Press Release Tashkeel opens doors for talented designers in the UAE to join upcoming design programme 2014-15 Design Programme in partnership with PAL Labs Deadline for entry is April 30, 2014 Dubai, United Arab Emirates; April XX, 2014: Tashkeel announces this year’s design programme that engages designers, makers and artisans living and working in the UAE to develop a range of products that work towards defining a design, aesthetic and production process that is innately from the emirates. Harnessing the cross-cultural range of skills and materials to be found in the region, the programme is based on a long-term experimental process involving an annual rotation of selected participants that will run this year from June 2014 through to Design Days Dubai 2015. The programme will run in collaboration with PAL Labs, the UK’s leading and most established organization for lab based processes designed to facilitate the creation of new, innovative work by designers and makers. It will consist of a series of two-day workshops led by established designers and curators over the course of nine months. Participants will work in a combination of group, pair and individual work which will involve experimental and collaborative practice, constructive critical feedback as well as investigating new business models. There will be a continuous evaluation of the process throughout the programme. “Tashkeel has been a prominent figure within the UAE’s cultural infrastructure in supporting, at a grass roots level, locally based artists and designers. This initiative continues to endorse our ongoing programme and facilitates a sustained cultural exchange as well as develops an appreciation both nationally and internationally for home-grown talents from the Emirates,” says Anabelle de Gersigny, Tashkeel’s Strategy and Partnership Development Manager. Tashkeel is looking for outstanding designer/maker collaborations to work with through this innovative and exciting process. The programme is open to all designers living and working in Dubai over the age of 21 years Designers can work in any discipline Designers must come with partner makers to work with and be willing to work with local artisans in the process Applicants must be a current resident in the UAE Deadline of application is on April 30, 2014 A total of three designers will be selected by a committee of internationally established experts in the contemporary design field, including: Deyan Sudjic, Director of the Design Museum in London; design historian, curator and gallerist Libby Sellers; and artist Lateefa bint Maktoum, Founder and Director of Tashkeel. Key members of the design community will oversee the laboratories, providing guidance and expertise to the programme participants. These include founders of London-based Studio Glithero, Tim Simpson and Sarah van Gameren; Fi Scott, founder of Make Works - an independent design-led organisation aimed at boosting local production of high quality works in Scotland; Royal College of Art curator Amanda Game, who holds over thirty years of experience working alongside commercial, museum and non-profit spaces in Scotland and the wider UK. “PAL Labs prides itself on being a crucible for talent development, and for developing innovative collaborative approaches to developing new work and new ideas. We are extremely proud to be working with such a respected organisation dedicated to supporting artists and designers in the UAE. I am very excited by the process that we have designed to support artists and designers from the UAE and hugely looking forward to the developing cross-cultural dialogue and ideas that will come from this exchange.” Roanne Dods, Artistic Director, PAL Labs. For information on how to apply, please email anabelle_gersigny@tashkeel.org with DESIGN PROGRAMME in the subject or see the attached call with further key information. -EndsAbout Tashkeel Established in 2008 by Lateefa bint Maktoum, Tashkeel is an independent contemporary art organisation based in Dubai committed to facilitating art and design practice, creative experimentation and cross-cultural dialogue. Placing the artist at the core, Tashkeel supports the UAE’s creative community through studio facilities, artists’ residencies, international fellowships, a programme of exhibitions, events and professional as well as recreational workshops. Tashkeel currently runs up to three residencies a year, along with 6 residencies in conjunction with partner entities - Delfina Foundation London, Dubai Culture and Arts Authority and Art Dubai. Encouraging the exchange of ideas between international and local practitioners, the non-prescriptive and process-based nature of the residencies allows visiting artists to develop projects in response to their new context, or to conduct research benefiting from Tashkeel’s resources. Tashkeel’s on-site facilities include darkrooms, photo studio, digital labs, printing studios, textile studios and 3D workshops. Residencies generally culminate in an exhibition, accompanied by activities such as talks and seminars, aiming to introduce the general public to international artists and their practice. Tashkeel’s exhibition space accommodates up to six main projects a year, as well as a series of small-scale events. The programme includes solo and thematic exhibitions, screenings, workshops and seminars, fulfilling Tashkeel’s commitment to bringing art and culture to a wider audience and engaging the local community. About PAL Labs PAL Labs have 25 years of experience of designing and facilitating collaborative multi-disciplinary processes (laboratories) with individuals and organisations to enable people from all creative disciplines and practices to develop brave new work, generate new deep ideas and new approaches to their practice. PAL Labs offer designers, artists and other creative people time and space to ask bold questions, to push the limits of what they know, to reflect, to explore and experiment with radical ideas and creative practice. We have worked with Contemporary Applied Arts, NESTA, Royal Society for Arts, Manufacture and Commerce, Tramway, Siobhan Davies Studio, Sony Pictures Entertainment, UK Film Council, British Council and many others.