Call for residency: explore materials of the future

To expand our field of expertise, the Inter-Actions research unit of LUCA School of Arts is seeking a resident design researcher and educator with experience in material research and ceramic 3D-printing. The residency will be organized from November 2024 to February 2025.

We invite candidates to propose a fieldwork project that explores the post-industrial context of our campus C-mine in Genk. The unique context of this area is characterized by a specific material and immaterial heritage.

Our media, art, and design campus is situated on a former coal mine. The history of our campus and the city of Genk are intertwined with its coal mining past. In 1904, coal was discovered in the soil of Genk, transforming the rural landscape into an industrialized city with three large coal mines. The operation of these mines required a substantial labor force. Immigrant workers from Poland, Ukraine, Italy, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, and Morocco relocated to Genk to establish their lives, resulting in a demographic shift from 6,276 in 1920 to 67,009 in 2022. With over 100 nationalities, the city of Genk is now the second most diverse city in Belgium after Brussels, the European capital. We challenge candidates to translate these material and immaterial characteristics into tangible artifacts that can reference its past, present, and future. To materialize these artifacts we encourage the resident to engage in experimental material research centered around a ceramic 3D-printer.

Deliverables 

Apart from the actual research, the resident is expected to take part in a number of activities: 

• a presentation about your work for bachelor students of LUCA School of Arts at campus C-mine;
• a presentation at the Research Retreat of the Inter-Actions research unit 
• Participate in two educational modules at campus C-mine (Productdesign);
• Collaborate with local stakeholders relevant to the research topic (Jester, C-mine, BKRK VAKlab, Studio Piet Stockmans);
• a small-scale exhibition that presents your research and fieldwork to the public, set up at C-Mine;
• Develop a project proposal that aims at establishing a long-term partnership with LUCA and possibly other partners.
• Demonstrate the possibilities of ceramic 3D printing to the researchers and educators at campus C-mine.

Offer

• A vibrant research environment in the field of artistic and design research;
• A space to work at the LUCA campus at C-Mine (Genk);
• Access to filming and editing facilities, including AV equipment; access to workshops/ateliers (woodworking, metal workshop, laser cutting, 3D printing, etc.;
• Access to analogue and digital photographic facilities, including equipment; access to the photo studio; the printing facilities (riso, inkjet, laser and sublimation) and the use of the fully equipped analogue darkroom;
• Access to research activities and artistic events at all LUCA campuses.

Fee

You will be reimbursed personally to cover a fee and expenses during your stay (an independent tax status is required), or via the resident’s home institution (based upon an agreement between LUCA and the resident’s home institution). We expect you to physically stay in Belgium for the duration of your residency.

This fee will be 3100 euro/month (fee plus living expenses and taxes included). 

On top of that you will get 700 euro/month for relocation expenses and travel; an additional 2800 euro can be spent on material costs (to set up the exhibition). No other costs will be reimbursed. No remote residency can take place and physical presence in the office will be requested for a minimum of 2 days/week.

You can apply by sending a short (3 page max) application document containing your research rationale, a proposal for meeting the deliverables, portfolio and a short CV before the 15th of August 2024. Given the range of activities expected in this residency, such as exhibitions and presentations to researchers at different levels of seniority, you should include in your file examples that demonstrate your extensive experience in the field of design/artistic research. This can be done by listing different types of elements from your personal history, that can include academic degrees, work experience, publications, exhibitions and other activities that you feel are relevant to your profile.

The applicants will be informed by the end of August about the result of this process.

The residency will take place from the 1st of November to the 28th of February. (This date can be negotiable, but a fee will only be provided for 4 months).

Questions can be sent to niels.hendriks@luca-arts.be and ben.hagenaars@luca-arts.be

After the selection:

The selected visiting scholar will be asked to confirm his/her participation in the research residence within 5 working days after the selection announcement.

Moreover, the selected visiting scholar will be asked to register officially as visiting scholar at LUCA/Faculty of the Arts via the visiting scholar flow of KU Leuven. A standard processing fee of 100 euro (excluding any possible bank transfer fees) is required. Please contact us for information about the procedure once you are selected as visiting scholar: wim.aerts@luca-arts.be