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CALL FOR PROPOSALS!!!
IDEA COMPETITION
First Prize: 2000 EURO
Second Prize: 500 EURO
Third Prize 500 EURO
Superflex is looking for Chinese proposals for the development of strategies for action for the shrinking cities in eastern Germany.
BACKGROUND
Shrinking cities is a phenomenon, which is happening all over the world these years; in the USA, Britain, or Belgium, Finland, Italy, Russia, Kazakhstan, and in China. Shrinking cities contradict the image, familiar since the Industrial Revolution, of the "boomtown", a big city characterized by constant economic and demographic growth. Cities shrink when industrial production and investment move elsewhere in the world. The dramatic changes in eastern Germany since 1989 have led to more than a million empty apartments and to the abandoning of countless industrial parks and social and cultural facilities. This is a general pattern of our civilization.
The phenomenon of shrinking cities urges us to rethink traditional ideas of the European city, as well as future development of urban worlds. City planning may solve some of the problems, but we need new approaches to tackle the fundamental economic, social and cultural problems, challenges and prospects of shrinking cities Germany's Federal Cultural Foundation has initiated a three-year project, called Shrinking Cities. The project seeks to expand Germany's city- planning debate beyond questions of demolishing surplus apartments and improving residential quarters.
The project addresses new questions and perspectives and places developments in eastern Germany in an international context, involving various artistic, design, and research disciplines in the search for strategies for action. In sum, the project of Shrinking Cities is a research and exhibition project, which emphasises first, an international study of processes of shrinking and second, the development of strategies for action for eastern Germany (http://www.shrinkingcities.com/).
COMPETITION DETAILS
Proposals should address the following tasks:
- Developing strategies for action for eastern Germany
- Developing ideas on how to take advantage of unplanned urban structures
- Developing innovative approaches to solutions
- Proposing a selection of interventions that constitute exemplary approaches to shrinking cities from a cultural perspective
- Proposing ideas to the respective sites and local actors for discussing their new situation and possibilities of action.
Format of proposals:
Proposals must consist of min. 3 pages max. 5 (A3) including:
- Page 1: Idea & Concept (text, 100-300 words)
- Page 2-5: Visuals (drawings, photos, images)
Computerfiles must be either PDF(*.pdf), DOC(*.doc) or TXT(*.txt), DWG (*.dwg), JPEG (*.jpg), GIF(*.gif) or ZIP (*.zip)
All works should be written in either Chinese, English or German and send to Email: shrinkingcities@superflex.net
Deadline:
Proposals must be send to Superflex and arrive no later than 19 November 2005 at 12:00 hours PM/CET
The winners of the competition will be announced on 26 November 2005.
All proposals will be presented at the following Exhibition:
"Shrinking Cities - Interventions"
26th November 2005 - 29th January 2006
At Galerie fur Zeitgenoessische Kunst Leipzig, Germany
Further information: http://www.superflex.net/shrinkingcities
Postal address: Superflex, Blaagaardsgade 11b, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark.