Call for original Craft + Design works for a signature DESIGN CANBERRA exhibition inspired by the Shine Dome

 Canberra is taking up its mantle as a global city of design. That reputation rests on a proud history of design excellence and experimentation, from the Griffin’s visionary city plan to today’s leadership in craft and research and practice across all design disciplines.

In 2017 DESIGN Canberra will be inspired by the spirit of Modernism — a celebration of the creativity and experimentation for which Canberra’s mid-century architecture is acclaimed, as home to some of the finest modernist buildings in the country, public icons and private homes.

We are inviting contemporary craft artists and designers to develop new and original work interpreting Roy Grounds’ iconic  Academy of Science, also known as the Shine Dome or Martian embassy — Canberra’s quintessential modernist building — for a signature DESIGN Canberra exhibition in 2017.

The 2016 DESIGN Canberra festival was a great success, attracting over 69,000 people over a month of events, exhibitions, digital campaigns, activations, tours and workshops. As the major outreach activity for Craft ACT: Craft + Design Centre, the festival creates opportunities to promote contemporary craft and design to broad and engaged audiences, explore cross-disciplinary collaborations, and forge marketplace connections.

It’s anticipated the Shine Dome exhibition (title TBC) will garner significant public and media attention and continue to build on local, interstate and international recognition of Canberra’s design identity. It will align contemporary craft and design with the best and most intriguing creative vision for a growing festival and provide a platform for other initiatives within the festival to forge closer ties and new relationships between craft and design and architecture.

Designers are encouraged to embrace the spirit of experimentation in their contemporary re-imaginings of the Shine Dome. Both individual and collaborative submissions are welcome.

The general terms for the exhibition are as follows:

• Exhibition submissions are free for current Craft ACT members – become a member from just $66 HERE
• Non-members will be charged $70 to submit their entry – this must be paid online at HERE before you deliver your work.
• Entries may come in any medium from a craft and/or design discipline.
• All entries must be available for inclusion in an exhibition for DESIGN Canberra in November 2017 (venue TBC) and work must be collected by the entrant at the exhibition’s conclusion.
• Work must be delivered to Craft ACT no later than 5pm on Thursday 18 May 2017 to be eligible for entry. Payment for entry (for non-members) must be paid by this time.
• Cost to ship works will be the responsibility of the artist.
• Work submitted for exhibition must be available for sale with the usual 35% commission payable to Craft ACT.

Opportunities to visit the Shine Dome and view its interior spaces are being organised by Craft ACT for Tuesday 21 Feb from 11 – 11.30am and Thursday 9 March from 2 – 2.30pm. Please meet at the Shine Dome.