‘Mobile lab’ to study urban issues in Mumbai

The BMW Guggenheim Lab, a global urban thinktank, will set up a ‘mobile laboratory’ in Mumbai from December 9 to January 20.

The BMW Guggenheim Lab, a global urban thinktank, will set up a ‘mobile laboratory’ in Mumbai from December 9 to January 20.

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The programme, initiated by New York’s Guggenheim Museum, was launched in 2011, with the first two ‘labs’ in New York and Berlin. Mumbai is its third destination.

The initiative will include panel discussions, workshops, walks, exhibitions, lectures, film screenings and cultural events highlighting urban issues relating to the lifestyles, cultures and forms of architecture in Mumbai.

“From the beginning, we were keen to travel to a city in Asia. After careful deliberation, we selected Mumbai — a vibrant, diverse and incredibly dense city with a fascinating and complex history,” said David van der Leer, assistant curator for architecture and urban studies at the Guggenheim Museum. “Many urban issues around the world are more intense in Mumbai and for that reason it can offer valuable insights for city dwellers everywhere.”

The lab will operate out of the Bhau Daji Lad museum in Byculla, with events hosted at the museum and at venues across the city, including the Kala Nagar junction in Bandra (East) and Priyadarshini Park at Napean Sea Road.

The theme of the Mumbai project is ME = WE, a look at the rapidly shifting relationship between the individual and community in Mumbai and the impact of this dynamic on urban design and policy issues.

“In a city as dense as Mumbai, it is increasingly important to understand what it takes to live together with limited space,” said David.