Simon Stanislawski | Artists in Residence | Kamov Residency

Simon Stanislawski

→ simonstanislawski.com/

Simon Stanislawski is a Berlin based designer working at the intersection of product design, art, and spatial practice. He is passionate about bridging traditional furniture design with innovative, eco-conscious practices, sculptural freedom and political aspects of art. His work explores material cycles, improvisation, and the relationship between form and function, often through the reuse of industrial materials such as recently polyurethane foam.

Simon is co founder of the Hamburg based design duo SMS-PM, Berlin based collective und.studio and Berlin based furniture brand foldt. He finished his Master of Fine Arts in Konstantin Grcics class at the HfbK in Hamburg in 2023, his training as a systemic coach at the IFW in Munich in the same year, and his Bachelor of Arts in Achim Heines class at the UdK in Berlin in 2018. His projects range from furniture and exhibition design to collaborative workshops and public installations. His work has been shown internationally, including at the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, Villa Noailles in Hyères, and during 3daysofdesign in Copenhagen. Through his design brand foldt, he continues to explore sustainable production strategies that bridge conceptual design and hands-on making.

17.11.-07.12.2025.

During his stay in Rijeka as part of the Kamov Residency Program, Simon Stanislawski is developing and producing the exhibition design for Mentally, I am here, which brings together works by artists Gabriel Hensche, Petra Mrša, Susanne Flock, and the collective Total Refusal (in collaboration with Gisela Carbajal Rodríguez and Felix Klee). Stanislawski approaches design in a playful and sculptural way, yet with a strong ecological awareness and a sensitivity for collective work.

In Rijeka, the exhibition design will thus be created in collaboration with students from the Academy of Applied Arts and the Faculty of Architecture in Zagreb (Design program). Through a series of workshops, participants will develop and build elements of the exhibition display using found and recycled materials.

From the process of research and sketching to fabrication and installation, participants gain both technical and conceptual understanding of working with space and material, with an emphasis on hands-on making, experimentation, and a responsible approach to design.

Supported by: Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, Goethe-Institut Kroatien, City of Rijeka

Museum of modern and contemporary art

→ www.mmsu.hr

Museum for Modern and Contemporary Art, Rijeka (HR) - MMSU

MMSU in Rijeka founded in 1948, in its long tradition offers a committed support to innovative ways of approaching, producing and presenting art. From its very beginning the Museum has been building reputation of one of the most prominent visual art institutions in Croatia, entrusted with presentation of Croatian artists at prestigious international art events such as: Venice Biennial 1962, 1997, 2007, 2010, Sao Paolo Biennial 1967, 2004 etc. 

The Museum rounds its programming around visual art education, parallel to different modes of exhibition concepts that address new discursive possibilities and transform it into a place of inspiration, idea exchange and active participation. Under the motto openness, creativity & engagement, together with artistic, cultural and community organizations, Museum furthers visual arts research, collaboration and exchange within the region and internationally, while aspiring to reach increasingly diverse audiences and to work in a close relationship with the community.

Museum’s collection offers a diverse range of artistic visions with over 8,000 artworks dated from the end of the 19^th century to the present day. From 2017 Museum is located at new address, Krešimirova 26c, in ex-industrial complex Rikard Benčić. Since then, some important exhibitions were organized at MMSU in the framework of the pre-program and program of Rijeka 2020 - European Capital of Culture, i.e. Tomislav Gotovac: Crisis Anticipator - Don't Ask Where We're Going (2017), Vlado Martek: Exhibition with Many Titles and Goran Petercol: Don't Worry About Poetics, They Will Arrive on Their Own in 2019 and David Maljković: With the Collection in 2020..