DENKKOLLEKTIV | Stoffwechsel

DENKKOLLEKTIV (a German neologism meaning "thought collective" or "thinking collective") is a central concept in the epistemology of the Polish microbiologist, physician and philosopher of science Ludwik Fleck (1896-1961):

"If we define a DENKKOLLEKTIV as a community of people who exchange or interact with one another's ideas, then we have in it the carrier of the historical development of a field of thought, a certain body of knowledge and a certain level of culture, and thus a particular thinking style. (...) The complexity of human life manifests itself in the simultaneous coexistence of many different thought collectives and in the mutual influences of these collectives on each other."[1]

The STOFFWECHSEL DENKKOLLEKTIVE focus on a specific topic and take place in the form of laboratories combining practice and theory. They are usually prepared by two participating artists and explored by all participants through texts, theories, materials and practice-oriented physical and perceptual work. Guests from the fields of philosophy, political science, etc. accompany these, or, depending on the topic, contribute theoretical considerations as a lecture in the publication of the results.

[1] Ludwig Fleck, Entstehung und Entwicklung einer wissenschaftlichen Tatsache: Einführung in die Lehre vom Denkstil und Denkkollektiv, Schäfer, Lothar; Schnelle, Thomas (eds.), Frankfurt a. M., 1980 (reprint of the 1st edition from 1935) p 54, p 114