New Tech Fellows

In the upcoming, second edition, which spans from January until December 2023, the research will focus on the sustainable use of materials, as part of a wider commitment to working with materials with a low carbon footprint and/or biodegradable products.

Three new tech fellows have been selected in conjunction with the workshops Paint & Plastics, Construction and Print & Photography, and will start working at the Rijksakademie this January:

Bradley Hamlin (UK/NL) is a multidisciplinary artist working with print, installation, moving image and animatronics. For his proposed research plan as a tech fellow, he wishes to explore his concern of using toxic materials, take the time to experiment with atoxic alternatives and create a sustainable materials database in the Paint & Plastics workshop

Sydnie Nislow (US/IN/NL) is a sculptor and furniture designer working between wood, metal, paper, and alternative materials. Creating form is her sacred practice. During her tech fellowship she will be researching material supply chains, methods of sustainable thinking, and accessible recycling of material waste in the Construction workshops.

Monica Ragazzini (IT/NL) is an artist working with historical analogue contact printing techniques such as cyanotype, salt printing, gum printing and a more modern photo-intagliotechnique with polymer plates. As a tech fellow in the Print workshop, she will do further research and combine old methods with new developments, with emphasis on the use of sustainable materials.

On 23 November, from 15:30 – 17:30 hours, ‘The Future of Art Making’ showcases the research outputs of the first three tech fellows who spent the last year at the Rijksakademie: Niels de Bakker, Benedetta Pompili and Giulia Principe. After their presentations, they will discuss their experience of the programme with Rijksakademie technical specialists Marianne Peijnenburg (ceramics), José Biscaya (audio visual) and Kees Reedijk (electronics). Rieke Vos (senior curator Het Hem) will talk to them about their (research) practices.

If you are interested to attend the presentation from a professional perspective, please contact annelie.musters@rijksakademie.nl.

In January 2022, the Rijksakademie launched a trainee/research programme for young artists/makers to further develop their skills in craft, material and technique, alongside their art practices.

The Tech Fellowship Programme aims to foster innovation in art and technology, with a special focus on craft and sustainable working. The young artists/makers interested in becoming a technical specialist, work at the Rijksakademie for one year and enter a process to exchange knowledge and ideas with the technical team. This allows new and old expertise to come together and leads to new knowledge and applications. Crafts are being further developed, cross-overs are being made, which includes the exploration of digital techniques, and the use of new sustainable materials, and how these can become more integrated.

As a result, a new generation of specialist will learn the profession in a different way and develop new insights. This benefits the cultural field at large by developing new ways of working that combine more traditional and future-oriented technologies into a hybrid creative and innovative approach.

The Tech Fellowship Programme is supported by the Gieskes Strijbis fonds and Rabobank Nederland.