Open Call Building talent 2023 – for starting makers and designers

With Building Talent, the Fund wants to stimulate the exchange of ideas and knowledge between experienced and starting designers/makers within the creative industry. In this way, the Fund also wants to strengthen the connection that starters have with the professional field.

A collaboration project offers starting designers/makers the possibility to collaborate on a current issue and design challenge, to obtain new knowledge and skills and to expand their personal networks. To establish the collaborations, the Fund is launching two open calls. In the first call, experienced design practices are selected. Through the second call, these design practices are paired with starting designers/makers.

This open call is intended for starting designers and makers, who are located in the Netherlands and have four years’ work experience at most within the disciplines of design, architecture and/or digital culture. You do not have to have completed a relevant design course, you can also have developed yourself professionally in practice, without having completed a relevant design course.

In this second open call, starting designers and makers can give a focused response to one of the 18 proposals. We encourage interdisciplinary collaborations, meaning that you can consider responding to a design challenge from another discipline, if the theme is relevant and if you think you can contribute to it given your perspective, expertise and way of working.

You can apply for one of the following profiles, listed in no particular order:
- Sanne van de Goor – Pattern of Thoughts
- De Onkruidenier – Future Gardening
- Team Thursday – Variable type for places and spaces
- Coded Club – Coded Game Box Education
- Maatschap Observatorium – Damsterdiepte 2030
- Kairos Furniture – Duurzame transportverpakking
- House of Thol – Made in Holland?
- lab03 architectuur en ruimtelijke vormgeving – Multi-storey bio-based construction
- Simon van der Linden (Monobanda) – You Beat Ai
- Envisions – Archive / Collection
- Cocosmos – Buurtberaad: inclusive participation today
- Prinsen.Studio – Design Conductor
- Bas Kosters Studio – Digital craft experience
- buroBELÉN – Dwelling
- Hellen van Rees – Restart Materials
- Summum – Supply and Demand! Circular designing based on given stock?
- Fillip Studios – Aera Fabrica & Auxetic Architecture
- Kukka – Blended Fibers

Read more about the practices and assignments here.

The collaboration is a part-time four-month work period and can be started from February 2024. Please note that start dates may vary and are specified in the profile. The Fund expects both the starter and the experienced party to commit to the project on a weekly basis, so that constructive and substantial research can be started up or experiments can be carried out. Prior to the collaboration, the parties have to draw up a joint collaboration agreement and plan of action.

The advisory committee pairs both parties in the selection process based on the starter's profile and motivation, and relevance to the selected proposal. An introductory meeting will follow in early December to flesh out the cooperation.

In order to prepare the application, it is important to acquire the right information based on the following documents:

Open Call Building talent
Applications are assessed on the basis of the Open Call Building talent for starting makers and designers 2023, which describes the reason and objective, perspectives, phasing, criteria and procedures.

Open Call Grant Scheme
Applications are assessed on the basis of the Open Call Grant Scheme, which describes the general conditions, grounds for rejection, manner of publication, submission procedure, assessment, the award and any grant obligations.

Grant applications will be submitted to at least three external independent advisers for assessment. This committee assesses the plans based on the following three criteria:

- The way the design challenge is approached;
- The quality of the designer’s work;
- The design challenge’s relevance to the personal developmental potential.

acceptance
When you have submitted your application, the Fund Desk will check if your application complies with the formal requirements of the Open Call Grant Scheme.

assessment
An independent advisory committee will assess your application on the basis of the Open Call Grant Scheme and the Open Call Building talent for starting makers and designers 2023. The committee advises the Fund’s Board.

decision
The Board takes account of the committee’s advice in its decision on the rejection or provision of the grant. You will be notified about the result in a decision.

accountability
If you receive a grant from the Fund, then you will have to comply with the obligations. Two weeks before the conclusion of your project, you will be asked by email to submit your accountability form in the application environment.

Open Call Building talent for starting makers and designers 2023
Open Call Grant Scheme