Scenography, set design, interior design, educational outreach, and artistic spatial design.
We are seeking a spatial concept that will transform the Glaskasten Gallery on Chemnitz’s Sonnenberg into a temporary arrival hall from October 19 to November 1, 2026.
What is it about?
The starting point has recently been right in front of our project house: a bus stop. Time and again, people waiting for the bus seek shelter from the weather in our entryway or sit on the windowsill of the gallery. Hardly anyone enters the room. Most people just want to move on. Those who get off the bus quickly disappear. This situation is representative of Chemnitz and the neighborhood in general.
Sonnenberg is a neighborhood where migration, social transformation, and demographic change are all evident at the same time. People come here for different reasons and with different backgrounds: as students, families, children, workers, refugees, neighbors, or people looking for a new place to call home.
With the “Arrival Hall,” we therefore aim to explore how we—as a cultural venue, but also as a society—can become more welcoming, accessible, and open. How must a space be designed to encourage people to enter it? What conveys a sense of safety and belonging? What invites people to take a seat, get involved, come back, and stay?
The Task
The Glaskasten Gallery is intended to become an open, inviting, and versatile space. Its design should encourage people to linger and interact, respond to the location and the neighborhood, and be accessible and usable by a diverse range of people.
During the project period, the arrival hall will host, among other things, workshops, discussions, performances, musical presentations, culinary events, and community-oriented activities. The development of these program elements is not part of the open call. However, the spatial design should provide a suitable setting for them.
Procedure and Compensation
From among the applications, an advisory board composed of local stakeholders and initiatives will select three projects and invite them to Chemnitz for a research and concept development phase.
By September 20, 2026, the selected individuals or teams will each develop a specific spatial design.
For on-site research, each of the three selected candidates will receive €750 (gross) upon submission of their concept proposal.
An implementation plan will then be selected. An additional fee of €2,100 (gross) will be paid for the implementation.
Setup will be possible starting October 7, 2026.
The opening will take place on October 19, 2026.
Application
Please send us the following by August 23, 2026:
- In a nutshell: your project idea or motivation
- your portfolio
- your brief resume
A detailed draft is not yet required for the initial application.
Please send your application as a PDF to:
Subject: Open Call for the Arrivals Hall
The project is made possible by the Socio-Cultural Fund and the Cultural Foundation of the Free State of Saxony and is thus financed with funds from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, as well as through tax revenues based on the budget adopted by the Saxon State Parliament.
Application deadline: August 23, 2026