Since its start in 2010, Timelab works with artists in residency combined with a local makers lab community. Velocity, distance, culture, tempo, practice, language, motivation and goal-orientation were tensions brought to the surface over the past 7 years. These tensions were the driver to set up a recurrent reflection with affiliated artists.  

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Issue of ownership, livelihood, art institution and production topics for discussions. What would art as a commons look like today? What would be the effect on the individual, the network, the value system and the institution?

Despite the complex exercise, within these moments of reflection the roots of a new approach are taking hold. Inspired by the work of Michel Bauwens in Gent in 2017, a group of artists started a trajectory of reflection about what the residency could be within the commons and how this could be brought into practice in Timelab and elsewhere. A guiding principle that we would later describe as the contributive logic became the roots of a new perspective.

Every year, a sprint reflects on the past year of the organization and defines questions and issues to be addressed in the future work. It is organized in a collective way by the group of affiliated artists. Besides the in-depth debates, participants to this Sprint sessions produce transferable knowledge and tools for Timelab and partner organisations dealing with the same issues on how to make our research and residency places more sustainable?