DRAGlab - Pop-Up-Labor

As part of his diploma, the communication design and media art student Felix Kalka explores the concepts of "gender, drag and persona" in the form of a pop-up laboratory, offering a free space for self-experience and performance.

From May 1st to August 7th, the publicly accessible but separated lab was to be found in the atriums of the Hochschule für Gestaltung Karlsruhe.

A door provided access to a room surrounded by four walls, which gave visitors the opportunity to self-experiment and invited to experiment and discover in their own privacy. The aim of the DRAGlab was to introduce people to the subject of "drag" through talks and workshops, as well as to facilitate self-awareness through individual appointments.

Anyone interested could make a private appointment through this website and have their own external appearance redesigned. Through the travesty art form of drag, where one can slip into the role of the opposite sex through make-up and disguise, the individual personality is to be researched, changed and expanded on.

The focus of DRAGlab is transformation in the form of self-experiment by drag. What is drag exactly? And what exactly does the transformation process look like? After an appointment is confirmed, the participant visits the DRAGlab at HfG Karlsruhe where they are received by a team. After a brief conversation on the desired transformation, Felix Kalka and his team begin implementation; Make-up is applied and the face is temporarily transformed. The transformation is completed by the right outfit (which you can also bring with you) and wigs. Photos are subsequently taken, some of which are shown on the website or mounted directly in the lab. Alternatively, one could take the pictures home and allowed to remain completely anonymous.