Human Cities Festival 2012
Opening Soon! Upcycling Urban Readymades Open Call.

Opening soon ! Spring is back, it is time to wake up your creative brain cells!

Places To Be : Upcycling Urban Readymades open call will be launched from 30 May 2011.

Jointly organized by Human Cities network and Esterni – Public Design Festival, this open call aims to rethink, re-use and reinvent public space by exploring human creativity and existing materials through co-creations, performances, installations and hands-on experiments.

Theme : Upcycling Urban Readymades

The term Upcycling was first used by Reiner Pilz who described recycling as a system where everything is smashed. He used the term Downcycling to describe this and called for what he referred to as Upcycling, a practice where old products are given more value and not less.

In this sense, Upcycling is about the way we remake things. Reinventing or remaking public space does not mean reinventing the wheel or erasing what already exists, but thinking about ways to work with existing environments, objects and materials

Projects will be analyzed on their use of the Upcycling concept and cross-disciplinary approaches to public space as well as their interpretation of Readymade design, referencing Duchamp’s description of ‘found art,’ or objects which are slightly modified to take on a new social function.

What fields are applicable ?

Light/temporary architecture, furniture, lighting, sound, public visual art and performances, storytelling, food, scent & taste…

Who ?

Designers, architects, landscape architects, anthropologists, philosophers, storytellers… Professional and students are welcome to introduce their projects.

How ?

Creative and interactive Human Centered Design approach, Do It Yourself…

Where ?

Context of Brussels City and other European cities part of HC Network aiming at a socio-cultural impact in selected places in town.

Want more information as soon as it’s available?
Be on the mailing list ! humancities@promateria.be