Kabinett Gallery is a collection of project spaces in public space in Berlin. Each space is created from an abandoned and disused bubble gum dispenser which has been restored and transformed into a “gallery” for contemporary art.
MAP OF ACTIVE LOCATIONS
Combining street art, restoration, and adaptive reuse, Kabinett is a reclamation of abandoned space within the preexisting urban fabric. The project began in October 2023, when a disused Transport for London bus inspector’s kiosk in Camberwell was revived and transformed into an exhibition space. One year later, in October 2024, Kabinett expanded to Berlin.
Abandoned and overlooked architectures are restored and reimagined as sites for artistic exchange, offering artists a platform to exhibit their work and audiences a chance to encounter art in the flow of everyday life.
In Berlin, the Kabinett spaces inhabit repurposed metal dispensers — former vending machines for gumballs, toys, and candy — transformed into intimate showcases for contemporary art.
The project is also a cultural intervention that seeks to promote community development. Rotating installations play off the tradition of the Kunstkabinett, or cabinet of curiosities. Literally translated to “culture room,” and also known as a Kunstkammer, these tiny, curated spaces contain encyclopedic collections of art, artefacts, and images.
Because the abandoned kiosks are contained yet unguarded, the Kabinett merges the intimacy and intentionality of institutional exhibitions with the immediacy and spontaneity of street art. It is where the white cube meets al fresco in busy civic space.
The project advocates for the dissemination of art for all, breathing new life into forgotten architectures, overlooked street corners, and disused fragments of the city. In an environment where access is shrinking and spaces for artists are increasingly commodified, gatekept, and out of reach, Kabinett asserts something radical in its simplicity: that space is there, has always been there, and belongs to the public.
