Social Perspectives on Architecture and Design

Residence program and platform in the borderland of architecture, design and the visual arts

NIFCA is looking for practitioners in architecture, design and the visual arts, interested in the relation of architecture and design to society. The program is concerned with work that from a practical perspective deals with questions, such as, production methods, material, aesthetic, as well as different social and political connotations of architecture and design.

Residencies of 1-2 months are available during April-September 2006 in Copenhagen/Christiania, Helsinki, Oslo, Reykjavik, Stockholm. The residencies are connected to local contact persons and partners working with a social perspective on architecture and design.

In structure, the residency project is similar to a workshop. Participants are given time, space and the opportunity to work with contributions, addressing how architecture and design can play a clearer role as an intellectual medium. The residencies at each location are connected to specific contexts and contact persons. The experiences will be discussed during a seminar and presented in print. Participants from the residency program, as well as other professionals will contribute to this public occasion for networking. The process will document and promote information about networks, participants, activities, and practical work within the field. Moreover, the process will serve as input in a much neglected area of debate. The aim of the project is to create a Nordic platform for architecture and design that addresses its social and societal contexts.

The Meaning in What We Do by Markus Degerman
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Social Perspectives on Architecture and Design is initiated by NIFCA and developed in collaboration with artist and curator Markus Degerman.

Image (top of page): Guðfinna Mjöll Magnúsdóttir

Residency Hosts:

The residencies are connected to local contact persons and partners working with a social perspective on architecture and design.

Please see below, for more information on opportunities at each location and possible specifications regarding the time of the residency.

DK – Denmark, Copenhagen
Fabrikken for Kunst og Design
Local contact person: Thomas Poulssen/Social Design, Copenhagen
Residency time: 1 month during May-June 2006

DK - Denmark, Copenhagen/Christiania
Christiania Researcher in Residence
Residency time: 1 month during April-September 2006

FI – Finland, Helsinki
NIFCA, Nordic Institute for Contemporary Art
Local contact person: Tuomas Toivonen, Helsinki
Residency time: 1-2 months during August-September 2006

IS – Iceland, Reykjavik
SIM Residency -- www.sim.is
Local contact person: Guðfinna Mjöll Magnúsdóttir, Reykjavik
Residency time: 1-2 months during August-September 2006

NO – Norway, Oslo
Local contact partner: ROM for Kunst & Arkitektur
Residency time: 1-2 months during August-September 2006

SE – Sweden, Stockholm
Malongen
Local contact partner: Uglycute, Stockholm
Residency time: 1-2 months during August-September 2006

How to Apply

All professionals practitioners in architecture, design and the visual arts, who are interested in the relation of architecture and design to society, and are based in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the autonomous territories Faroe Islands, Greenland, Åland Islands are eligible to apply.

The only restrictions is:
You should have a completed education by the application deadline (i.e. students may not apply).

The application deadline was Sunday 19 March 2006

APPLICATION FORM Social Perspectives on Architecture and Design 2006
(on-line form no longer available after 19 March 2006)

All on-line applications accepted, which have been submitted by Sunday 19 March 2006, 12 o'clock midnight in the Nordic region. Respective time differences are acknowledged. Attachments to applications, which are sent in by postal mail have to be received at NIFCA by 24 March 2006.

First register as user in the system. Then, in a new window the application form becomes available, by clicking 'create new application'. The application form is easy to use and to fill in. The required information includes: CV, description of professional practice, motivation for residency and documentation of work. Remember to click ‘save’ after filling in each page in the application. Attachments may be enclosed electronically, as well as sent in by postal mail. If using postal mail, please, use the reference number received from the application system.

You can log in to the system as many times as required and continue filling in the different parts and editing, before finally submitting the form. Documentation of work and other electronic enclosures can be attached to the on-line form, saving the trouble and cost of sending attachments by postal mail.

All the residencies include:

• Studios or access to work space
• Accommodation
• Monthly grant (840 euro/month)
• Presentations in the artist gallery at www.nifca.org
• Various opportunities to create contacts and participate in local activities and/or concentrate on individual projects

If you during the residency want to bring along family members, you have to make a separate agreement about this with the hosting organization.

Selection process

The residency selection was made by an invited panel with three members, who used this opportunity to gain knowledge of the work of a multitude of practitioners in the Nordic region, interested in the relation of architecture and design to society.

For the selection panel NIFCA invited:
Markus Degerman, artist/curator, Stockholm
Helena Mattson, architect/researcher, Stockholm
Madeleine Park, artist/curator, Oslo
Tuomas Toivonen, architect/designer, Helsinki

Awarded residencies

For more information please contact project coordinator Mitro Kaurinkoski at NIFCA.