rescene

The performing arts often function as a place for debate and catalysts for change within our society. In addition to the aspect of entertainment they discuss current pending issues trying to provide solutions. However, in the field of sustainability, apart from the use of modular stage elements such as platforms or mobile exhibition walls, the performing arts have some catching up to do, as there is often not enough time to consider alternatives in depth. Budgets are often not planned accordingly or custom-made products are necessary due to artistic decisions. In addition, the systems currently in use offer little possibility for designing spatial dynamics with organic and flexible structures. As producers of temporary buildings, renowned theaters have to deal with enormous disposal and recycling processes, high storage capacities and a changing personnel structure. The independent theater scene faces high travel and transportation costs due to the guest performance system. Textile room modules can be realistic solutions for these issues, as they can be reduced to a minimal packing size. Supplemented by a flexible and reversible use of paint and dyes, they open up a wide range of design options that are intended to support process-based and collaborative work at the theater. In the context of art, sustainable thinking is often limited to the use of secondary materials, which are then sent to their usual disposal cycle. Their use has therefore only been extended by one or at most three cycles. It is necessary to expand the research into and development of structures that take into account the long-term circular use of materials.

To mark the conclusion of the project, which has been running since 2024, we are bringing together the results of our work on modular, circular spatial systems made of textiles. The project has yielded adaptable spatial configurations for theater settings and temporary architecture; these are intended for use among other applications as a productive interplay between experimentation and reuse within the context of theater design education.
With "FABRICating circular systems," we aim to gather artists and researchers whose work operates at the intersection of textiles and space, and who view sustainability as a design principle and cultural practice. We invite contributions from the fields of art, academia, theater, architecture, and related disciplines. The daytime program will feature specialist lectures alongside panel discussions on sustainable production in the performing arts and academic work within artistic research projects.
For the evening program, the multimedia studio Noclip will perform within a textile space designed by rescene. This continuation of our collaborative work explores the circular use of materials, focusing on the decomposition of plastiglomerates—stones formed from plastics and sediments—by microorganisms. For further information, please visit: plastiglomerates dresden — STUDIO NOCLIP

When: November 5 & 6, 2026
Where: Dresden Academy of Fine Arts (HfBK), Güntzstraße 34, 01307 Dresden

Conference Registration

Please email us at resceneconference@hfbk-dresden.de, indicating whether you wish to attend on one or both days and whether you plan to attend the performance. As space is limited, we recommend early registration.

Performance Registration

If you wish to attend only the evening event SPECIMENS No. 33-42: DRESDEN PLASTICRUSTS, please also send an email to resceneconference@hfbk-dresden.de specifying your preferred date.

Accessibility

Please let us know in advance if you require any accessibility accommodations.

Catering

Will be provided on-site.

Over the course of the two-day conference, artists and researchers from various disciplines will present their work on the creation of spatial environments using textiles. The first day focuses on "textile spaces," while the second shifts the spotlight to "spatial textiles" as a deliberate change in perspective moving from the concept of space to the material itself.

On the first day, in addition to the presentation of our research findings, contributions regarding the use of textiles in architecture will be showcased bringing us from historical origins to modern interpretations. Furthermore, the relationship between body and space will be examined through the lenses of softness and performativity. Speakers addressing these topics include Sylvie Krüger, Aura Luz Melis (Studio Inside Outside), Prof. Gabi Schillig (UdK), and Prof. Dr. Alex Schweder (Pratt Institute). In the afternoon, Prof. Wolf Gutjahr (HS Mainz) discusses the sustainable use of textiles in theater productions with Eva Veronica Born, Ralph Zeger (Landesbühnen Sachsen), Lisa-Marie Hobusch (Schaubühne Berlin), and students from HfBK Dresden.

The second day focuses on spatial textiles. Presentations will cover the sustainability of various fibers, three-dimensional weaving techniques, the digital mediation of haptic materials, and artistic works created from collected fabrics treated with natural dyes. Contributors include Prof. Dr. Markus Oberthür (HAW Hamburg), Kathryn Walters (IE University Madrid), Reto Pulfer, and Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Sybille Krzywinski (TU Dresden). In the afternoon, Prof. Dr. Christiane Sauer (Weißensee Kunsthochschule Berlin) and Henrike Schmitz (Burg Giebichenstein Kunsthochschule Halle) report on the significance of textile research projects at their respective institutions.

In the evenings, Studio Noclip presents its new work SPECIMENS No. 33-42: DRESDEN PLASTICRUSTS as part of its "Plastiglomerates Series." This performance series is dedicated to investigating recently discovered hybrid rock formations composed of melted plastic and natural sediment. As testaments to the "strange times" in which we live (to use Morton’s terminology), these materials symbolize both fascination and concern regarding the accelerated changes of our planetary epoch. The third chapter of the "Plastiglomerates" series focuses on experimental methods for decomposing plastics and transforming them into organic matter. The work is conceived as a post-dramatic music-theater performance that operates in the tension between laboratory, museum and theater space. In this hybrid environment, speculative scientific processes are carried out in real time, turning decomposition into both the subject and the method of the performance. 

Final Conference: FABRICating Circular Systems

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Review of our exhibition at the university’s summer festival

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Thinking through Materialities

Rückblick auf unsere erste Live-Testung

Juni 2025

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Werkschau 2025

July 19. 2025 from 16 Uhr

Güntzstraße 34, Raum 221

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Appearance with Ventum S in May 2025

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