the_five_modules
A PEM Day organised on the basis of five modules adapted to the needs of each PEM candidate:
1 entertainment (e.g. an exhibition, a movie or a concert)
2 a favourite meal
3 a special atmosphere
4 something new that the candidate may have wanted to do for a long time
5 a link to a personal memory (e.g. from the candidate's childhood or youth)
No more than two modules may be combined

For several years the Munich artist Angela Dorrer has been investigating various forms of networking and interpersonal relations. She examines how we establish and present communities. By seemingly absurd means she creates opportunities and gives instructions for organising parties and for interactions between two people. For Messestadt she has devised PEM ('Personal_Event_Management'), a set of guidelines and instructions for a 'Messestadt ritual'. The basic idea is that someone can 'manage' a day in the life of a person of his or her choice. With the help of some rules and suggestions, including the five modules listed above, and an 'activity suitcase', Dorrer promotes new ways of enriching a friendship. After discussions with several groups of Messestadt residents she designed and made a number of individual PEM cases and handed them over to participants. Each case contains a Polaroid camera, a city guide, a box of utensils and instructions for PEM Day. One item from each of these days is to be preserved in Messestadt with the aim of strengthening the suburb's sense of community. Residents who wish to escape their daily routine for one day and would like to help someone they know spend a day just as that person wishes should contact the Kofferkomitee (case committee) to receive the necessary kit. According to Dorrer, 'time spent living intensively and free of care, time spent doing what you always wanted to do, is a precious commodity that is becoming ever more scarce'. She therefore challenges the residents of Messestadt to 'give someone a day'. www.pemdays.de

the_path_to a_successful_pem day
1. Select your PEM candidate. Contact this person, identify yourself as his or her PEM manager and fix a date for PEM Day.
2. Acquire information about your PEM candidate. a) Find out what their interests are: What do they like? What is their favourite food? What kind of atmosphere do they find agreeable? What are their long-held wishes? b) Make notes on the PEM pad. c) You may ask third persons but never tell them your ideas.
3. Devise a coherent strategy using the city guide, the city map and the PEM pad. a) First impressions are often crucial, so make sure of a good start, e.g. by visiting a particularly nice café. b) Take into account the well-being of your candidate: when might he or she become hungry or need a break? c) Find out how far you will need to travel and choose the most attractive routes. d) Be sure to check opening times. e) Refer again to the five modules before putting your plan in writing.
4. PEM Day. a) Confirm the date and meeting place a few days before PEM Day. b) Arrive punctually, rested, in a good mood and with the full PEM case. c) Record the day in a picture made by yourself and the candidate. You will find sheets of PEM paper, a Polaroid camera and other utensils for this purpose in the PEM box. Angela Dorrer hopes you enjoy PEM. And remember: good PEM managers never divulge their plans!

Summer 2001