WORKING IN THE LAB

Makers wanted

The TextielLab welcomes designers, artists and architects interested in working with the lab team to find the right ‘formula’ for their idea. Do you want to make a 3D textile structure? Experiment with unusual yarns? Weave a giant tapestry? Or see a complete garment roll off the knitting machine? Then you’ve come to the right place!

The TextielLab specialises in realising innovative art, architecture, fashion and design projects. This means that we do not accept standard weaving, knitting or embroidery assignments, and we are selective about the work we do take on. Makers who submit a project proposal that matches our ambitions are invited for an intake interview. During this interview, we discuss your aims, budget and timeline. If the fit is right, we will do everything we can to make your idea a reality.

Submit a project proposal
If you would like to use one of the techniques in the TextielLab for your project, please submit a project proposal here. For weaving and knitting, we plan our work schedule six months in advance. For tufting, the schedule is planned a year in advance. Keep this in mind when submitting your proposal. Unfortunately, we cannot accept all projects. As a knowledge institute, we have a selection policy; we focus on innovative art, fashion and design projects. In addition, as a workshop within a museum, we try to link projects with our museum collection and exhibition programme. The lab’s capacity is divided between established makers, young talent and educational initiatives. If your project fits into our programme and we can accommodate it, we will send you a tailor-made quote and work plan.

Apply for a subsidy
If you would like to apply for a subsidy for your project in the TextielLab, please wait for our response to your project proposal. This takes about two months. We need this amount of time to assess whether the project fits into our programme, to hold an intake interview and to put together a tailor-made quote and work plan.

Costs
The basic project costs consist of the number of development days needed to realise the project, the amount of material used or samples made during the development phase and production of the final work. Additional costs are sometimes incurred for assembly, transportation, material tests or certificates. In the intake interview, we will ask about your budget, so we can estimate whether the project is financially feasible. Before any work begins, you and the product developer will draw up an action plan and agree on a budget.

Because every project is different, so are the costs. We charge a fixed rate per technique for each development day. However, the additional costs mentioned above mean that the final quote will be higher than just the rate per development day.

Developing textiles is an intensive and expensive process. We receive subsidies from the government, the Province of Noord-Brabant and the City of Tilburg, which we use to cover part of our makers’ lab costs. This enables us to make working in the TextielLab as accessible as possible. We support makers by reimbursing a part of the development costs. If you come to work for a client or if your project is partly supported by a subsidy, we cover 35% of the total costs per project. If you come to develop your own work, without a client and without a subsidy, we will cover 65% of the total costs. And for young talent (graduating students), the lab contributes 80% of the total costs.

Click here for an indication of the cost for each technique:

 

Response time
For general questions, you can always get in touch with the lab’s Front Office for help and advice.

If you have applied to work in the TextielLab, a member of our Front Office team will contact you within a month. For any other questions, please send us an email.

Front Office contact information: