c-base

c-base is a non-profit association and hackerspace based in Berlin, Germany. Its work centers on building knowledge and practical skills in computer software, hardware, data networks, digital culture, and related technical fields. Rather than operating as a conventional commercial brand, c-base functions as a community identity, physical meeting place, event venue, educational platform, and collaborative project environment. The organization was established on 12 August 1995 by 17 founding members, including the initiators Hardy Engwer, known as “cynk,” Marten Suhr, known as “mars,” and Carsten Ussat, known as “nomax.” Its original concept was an “extended living room” for people interested in technology and collaborative experimentation. Over time, the group developed a distinctive fictional framework: the c-base station is imagined as a crashed space station beneath Berlin, with members reconstructing and operating the station as a hackerspace. This narrative gives the venue a recognizable identity while supporting practical community activities. The association’s physical headquarters, commonly called c-base station, provides rooms for meetings, workshops, performances, social gatherings, and technology-oriented events. It has become associated with Berlin’s hacker, open-technology, and digital-culture communities. Other groups and initiatives have used the premises, including the wireless community network project freifunk.net, the Chaos Computer Club, the Berlin Wikipedia community, and organizations connected with Berlin’s media-art scene. Groups whose activities align with c-base’s purpose may use the premises for meetings and events. c-base’s activities extend beyond maintaining a hackerspace. In 2002 and 2003, the association launched the BerlinBackBone project, which promoted free public internet access through wireless community networking. In 2003, it began the Cosmic Open Stage, a recurring music meeting and performance format that offered established and emerging musicians a place to jam or perform. Since 2004, the venue has also been used in cooperation with transmediale, a major Berlin festival and platform for art and digital culture. The association has participated in public festivals and educational events, including activities introducing children and young people to robotics, computer-aided design, and related technologies. The c-base community also supports recreational and social activities such as Go and Jugger, which are incorporated into the group’s playful station mythology. The annual @c-terra event presents or surveys activities associated with the association. c-base has additionally cooperated with conferences and events such as the fourth Wizards of OS conference, held in Berlin in 2006. Its historical significance lies in the combination of an open community workshop, cultural venue, network-technology project, and fictional setting. c-base is regarded as one of the early hackerspaces and is cited as an influence on later hackerspace development, including the creation of organizations such as The Loft in San Diego and Metalab in Vienna. Its continuing relevance comes from its role as an accessible meeting point for technical experimentation, open networks, hacker culture, music, media art, and community education.

c-base was founded in Berlin on 12 August 1995 by 17 members, with Hardy Engwer, Marten Suhr, and Carsten Ussat identified as the principal initiators. The initial idea was to create an extended living room where people could meet, exchange technical knowledge, and work collectively with computers and networks. The association subsequently developed the imaginative premise that its premises represented a crashed space station beneath Berlin. This fictional setting became an important part of the group’s public identity while the underlying organization remained focused on practical education, experimentation, and community infrastructure. The association is structured as a non-profit community rather than a conventional business. Its headquarters, known as c-base station, has served as a hackerspace, event venue, workshop, rehearsal and performance location, and meeting place for groups connected with open technology and digital culture. Its activities have included software, hardware, networking, robotics, computer-aided design, games, music, and media art. c-base has also made its rooms available to other initiatives whose work is compatible with its aims. Examples documented in connection with the venue include freifunk.net, the Chaos Computer Club, the Berlin Wikipedia group, and projects associated with transmediale. A major area of activity emerged in the early 2000s through BerlinBackBone. Launched in 2002 and 2003, the project sought to support free public internet access and wireless community networking. This placed c-base within the broader movement for community-operated communications infrastructure and open access to digital networks. In 2003, c-base introduced the Cosmic Open Stage, a weekly music-oriented meeting. The program provided a platform for concerts, improvisation, and jam sessions, allowing both recognized and less-established musicians to perform. From 2004 onward, the premises were also used in cooperation with transmediale, linking the association more closely with Berlin’s media-art and technology-culture ecosystem. The organization has maintained a broad interpretation of community activity. In addition to technical projects, members have participated in Go and Jugger, with the group’s fictional mythology providing playful explanations for some of these interests. The annual @c-terra event offers a recurring overview of activities associated with the association. c-base has also taken part in public outreach, including festival stands and programs that introduce young people to robotics, computer-aided design, and related subjects. The venue hosted or supported numerous meetings and events, including cooperation with the fourth Wizards of OS conference in September 2006. Its influence has extended beyond Berlin: c-base is described as one of the early hackerspaces and, together with The Loft in San Diego and Metalab in Vienna, is associated with the development of later hackerspace culture in the United States and elsewhere. c-base’s historical importance therefore rests less on a commercial product portfolio than on its institutional model and cultural role. It combines a nonprofit association, a physical laboratory and social space, an open-network initiative, and a fictional narrative that makes technical experimentation approachable and memorable. Its continuing identity is tied to Berlin’s hacker and open-culture communities and to the use of shared premises for education, music, digital art, networking, and collaborative projects.

