The BBBank Award will be presented as part of the Karlsruhe SCHLOSSLICHTSPIELE 2027. This open call is directed at artists, designers, studios, and collectives working in the field of projection mapping.
The SCHLOSSLICHTSPIELE Light Festival is an annual highlight of the UNESCO City of Media Arts. Over the course of four weeks, around 300,000 visitors attend this spectacular open-air event to experience media art together in the evening atmosphere.
To apply for the BBBank Award 2027, submit a concept for a projection mapping on the 170-meter-wide façade of the baroque palace.
A jury will select one concept from the submissions. If the selected concept is realized, it will receive a €10,000 prize. An additional €10,000 will be available to fund production. The work will be presented as part of the festival program throughout the entire event.
The jury, led by the ZKM | Karlsruhe, includes representatives of BBBank eG as the award sponsor, KME Karlsruhe Marketing and Event GmbH, and the City of Karlsruhe as representatives of the UNESCO City of Media Arts.
The BBBank Award is organized by ZKM | Karlsruhe in partnership with BBBank and the SCHLOSSLICHTSPIELE. An overview of previous projection mapping works presented at the SCHLOSSLICHTSPIELE is available here: www.schlosslichtspiele.info/shows
Theme 2027: “Playground – The Art of Playing”
The SCHLOSSLICHTSPIELE Light Festival 2027 is themed “Playground – The Art of Playing”
Possible perspectives and approaches include:
- Urban Space as a Playground: The city as a “playground,” a world of experiences, a land of adventure, a world to explore, a space for movement and discovery, and a place for interventions, exploration, and new ideas.
- Different Dimensions of Play: Play as a shared experience, a performance, or a competition.
- Interaction and Participation: Engaging audiences through movement, choreography, and collective action, potentially involving visitors throughout the entire palace square.
- Shifts in Perception: Playing with light and shadow, perspective, optical illusions, and spaces of illusion.
The jury welcomes conceptually compelling works that explore innovative visual and sonic languages and make multilayered ideas accessible to a broad audience.
