Manifesta 16 Ruhr: This is not a church

When the Ruhr Area invited Manifesta to develop its sixteenth edition, the focus was not on an exhibition theme, but rather on a societal transformation quietly unfolding across Germany and much of Europe: the gradual disappearance of churches as central institutions in neighbourhood life. In collaboration with architect and urbanist Josep Bohigas and a network of researchers, institutions, and community leaders, Manifesta began an extensive pre-biennial research project to examine the relationship between churches and their surrounding neighbourhoods. Hundreds of sites were visited and mapped. Citizen consultations and expectation workshops invited residents to reflect on the kinds of shared spaces they and their communities need today. This publication presents the Urban Vision that emerged from this research. Rather than offering a fixed architectural blueprint, the ‘vision’ proposes a framework for rethinking churches as neighbourhood infrastructures for the twenty-first century. It explores how these buildings might once again become spaces for encounter, dialogue, and care while acknowledging their complex histories and sensitivities.