Internationalization of the Design Sector – 13 projects selected

general impression

The Internationalization of the Design Sector Grant Scheme is open to projects from the three fields of work that the Fund represents – design, architecture and digital culture – and to projects that additionally can take place worldwide. As a result, the diversity of proposals is usually high. This round supports several projects aimed at expanding and strengthening international networks, promoting knowledge sharing or building bridges to other sectors such as the food industry or politics. The projects are diverse in form, and include public programmes, workshops, a knowledge centre or exhibitions. In many projects, social issues are the starting point, for instance issues of accessibility and inclusion, climate adaptation and humanitarian aid. The following projects are examples of this:

My Summer at Sea – Studio Céline Hurka
My Summer at Sea is a project by Adrian Pourviseh, Moritz Schottmüller and Céline Hurka. The project partners want to provide insight into Pourviseh’s humanitarian work on the Sea-Watch 3, the German-flagged ship carrying out rescue operations in the Mediterranean. The reason for this is that, according to the project partners, European migration politics has been mentioned less often in the news recently and European politics is becoming increasingly hostile to people migrating from the global south. They will investigate how different forms of storytelling, such as illustration, curation and typography, can be utilized to question European migration politics. How can different narrative forms contribute to raising awareness about European migration politics? During the process, the project partners will engage with humanitarian workers involved in other rescue missions. The result of the project is an exhibition featuring a comic book by Adrian Pourviseh, published by Avant Verlag in 2023. Céline Hurka will develop a variable font for the exhibition based on Adrian’s handwriting.

Architecture of Peace Expert Centre – Stichting Archis
Think tank and publisher Archis argues that, since the outbreak of war in Ukraine, there is an urgent need for a place where knowledge about post-war reconstruction can be brought together and made accessible. The Expert Centre for Architecture of Peace will collect good examples from other countries, tools for regulatory measures and dos and don’ts. To achieve a good set-up, several elements are being explored: a library, a research centre, various educational programmes, exhibitions, an extensive network and partnerships with a variety of international organizations. All these elements will be discussed with experts and will reach a final format. A key partner in the project is Ro3kvit, a group of about 45 architects, urban designers, ecologists, sociologists and conflict experts (mainly from Ukraine), who collaborate in working groups on design proposals, research studies, data collection and capacity building. The intended outcome of the study is a tangible project and budget plan covering the main aspects: finances, partners, organizational form, reach and concepts for different outcomes.

OtherNetwork – TF Martelli
OtherNetwork is an experiment in creating a new type of cultural institution. Through its digital infrastructure, it connects independent art spaces worldwide. The core of the project is a database consisting of hundreds of projects managed by network participants. The projects are strongly rooted in their local context and respond directly to the needs of makers, designers and artists. OtherNetwork is a joint effort between Cookies and ifa that started setting up the online platform 18 months ago. Since its inception, the project has depended on local partners responsible for research in cities such as Kinshasa, Johannesburg, Accra and Nairobi. The grant application aims to extend its reach and network to South America, with a focus on São Paulo, Bogotá and Santiago. The grant will be utilized to support all research aspects of the OtherNetwork platform in 2023. Although OtherNetwork’s main outcome is an online platform, physical space and community building are central to its mission. Activities to connect members of the artistic community will take place in locations to be confirmed during the first research period in consultation with partners in São Paulo, Bogotá and Santiago. These activities are likely to take place in summer 2023.

Click here for all the selected projects in Internationalization of the Design Sector Grant Scheme in 2022.

numbers

Of the 35 subsidy applications taken into consideration, 13 are receiving grants. This brings the percentage of applications receiving grants in this round to 37%. The available budget of € 250,000 for this round was not sufficient to award a grant to all positively assessed applications. As a result, the advisory committee had to prioritize. The procedure used is described in the Internationalization of the Design Sector Grant Scheme. Two projects were awarded a lower amount than applied for, and a third project was unfortunately excluded completely. In 2023, the Internationalization of the Design Sector Grant Scheme will have two rounds. The deadlines for applications are 14 February 2023 and 4 October 2023.