From November 22 to 23, 2024, as a part of the 2nd City for Humanity Season, the marathon roundtable forum was held at ARCH SPACE on the mountaintop plaza of Luzhen, Chengdu, under the theme “Inventing Life.” The event featured five marathon roundtable discussions. AP was responsible for designing the set for this project.

During the research phase of the project, AP discovered that ancient forums, both in China and abroad, were often synonymous with lecture halls, emphasizing the delivery of ideas from speakers to an audience. Architecturally, these spaces—ranging from Confucius’s Apricot Platform in China to the plazas of ancient Greece and the semi-circular theaters of ancient Rome—were characterized by striking scenes and forms.

In crafting the spatial experience, AP introduced the concept of a “forum theater.” This concept positions everyone in the forum as both participants and performers, blurring the lines between audience and speaker/actor. To embody this fluid dynamic, AP conceptualized using a table as the central linking element of the space. In a meeting or conversation, a table serves as a tangible connection between participants. Inspired by this idea, AP designed a “Long Table for Dialogue” that extends from the main stage into the audience area, encouraging the flow and exchange of thoughts and creativity throughout the space.

2024年11月22日至23日，第二届三联人文城市季在成都麓镇山顶广场ARCH SPACE以“发明生活”为主题举办了5场马拉松圆桌并发布了《人文城市光谱词典：城市的100个怎么办》。活络主持设计了此次项目的空间场景营造。

在此次项目的研究阶段，活络发现中外古代的论坛有讲堂之意，强调演讲者对观众的输出；在形式上无论中国的孔子杏台，还是古希腊的广场或古罗马的半圆剧场，都具有令人印象深刻的场景与造型。

在场景营造的过程中，活络引入“论坛剧场”的概念。在这个概念下，论坛中的所有人都是参与者，也是表演者，观众和讲者/演员的关系是流动的。为了使所有人都能感受到这种流动性，活络想到了用桌子来串联整个空间。在一场会议或是一次交谈中，桌子作为一种实体链接着对话者，由此我们想在此次论坛中创造一张“对话的长桌”，从主演讲台延伸到观众区，激发思想和创造力在空间中流动、传递。