La Datcha is a project space and Schrebergarten located in Volkspark Rehberge (Wedding) coordinated by Canadian artist Jessica Groome. Since 2018, the garden offers a place to establish roots and to cross-pollinate beyond the conventions of a typical gallery setting. Operating on the fringes of the city, La Datcha has relied on word of mouth and close connections to persist. Despite a lengthy dormancy due to the pandemic, the garden has continued to grow, quietly within itself, experiencing a restorative night’s sleep.

What darkness grows a garden? What dreams are held by the unknown?

This summer, La Datcha’s programming grapples with the difficult proposition of hope and celebration amidst times of uncertainty. For the 2022 Project Space Festival, La Datcha will present The Future is Dark...I Think, a collaborative exhibition featuring Maggie Groat, Ella Dawn McGough and Jessica Groome. Stemming from years of virtual conversation coinciding with each solstice and equinox, their work scores time to the beat of Earth’s seasonal metronome: across time zones, space, interruption, postponement, and global crises.