Organizer Information
Museum Rijswijk is housed in the Tollenshuis, a 17th-century mansion in the historic center of Rijswijk once home to the poet Hendrik Tollens, alongside a newer wing. Alongside its collection and exhibitions on the local history and heritage of Rijswijk, the museum is known for alternating a Textile Biennial and a Paper Biennial in successive years, positioning it as a recurring international platform for contemporary textile and paper-based art. The 2027 edition continues this biennial program with a focus on textiles and colonialism.
Title & Description
Textile Biennial 2027 | Colonial Patterns
The Textile Biennial 2027 invites international artists to reflect on the theme of "Colonial Patterns" through their own practice. The museum frames "patterns" broadly — as decorative motif, as repetition, as a social or historical system, as visible structure, and as invisible legacy — and is interested in works exploring the relationship between textiles and colonialism from angles including trade, raw materials and labor, cultural exchange and appropriation, identity and migration, heritage and memory, resistance and decolonial perspectives, and the lasting impact of colonial structures on the contemporary textile and fashion world. Submitted approaches can be personal, societal, political, poetic, or speculative, and may address either visible patterns in textiles or the invisible structures still shaping the world. The museum states it is interested in works that ask questions, surface new stories, and create space for encounter, dialogue, and reflection.
Theme
Colonial Patterns
Categories
- Fiber/Textile Art
- Visual Arts
- Curatorial
- Craft
- Culture
Eligibility
- Open to (inter)national artists — international submissions are accepted
- Selection is based on existing works of demonstrable quality, the use of textiles in the work, and the work's fit with the theme
- Not specified in the source whether an artist may submit more than one proposal
Program Benefits & Awards
- Inclusion of selected work in the Textile Biennial 2027 exhibition, running July 11 – November 21, 2027
- Artist fees paid according to BKNL (Beroepsorganisatie Kunstenaars Nederland) guidelines
- Transport of the work and associated costs covered by Museum Rijswijk, arranged in consultation with the artist
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 1 October 2026
- Exhibition Dates: July 11 – November 21, 2027
Location
Museum Rijswijk, Herenstraat 67, 2282 BR Rijswijk, Netherlands
Additional Details
- Submissions must be made only via the form on the museum's website; proposals must include answers to three questions (what the work is about, max. 500 words; how it fits the "Colonial Patterns" theme, max. 300 words; the role of textiles in the work, max. 300 words) plus 1–3 photos of the work (max. 10 MB per photo)
- Submitting a proposal does not guarantee inclusion in the exhibition; final selection is made by Museum Rijswijk's artistic team
- The work does not need to be finished at the time of submission, but selection is based on existing works of demonstrable quality
- 20 artists and works will be selected in total; the exhibition layout is only determined once all 20 are confirmed
- The museum is wheelchair accessible except for two cellars