Everybody is talking about democracy. Even the worst dictators are trying to hide their bloody reigns by describing them as democratic, while protestors all over the world show that people’s interest in political participation is rising. But what is democracy? Are we talking about the same word and meaning? Is democracy beautiful? or is it an expression of the banal wishes of the masses? What would principles of democratic aesthetics look like or do they already exist?

Why is this project called club désirer?

„A club is an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal.“ – says Wikipedia and goes on:

„Historically, Clubs occurred in all ancient states of which we have detailed knowledge. Once people started living together in larger groups, there was need for people with a common interest to be able to associate despite having no ties of kinship. Organizations of the sort have existed for many years, as evidenced by Ancient Greek clubs and associations in Ancient Rome.“

For the british clubs are quite common institutions (for gentlemen usually to meet) and they do have a tradition going back to the 16th century. Wikipedia goes on about the rest of Europe:

„The earliest clubs on the European continent were of a political nature. These in 1848 were repressed in Austria and Germany, and later clubs of Berlin and Vienna were mere replicas of their English prototypes. In France, where the term cercle is most usual, the first was Le Club Politique (1782), and during the French Revolution such associations proved important political forces (see Jacobins, Feuillants, Cordeliers). Of the purely social clubs in Paris the most notable were the Jockey-Club de Paris (1833), the Cercle de l’Union, the Traveller’s and the Cercle Interallié..“

And désirer?

Well, this club has still wishes, but we are humble enough not to call them utopian ideas. It is a club for members who wish that democracy exists, who think that democracy is beautiful and that people can learn to live together in a democratic way that is truly democratic…