The Unstable Design Lab is excited to announce that we will once again host our Experimental Weaving Residency! The goals of this residency are to support new projects and ongoing research by providing space and tool access for creative exploration. Each resident should be focused on developing new techniques and open-source resources that co-evolve weaving and engineering practices. Supported by funding from National Science Foundation Grant #2550241, this residency call will support a series of 6 residents with 12-week residencies, who we will welcome in pairs during Fall 2027, Spring 2028, and Fall 2028 sessions.
Our theme for the 2027-2028 residency series is Alongside. Alongside speaks to our desire to create opportunity for exchange in an expanded field of experimental weaving practices that cross art, design, computer science and engineering. To us, experimental weaving encompasses but is not limited to practices that creatively engage digital weaving, drafting, textile histories, concept, coding for weaving, weaving and music or performance, smart textiles, weaving-adjacent engineering, textile design, weaving on harness, backstrap, and tapestry looms, and hacking/experimentation with weaving tools.
Residencies in this cycle will overlap, with two residents joining our lab during each session. By hosting two practitioners at the same time, we hope to support a broader range of weaving approaches than we have previously and to pair practices that may be seen as distinct in the hopes of facilitating the possibility for unexpected outcomes. For example, those that engage weaving from a historical perspective alongside those that generate computational methods for analyzing, cataloging or reanimating those textiles; or practices that target industrial workflows alongside practices that are deeply localized. In Alongside, concurrent residents will not be required to collaborate directly, but will share space, time, resources, and creative energy in ways that we think can be generative and nourishing. Pairing is encouraged and applicants are invited to apply as collaborators.
The chosen residents will work with the Unstable Design Lab, as well as researchers from the ATLAS Institute and University of Colorado more broadly, to create a series of swatches, artworks, and/or resources that take up the theme of “alongside” in forms that can be deployed, adapted, and engaged by a broader public. The key outcome of this residency should be knowledge that emerges between the residents and the Unstable Design Lab community, that can be shared in various forms such as publications, exhibition pieces, open-source recipes, software files, and/or workbooks.
Timeline, Stipend, and Housing
| Event | Date |
|---|---|
| Information Session | December 2 2026 at 8am MT, Register |
| Application Deadline | January 31, 2027 |
| Notification to Selected Applicant | March-April 2027 |
Residency Sessions
Applicants will be asked to select one or more of the following sessions for their residency:
| Session | Dates |
|---|---|
| Fall 2027 | Sept 1, 2027 - November 19, 2027 |
| Spring 2028 | Feb 1, 2028 - April 25, 2028 |
| Fall 2028 | Sept 1, 2028 - November 17, 2028 |
We will welcome three cycles of residents, two residents for 12 weeks during the periods of Fall 2027, Spring 2028, and Summer 2028 in Boulder, Colorado. The resident will receive a stipend of $16,000, airfare to support the travel to and from Boulder, and a materials budget of $500*. The residents will be responsible for locating housing. International applicants are welcome to apply but should note that the stipend will be lower due to taxes taken by the US government on international workers.
- materials budget does not go directly to residents, but is to be spent by the lab during the residency on supplies determined by the resident.
Resources
This residency is best suited to applicants who are comfortable leading their own design and creation processes. While we are happy to share our skills and equipment, there is no dedicated technical support provided to the resident and we cannot provide training on our equipment. The resources available to the resident include a desk in the Unstable Design Lab, priority access to a TC2 digital jacquard loom, a 24h workshop compu-dobby loom, an 8h floor loom, and spinning, sewing, and knitting equipment in the lab, traditional and novel weaving materials, programming support for some custom software needs in AdaCAD, and access to the fabrication facilities at the ATLAS Institute.
As a collaborator in the Unstable Design Lab you will be working among artists and researchers across many domains of research. You will share immediate lab space with the lab members listed on the people page of our website.
Expectations
- Each resident will be expected to work at least 30 hours per week evolving concepts that address the resident’s interests as well as the curiosities and topics of the Unstable Design Lab team. We expect residents to work in-person, within the lab as much as they are able.
- With the resources provided, we hope that this is a generative experience for the resident with outcomes that may include swatches, finished works, performances, publications events or workshops, etc.
- The selected resident must be willing to share any techniques or resources they develop as open-source/publicly accessible documents to both the collaborators and public more broadly. This often includes the production of a catalog to commemorate the residency.
A Note for International Applicants
We welcome international applications. If you are of non-US citizenship, please make note that the stipend will be particularly affected by US taxes on international workers as well as some fees for VISA processing in your country of citizenship. For more information on the particular program through which we host residents, visit: https://www.colorado.edu/isss/cu-departments/hiringhosting-international-students-scholars/international-scholars-j-h-e-pr/j-1-3
Application
The application for residencies in Fall 2027, Spring 2028, and Fall 2028 will be open from November 1 2026-January 31 2027. Applicants will be asked to provide the following through an AirTable form with questions that vary slightly if one is applying as an individual or collaborative. You can preview the questions for each type of application below:
Applicants who apply as an individual will be considered for one residency position within their selected term and will be paired by the organizers with a second resident. Applicants who apply as collaboratives will be considered for both positions within their selected terms.
There is no advantage provided to applicants based on their choice to apply as a collaborative or an individual, though, we do request that collaborative applications include interdisciplinary and/or different but complementary perspectives.
Applicants who apply as part of a collaborative are also welcome to submit and additional application as an individual if they would like to also be considered individually.
Organizers
Etta Sandry
Former Experimental Weaver in Residence and
PhD Candidate at CU Boulder
ettasandry.com
Laura Devendorf
Director of the Unstable Design Lab
Associate Professor, ATLAS Institute
& Dept. of Information Science
artfordorks.com
Steven Frost
Associate Director of the Unstable Design Lab
Assistant Professor, Media Studies, CU Boulder
stevenfrost.com
Selection Committee
Cris Gomez
Curatorial Assistant in Textile Arts & Fashion
Avenir Institute of Textile Arts and Fashion, Denver Art Museum
LinkedIn | Instagram
Layne Hubbard
Artistic Director
Futuros Ancestral
futuros-ancestral.org
Kate Nartker
Associate Professor, Wilson College of Textiles
NC State University
katenartker.com
Sarah Rosalena
Associate Professor, Department of Art, Computational Craft and Haptic Media
UC Santa Barbara
sarahrosalena.com
Kathryn Walters
Assistant Professor, School of Architecture & Design
IE University, Spain
kmwalters.com
Clement Zheng
Department of Design
National University of Singapore
interactivematerials.info