The KITLV/Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies would like to commission an original work of visual art for our space at Leiden University. 

Who we are
The KITLV is an interdisciplinary research institute, focusing primarily on Indonesia and the Dutch Caribbean in a comparative perspective. Our research is characterized by strong historical dimensions exploring (dis-)continuities from the (pre-)colonial to the postcolonial period, an anthropological perspective, and a political approach. Our work aims to bring human agency into focus and interrogate the frameworks of power between global forces and local actors. Our staff consists of roughly 60 people from all over the world, at various stages of their research careers, from full professors and postdoctoral researchers to PhD candidates, interns, and visiting fellows.

Project Description & Audience
Atelier KITLV is a working group within the Institute. We are dedicated to creating space for conversation and collaboration between academics, artists, activists, writers, and journalists and to exploring the intersections between scholarship and other domains of knowledge and curiosity. With this goal in mind, we hope to commission a visual piece that serves as a starting point for ongoing reflection on the changing character of the KITLV. The commissioned artist will have access to KITLV staff and collections and should be willing to engage in dialogue with both to inform and inspire the eventual work. We view the work itself as the first in a series of visual conversations, to which future artists may respond.

The space available for the finished piece is a wall with the dimensions 400 x 215 cm within the KITLV seminar room, as space used for public events (both in-person and hybrid/broadcasted digitally across the world), as well as internal functions. Total costs of the project may not exceed € 20.000,- euro.

Application Process and Requirements
-Statement of interest and preliminary project description, including budget (less than 1500 words);
-CV (max length three pages);
-Digital samples of previous work (e.g. jpeg, links to online content).

Artists at all stages of their careers are welcome; those with an affinity or affiliation with communities at the heart of KITLV’s work in Indonesia, the Caribbean, and/or the Netherlands are especially encouraged to apply.

Deadline
The deadline for applications is September 1, 2021.
Please send your application to: [email protected]

Image: Kali Code Village, Yogyakarta – @Brilionet.