General description of the project RES URBANAE
The RES URBANAE project, supported by Creative Europe Program, brings together three European universities (UBO in France, TUD in Germany and VUT in the Czech Republic) and a Franco-German citizens’ association (Maison de l’Allemagne in Brest) to explore the issue of reconstruction in the broadest sense. See: https://www.mda-brest.fr/res-urbanae/
The project takes as its starting point the comparison of two cities – Brest and Dresden – which suffered the same fate of destruction at the end of the Second World War, and which tackled the challenges of their reconstruction in very different ways. It aims to offer a new perspective that renews knowledge of urban history and urban historiography, particularly that of reconstruction.
With an innovative transdisciplinary approach, the project will explore not only the architecture and urban planning of the two cities, but also the role that art and imagination play in the (re)construction of the cities’ identities. Students, researchers from different countries, and artists will be invited to participate in the various activities that structure the project.
The aim is to understand how these cities’ processes of transformation have enabled them to respond to the challenges of urban renewal and resilience, and to turn destruction and ruin into a foundation for reflection and creation in the broadest sense. Brest and Dresden, laboratory cities for their historical and current developments, serve as a basis for reflection on the development of good urban planning practices, which are indispensable in envisaging the future of European cities in a rapidly changing world.
Finally, the goal will be to communicate the results of this exploration to the general public, in order to help people understand the importance of urban culture and to incite inhabitants to play an active role in the future development of their cities. Beyond Brest and Dresden, this project is aimed at European citizens who live in urban areas that have experienced traumas other than bombings (e.g. the slow decay of their city’s heritage) or who are simply concerned about the world’s current state (threat of ecological disasters, possible pandemics, military conflicts, etc.).
The project consists in several activities:
- an international workshop for students in Architecture and Urban planning in Brno,
- an international transdisciplinary symposium in Brest,
- a double artist residency in Brest and Dresden,
- a travelling exhibition (Brest, Dresden, Brno, etc.),
- citizen meetings etc.
A special website and a final print publication will be their ways of communication and dissemination.
The open call for projects
The artist residency, scheduled for January and February 2023, will result in a work of art that will be exhibited in the final travelling exhibition. It will be presented in Brest (Summer 2023), Dresden (Autumn 2023), Brno (Spring 2024) and other European cities.
This residency is aimed at a European artist (born or living in Europe) who does not live in Brest or Dresden, but who will discover these two cities during his/her double stay and will be able to see them from the outside in order to produce a work of art crossing the histories and the imaginations of the both cities. We expect the creation of an original work that expresses what the cities of Brest and Dresden inspire in the artist, from the point of view of the urban imagination and the problematic of reconstruction, apprehended for the contemporary period.
The artist will be selected by a multidisciplinary committee including teachers from the transdisciplinary courses at TUD and UBO (which will remain the Supervisor of the activity) and various partner structures (in Brest: Passerelle Centre d’art contemporain ; in Dresden: C. Rockefeller Center).
The artist will be invited to attend the symposium organised in Brest (the symposium will take place at the time when the artist is in residence in this city). The artist will be able to take advantage of this opportunity to meet different partners involved in the project and local artists. The symposium will be held in French, German and English.
During the residency, the artist will be asked to furnish a creative “logbook” (pictures, short texts or videos etc.) published regularly on the official web site of the project Res Urbanae and on social networks by the Project Team.
The application must demonstrate the artist’s interest in urban issues in the broadest sense of the term and the key notions of the project: innovation and sustainability. Cities will be observed through different prisms: history, topography, architecture, population, etc.
The material form of the work will have to be adapted to the project of a travelling exhibition that can be presented in non-museum locations (without guarding). Its multiple quality will be appreciated.
Works in various fields of creation are welcome: photography, graphic design, etching, comics, video, choreography (recorded performance) …
Each applicant will send a motivation letter including an artistic utopia about a possible residency, accompanied by his/her CV and samples of his/her work (e.g. pictures JPG, PDF documents, links to the web site of the applicant or to other web sites showing his/her work).
The applications will be sent to projet.res.urbanae@gmail.com by 1st of August 2022.
Financial information:
The Supervisor will take in charge: train travels costs (City of origin – Brest – Dresden – City of origin), accommodation in Brest and Dresden (small fully furnished flat or similar), 25€ per diem (during 40 days), 2000€ maximum of production fees (on supporting documents), 3000€ of remuneration including exhibition fees (1500€ at the beginning of the residency & 1500€ once the work of art delivered), transport of the work as part of the travelling exhibition (limited budget).
The artist will have a studio (workshop) on his/her disposal in Brest and Dresden. He/she will be helped to access in archives of the both cities when needed.
Schedule:
June 2022: publication of the call for projects
1st of August 2022: deadline for applications
15th – 20th of September 2022: Meeting of the Selection Committee 30th of September 2022: Answers to applicants
9th – 29th of January 2023: Residency in Brest
29th of January – 19th of February 2023: Residency in Dresden
30th of March 2023: delivery of the work of art resulting from the double residency
June 2023: opening of the travelling exhibition in Brest