Textile Art Biennial BIEN – 2025

Open Call for artists:

Artists, designers and researchers who work mainly in the medium of textiles are invited to respond to the public call for participation in the Textile Art Biennial BIEN 2025, which will take place between May 31 and August 14 in Slovenian cities Kranj, Nova Gorica, Jesenice, Idrija, and Škofja Loka. The central theme of the call is « The Air. »

BIEN biennially presents textile art and industrial design programs with exhibitions and projects that reflect on heritage, preservation, and sustainability. BIEN shapes new contemporary expressions and encourages interdisciplinary artistic collaboration through projects and residencies. The exhibitions feature works by international and Slovenian artists, with a special emphasis on the best current domestic and international student productions. BIEN understands that the future of art also lies in public and digital spaces.

Application, basic information:

– Artists or art collectives from all over the world can participate by submitting one artwork that is no older than three years.

– Submitted works should be thematically aligned with the central theme: the Air; they should primarily be created in the medium of textiles or a medium that imitates textiles in its material or technical context.

-The application form can be completed in Slovenian or English and is available below among the links.

-Participation in the open call is free. There is no exhibition fee for the selected works.
There are no age restrictions.

-Participants under 29 years of age can compete for the Eta Award. The award will be granted to exceptional artwork that highlights the use of textile handicraft techniques.

-The applicant is responsible for packaging, insuring, and shipping their work. The package should not weigh more than 20 kg (including the artwork and necessary installation elements), and the maximum size of the package can be up to 150 cm on any side, with the total of the length and circumference not exceeding 300 cm.

-The shipping cost is covered by the applicant, while the return shipping cost is covered by the organizer.

Theme: The Air

Æthers’ Story
by: Klara Debeljak

The first time I learned that ether means “the upper pure, bright air,” it was a sharp, blue, autumn afternoon, and there were flocks of giant birds flying overhead. A stranger pointed up, saying; “Never forget to keep your eyes on the ether.” From that moment on, I connected ether with crisp air, clear skies, and magic. Although, as indicated by the changing weather, ether is never just one thing. It takes many forms and dictates transformation itself. In medieval science, aether is “the fifth element,” a substance that fills all space and makes up all bodies.

Approximately one hundred years ago, an archaeologist found detailed illustrations of air on ancient Egyptian tombs. The paintings and carvings depicted the god of air, whom the Greeks called Æther. He was holding up the goddess of the sky, her long body folding over him, touching the earth on either side. Despite his many variations, Æther was depicted as solid, his form associated with the mind, truth, intelligence and balance. The characteristics of air across cultures have been order and stability, a calming and cooling influence that counters chaos. Although you might not make the connection at first, air and chaos are closely related, competing with each other like brothers. Indeed, in Greek mythology, Æther is the younger brother of Chaos, both the children of Chronos, Time, the father of impermanence.

For us mortals, the most significant way that Time and Æther interlace is through breathing, a process engaged in by nearly all organisms in order to stay alive. In early Hindu philosophy, the breath, the body’s essential air and energy is called prana, “the breath of life”, the vital force. The act of breathing can be felt spiritually as the rhythmic tuning in with the beat of the universe, a conduit for taking in the greater world and offering up in a moment of exchange. The spaces that naturally encourage breathing and union with air are forests, often referred to as the “lungs of the earth”. Forests filter and clean air, producing oxygen and enriching the air with organic compounds that boost the immune system and reduce stress.

Across the Western world, people desperately adopt ancient philosophies and attempt to connect with their prana, savoring breath work and yoga practices as a way to feel one in the spiraling loops of time. The search for the spiritual significance of air and breath expands as we witness our world descend into chaos and climate collapse. As the “lungs of the earth” are being destroyed and turned into monocultures for profit, our cities sink into permanent red-gray smog, and the mating and flying patterns of birds have become disrupted and blocked. Scientists frantically measure air quality and its degradation, and astronomers observe the disappearing stars, hidden by the light pollution caused by sprawling populations. Conspiracy theorists tip their heads to the sky and track irregularities in cloud and air formations.

Since air is the vital life force, symbolized by balance but also change, the worsening conditions in our atmosphere and the collapse of air quality cause a slow disintegration of Æthers stable presence, bringing disorder and heavy fog. We must never forget that as much as air brings life, it can also take it away. A single air bubble in your blood is fatal, and one in ten deaths globally is the consequence of air pollution. Even if air quality had never been degraded to the degree it is now, the presence of air, alongside moisture and time, has always been responsible for transformation and reminding us of our impermanence. In essence, air breaks down materials into their most basic forms, causing mold, rust, rot and metamorphosis, reminding us that nothing stays static.

I dreamt of a bird so huge it blocked out the sky, stirring up storms with its wings, sweeping away the particles of dust, ash, and trash. The giant bird cleared new space and convinced Æther back into his solid stance, suggested he lean against the goddess of the Sky for support, and together they whispered to Chaos and calmed him down. The giant bird gave us humans no choice but to adapt. The bird soared overhead, dropping tiny seeds into hidden
corners and coaxed the Earth to invite the forests back. It wasn’t the same as before, it was something else, a new phase of decay and transmutation, one in which the gods stood shoulder to shoulder and eye to eye. Mortals grew into the air with tenderness, because if ever there was a time to dream, it is now.

More information about the biennial → layer.si/bien
Exhibition rules and conditions → https://shorturl.at/CQRmd
Application form [Google form]→ https://forms.gle/A8Uw4iAvHaJQDap67
Application form for those without a Google account → https://forms.gle/P7UgHYZGrJ7VFhjw6

Join the lectures exploring the theme of AIR from various perspectives.
More: https://layer.si/bien/en/kr/air/