• 2006

  Wizards of OS 4 cooperation

  [1]C-baseen.wikipedia.org

  c-base cooperated with the fourth Wizards of OS conference in Berlin, held from 14 to 16 September.

• 2004

  Cooperation with transmediale

  [1]C-baseen.wikipedia.org

  The c-base premises began to be used in cooperation with transmediale and related digital-media activities.

• 2003

  Cosmic Open Stage introduced

  [1]C-baseen.wikipedia.org

  The association started weekly music meetings and performances under the Cosmic Open Stage name.

• 2002

  BerlinBackBone project launched

  [1]C-baseen.wikipedia.org

  c-base began work on BerlinBackBone, a project intended to promote free public internet access through wireless community networks.

• 1995

  Association founded

  [1]C-baseen.wikipedia.org

  c-base was founded in Berlin on 12 August by 17 members, with Hardy Engwer, Marten Suhr, and Carsten Ussat among the principal initiators.

A non-commercial, member-oriented Berlin hackerspace and cultural venue combining practical technology education, open-network activism, community events, music, media art, and a science-fiction-inspired identity.

• Hackerspace and community venue · 1995

  c-base station

  The association’s Berlin headquarters is a shared physical environment for technical experimentation, meetings, workshops, cultural events, performances, and community projects. It is presented through the fictional concept of a crashed space station beneath Berlin, which supplies the venue’s visual and narrative identity.

• Community networking project · 2002

  BerlinBackBone

  BerlinBackBone was a c-base project focused on making free public internet access available and encouraging wireless community networks. It represented the association’s involvement in open communications infrastructure rather than a commercial connectivity product.

• Music and performance program · 2003

  Cosmic Open Stage

  A recurring music format established at c-base that offered musicians a setting for concerts, improvisation, and jam sessions. The program was designed to accommodate both established performers and people with less public recognition.

• Community event

  @c-terra

  An annual event organized by c-base that provides an overview of activities associated with the organization, including technical, cultural, recreational, and community-oriented work.

• 2004transmediale venue cooperation

  Berlin · Germany

  c-base opened its premises for cooperation with transmediale and related media-art programming.

  Outcome. The cooperation connected the venue with Berlin’s established digital-art and media-culture network.

  Source
• 2003Cosmic Open Stage

  Berlin · Germany

  A weekly music meeting and performance platform for concerts, improvisation, and jam sessions.

  Outcome. The format broadened c-base’s role from technical hackerspace to interdisciplinary cultural venue.

  Source
• 2002BerlinBackBone

  Berlin · Germany

  A community-networking initiative intended to expand free public internet access through wireless networking.

  Outcome. The project established c-base as a participant in Berlin’s free-network and open-access communications community; a quantified outcome is not documented in the supplied sources.

  Source

• 2003

  Add recurring music programmingOther

  Background

  c-base’s facilities were increasingly being used as a broader cultural meeting point.

  Action taken

  The association introduced the weekly Cosmic Open Stage for musicians, concerts, and jam sessions.

  Aftermath

  The program diversified the venue’s audience and activity profile beyond computing and networking.

  Source

• 2002

  Pursue open wireless networkingStrategy

  Background

  The association expanded its interests from an internal meeting space toward public digital infrastructure.

  Action taken

  c-base launched BerlinBackBone to promote free public internet access through wireless community networks.

  Aftermath

  The initiative strengthened the association’s role in Berlin’s free-network and open-access technology culture.

  Source

• 1995

  Adopt a nonprofit hackerspace and fictional station modelStrategy

  Background

  The founders sought an informal shared environment for technical exchange and collaborative experimentation.

  Action taken

  The group established a non-profit association and developed the c-base station concept as the organizing identity for its premises and activities.

  Aftermath

  The model helped make c-base an early and recognizable hackerspace connected with Berlin’s technology and hacker communities.

  Source

1. 1C-baseen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Official c-base websitec-base.org