Background
Sustainability, innovation, knowledge competitive economy, clean and safe environment and attractivity are often occurring themes in the re-branding of city regions today. This is also the case in Stockholm, Sweden, where an extensive work with a new Regional Development Plan for the Stockholm Region, RUFS 2010, is in progress. The process involves officials, politicians, business interests, NGOs and other regional stakeholders.

The pronounced ambition for RUFS 2010 is to create “The most attractive urban region in Europe”. The Stockholm Region is located relatively far from the European center, but yet distinctly identifies itself with the European norm, seeking to compete with other metropolitan areas in order to reach a position on the global market – attractive to visitors, foreign investors and the so-called creative class. This easily gets us into questioning: What do we mean with an attractive society?

The platform was situated in Huddinge south of Stockholm, where a 3-room apartment was transformed into a ”black box” – i.e. a flight data recorder, or the performative space of a theatre. During thirty days in September more than 200 leading politicians and regional stakeholders were invited to the apartment for discussions and workshops elaborating the final plan.
The flat was painted black from floor to ceiling. Three different workshops were held and white markers distributed. In the beginning the surfaces were empty, unwritten, but during the process the walls were covered with notes and signs. The apartment became a scene for performative action, and at the same time the immaterial ideological production was left as traces on the interior surface.