Hot on the foot of installing a revolving hotel room at the Guggenheim in New York as part of the group exhibition “theanyspacewhatever,” Belgian artist Carsten Höller has gone and created another immersive art installation that takes its cue from the leisure environment. The Double Club, which opened to the public November 20, brings a fully operational bar, restaurant, and nightclub to central London for a six-month run.

The complex, which was commissioned by the Fondazione Prada, is literally divided between two very distinct cultural influences: the culture of the West and the culture of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the troubled African country that was a Belgian colony until 1964. The nightclub part of the installation has a visible dividing line down the middle of the dance floor; on one side the décor is Congolese, complete with a neon palm tree, while the other half is furnished with the de rigueur leather sofas of the average nightspot in New York, London, or Berlin. In the middle of the room, a D.J. station slowly revolves: When the D.J. faces the Western side of the room, appropriate music plays on the decks. Likewise, when his stand completes its hour-long rotation, visitors will get a taste of Congolese music. It’s the same story at the restaurant, which serves two separate menus, so you can choose between a pricey, deluxe steak entrée or stewed eel. All profits from the enterprise go to a charity working with victims of rape in Congo.

ARTINFO caught up with Höller at the launch of The Double Club to ask him about his experiential installation, his interest in the sub-Saharan country, and the politics of his bifurcated nightclub.

Carsten, I know you’ve visited Congo many times, but why make an artwork out of it?

I’ve been asked “why the Congo?” a lot, but why not? It is an interesting place. For many people the name “Congo” has some sort of trigger function — they just think of the political troubles and the wars. We’re trying to propose looking at it in a different way.

You’re trying to correct this impression?

I’m not some kind of missionary. I just have a fascination, and this is a place where you can gain a flavor of another side to the Congo.

Why a nightclub?

At the beginning it was just a nightclub; then it mutated into something that also included a bar and restaurant. By collaborating with various people, including Jan Kennedy (who partnered in Damien Hirst’s restaurant venture, Pharmacy, in the late 1990s), Maroud Mazouz (of Sketch restaurant and gallery), and the designers Clemens Weisshaar and Reed Kram, we were able to present a logical evening. You can drink, eat, have another drink, and then go off to the discothèque.

I understand that you worked with Congolese advisers on this, so I’d imagine that designing the Congolese side of this complex was the easy part. Was it harder to design the Western half?

It was tricky, because there is no definitive Western culture. But I worked with Kram/Weisshaar, who created the Western tables, bar, and dance floor design.

The Congolese side has a very relaxed atmosphere. In the West, bars and restaurants are sometimes not just about relaxation; they are also places to be seen and be fashionable.

Actually, it is the same in Congo. It’s just that we have a certain way of doing it, and they have another.

Whether right or wrong, when many people hear the name “Congo,” they think of war, dictatorship, and other troubles. Is it problematic that these associations are now being coupled with hip art and a luxury brand like Prada?

I like to think of this as a project of double ignorance, because there is ignorance on the Congolese side about Western culture and ignorance in the West about Congolese culture. I think it is interesting that we have a culture about their culture and they have a culture about our culture. The outcomes are very different.

Do you mean preconceptions?

Yes. We think negatively of their country, while they have created something of a cult of Western fashion. There is a connection between Prada and the Congolese, because they use Prada to make strong statements about themselves as individuals.

So you feel that there is a political edge to the work?

When Joseph Mobutu was president, he changed the name of the country to Zaire and kicked out all the foreigners in an attempt to return to a “pure” Congolese culture. A part of that policy was forcing people to dress traditionally. Ever since, dressing in the Western fashion has had a revolutionary aspect. This work addresses themes like that on many levels.