Afro-German Artists & African Diaspora: Art against Racism in Germany | Public Art on Billboards Open Call | €500 cash prizes

+++ The deadline has been extended to 31st of May 2021 midnight. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for further updates! +++

Calling Afro-German artists, designers, photographers and illustrators and those who live in the former German colonies Togo, Cameroon, Namibia, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania and African Diaspora in Germany.

This open call is about creatively exposing the blind spots in the collective consciousness of the white majority in Germany towards its colonial history and the racism against black people that is rooted in that era.

Most Germans are still not aware that the German colonial history, albeit much shorter than that of other colonial powers, was every bit as brutal - including murder, rape, forced labor, profiteering and genocide. They are not aware of the bloody trace the German Empire under Kaiser Wilhelm II has left in Africa, and how its deeply racist colonial administration has laid the foundation of every-day racism in Germany today.

How it works

The Blind Spots in the Street poster competition works like an advertising campaign: it consists of a series of posters on billboards in public spaces that are intended to arouse curiosity but do not directly reveal the topic. Each billboard is tagged with a QR code. When scanned, the QR codes lead to our website, where information on the idea behind each poster is provided.

The task
1. to develop a teaser ("eye-catcher") image that arouses curiosity in the viewer without revealing what exactly the image is about. The objective is to get a wider audience to learn about the issues of colonial history and racism. Optionally, write a headline to go with it.
2.Write a text (150-400 words) that provides background information about the image.

What to aim for
The images must be striking and impactful in public. Most importantly, they must arouse curiosity! Only those viewers who really want to know what's behind the image will scan the QR code.
Examples for the interaction of images and texts can be found on our blog.

The rules
1. Participants are at least 18 years old and have had their own experience with racism in Germany or are originially from or live in the former German colonies of Togo, Cameroon, Namibia, Tanzania, Rwanda or Burundi.
2. Colors should be primarily red, black, white, and shades of gray so that the images are recognizable as part of the campaign
3. An area of 83x86 mm vertical must be left blank for the QR code.

More details on our website!