About
Bratislava has long lacked grassroots, non-commercial political spaces. This is no coincidence. In Central and Eastern Europe, the tradition of autonomous social centres is weak. Moreover, Bratislava's activist scene never reached the critical mass needed to sustain such a space over the long term. One exception was the anti-authoritarian infoshop Info@Police at Zlaté piesky, which opened in autumn 2006. It housed a library and reading room focused on anarchist and other radical literature, but survived for little more than a year. The activities of various organisations and informal groups — lectures, discussions, screenings, workshops, organising meetings — were left dependent on increasingly hard-to-access rentals in clubs, cafés, and cultural centres.
The need for a new independent space became even more urgent in recent years, as reactionary currents in society have grown stronger and emancipatory ideas and movements have retreated. The terrorist attack on Tepláreň in autumn 2022 brought together members of several collectives and individuals with diverse concerns — queer liberation, the climate crisis, workers' struggles — and revived the idea of founding an independent centre. The project also built on shared experiences, especially the urban action camp in Bratislava in 2021, which demonstrated how important it is to have a stable base for organising, education, logistics, safety, and care.
In early 2023, the decision was made to secure a shared space meeting three conditions. First, it should be funded from below, independently of the state, grants, corporate sponsors, and philanthropists — the goal was not to generate profit, but to create a base for activities that foster solidarity and reject oppression. Second, the space should be managed collectively, so that no individual controls decisions about its use, operations, or direction. Finally, from a practical standpoint, the space needed to be large enough, well located, and economically viable.
How kpBUNT came to be
The premises of the former Ludvik patisserie on Jungmannova Street in Petržalka, which we took over on a lease, required extensive renovation. We carried it out largely with our own hands, though we could not have managed without the help of a wider circle of people who worked without pay. A crowdfunding campaign contributed significantly to covering the costs.
kpBUNT opened in autumn 2024, after roughly a year of construction and fitting out. The name references the word bunt, which in several Slavic languages means rebellion, while its roots lie in the German Bund (union, alliance).
What happens at kpBUNT
The space is used for organising, education, and practical activities. Regular formats include reading groups, film screenings, boxing training, gaming afternoons combined with community evenings, a queer club, and knitting and crocheting sessions. The space also hosts meetings and organising gatherings of the participating collectives. The programme is complemented by occasional thematic events prepared in collaboration with other collectives and invited guests.
kpBUNT is also home to the Ivan "Ičo" Stodola Library, with around a thousand titles focused on social criticism, radical politics, and social movements.
Values and principles of kpBUNT
kpBUNT is not a neutral platform or a space that can be filled with any content. We want to give room to activities that align with our positions. The members of the kpBUNT collective are united by values that can be summed up as resistance to all forms of oppression, domination, and exploitation. We proceed from the conviction that social problems have systemic causes. We therefore want to support activities that work towards emancipation and social change. We do not understand liberation from oppression as something that can simply be delivered to people "from above" or "from outside," but as the collective struggle of the oppressed.
We strive for these values to be reflected in how the collective that manages the space operates, and in the day-to-day running of kpBUNT.