come!
You left your native France to become a Berliner 10 years ago. Why didn't you go to Paris?
I was considering Paris when I moved 10 years ago but decided to go for Berlin. My intuition told me to. I'm quite instinctive and very adventurous. From the moment I thought of Berlin, it rang a bell. It felt pretty clear to me that Berlin was the place. I'd never been before but I just packed my stuff in a sprinter and left.
What other places do you love to hang out at in Berlin?
The list is really long... I like to hang out more in bars than clubs, for sure. I prefer the kind of social experience you get sitting at a counter and I like to vary experience or try new locations. There are many bars in Kreuzberg I like such as Kirk, Das Hotel, Luzia...(she continues to reel them off as I sip my cocktail and it becomes abundantly clear, that this girl really knows where the party is at!)
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