open call - holobiont a grouped group show, baw 2026.

OVERVIEW

An open call for four exhibition concepts in four industrial halls, for curators, collectives and artist groups. This open call is exclusively for full exhibition concepts. Individual artworks will not be accepted.

Location: RWK Studios by 3CA, Berlin-Zehlendorf, Robert-W.-Kempner-Straße 6–8
Applications: until 3 August 2026
Evaluation: 4 to 9 August 2026
Notification of selected projects: by 10 August 2026
Installation access: approx. one week before the opening; exact dates are confirmed with the selected projects
Opening: Monday, 7th of September 2026, Performance Night 11th of September
On via: 7 to 13 September 2026, alongside Berlin Art Week (9 to 13 September)
Open House and closing: Sunday, 13 September 2026
Apply to: opencall@3caberlin.com, larger files as a link (WeTransfer, Vimeo, Drive)

What a selected project receives

• one of four halls, 200 to 800 m², free of charge, with the full in-house exhibition technology (details below)

• a shared opening night, in front of an audience of curators, collectors, press and artists

• a full week of programme around your show: curatorial tours, artist talks, panels, a performance day, a collectors' brunch and a closing Open House

• press and communication across the combined networks of 3CA and all four projects

• selection by a jury of Jan Gustav Fiedler, Billy Jacob, Pola van den Hövel and Jennifer Braun

  HOLOBIONT. A GROUPED GROUP SHOW.

  In biology, a holobiont is a host organism together with the many organisms that live with it: distinct forms that function as a unit through their relationships. HOLOBIONT applies that principle to four exhibitions. Each keeps its own concept, its own positions, its own logic. Along a shared route, with common infrastructure and a connecting programme, they come together into a larger whole without giving up their difference. Seen on its own, each exhibition is complete. Seen together, they form a deliberate constellation rather than a coincidence of neighbours.

  WHY HERE, WHY NOW

  Not every relevant project finds a place in the official programme in a given year. Rather than have four independent projects compete for attention separately and across the city, we bring them together in one location, where they carry more weight as a whole. HOLOBIONT is an independent exhibition project running alongside Berlin Art Week. Opening on Tuesday 8 September, the evening before the official week begins, is a deliberate decision: a distinct start for the four projects before the city's calendar fills.

  WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

  Independent curators and curatorial teams, artist collectives, interdisciplinary groups, artist-run spaces and initiatives. Every convincing proposal shares the same core: a clear curatorial premise, named positions, defined works, an understanding of the space, and a team able to realise and supervise an exhibition on a short timeline. We are looking for complete exhibition concepts, not individual works without an overarching idea.

  THE VENUE

  RWK Studios by 3CA is a former industrial complex of roughly 16,000 m² in Berlin-Zehlendorf, today the working base of almost sixty artists, with studios, workshops, production spaces and characterful corridors. It is an active site of artistic production, not an event space. The four exhibition halls are on the ground floor and connect into a continuous, roughly U-shaped route through the building.

  All four halls: ground floor, fully darkenable, three-phase power, loading and drive-in access for large works, overhead suspension possible, linked by wide industrial corridors. Water, sanitary facilities, secure access and CCTV are in place, and the complex is accessible around the clock.

  The four halls

  Hall 1, approx. 200 m². A near-square room, seven to eight metres high, without daylight and fully darkenable. The walls are magnetic, strong magnets are available, and works can be suspended directly from the ceiling (see image). Suited to painting, sculpture, installation and moving image. Envisaged as a group exhibition of at least two positions.

  Hall 2, approx. 800 m². The largest hall: high ceilings, daylight, fully darkenable, with truck access. Room for large-scale sculpture, expansive installation, moving image, sound and complete environments. We are looking for work that requires this dimension, not work that merely fills it.

  Hall 3, approx. 400 m², with DAHLEDOHR. High ceilings and a very long reverb, a blank canvas for light, projection and moving image. At its centre is a quadraphonic sound installation by DAHLEDOHR, the Berlin studio for sculptural loudspeakers and audio furniture: three-dimensional soundscapes you can feel, built through analogue synthesis. Together with DAHLEDOHR we address artists, curators and groups whose work goes beyond decoration. We are looking for installations that actively engage the soundscape and the room rather than laying a passive atmosphere over it, concepts that challenge perception and stay far from a generic light show.

  Hall 4, the Tile Hall, approx. 200 m². Tiled walls, no daylight, fully darkenable, with a historic metal structure at the centre of the room. Open to a substantial group exhibition as much as to a single position: installation, sculpture, painting, sound, moving image, site-specific work. We are interested in how a concept engages this architecture, or deliberately sets itself against it.

  WHAT 3CA PROVIDES

  • the selected hall free of charge, with access throughout installation and the exhibition period

  • the full exhibition technology in-house through our technical partner Hybris Sounds: sound, lighting, projection, screens and monitors, and fog

  • the quadraphonic DAHLEDOHR sound installation set specifically in Hall 3

  • technical advice and support with spatial and installation planning

  • shared communication, press and a common visual identity across the networks of 3CA and every participating project

  • in-house printing of flyers, programme sheets and exhibition texts

  • a food-and-beverage concept on the key days

  • staffing and supervision during public opening hours

  Technical equipment is never unlimited or guaranteed in advance. Available infrastructure is allocated according to the selected concepts and agreed with the production team beforehand.

WHAT YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR

Each selected team is responsible for its own exhibition: the final concept, the coordination of its positions, the confirmation of works, a realistic production plan, installation and de-installation, an exhibition text, the technical requirements, a designated contact person, and integration into a programme shared with three other projects. On coordination, infrastructure, communication and on-site production, we work at your side. The exhibition itself is yours to realise.

BUDGET

There is currently no production budget, and we state this openly rather than in the small print. What the site offers instead is concrete: four halls at no cost, a complete technical infrastructure, almost sixty resident artists and their networks, press and communication, an audience, and a shared programme. Unless separately agreed in writing, the project does not cover fees, production, travel, accommodation, materials, transport, insurance or shipping.

Programme
The public programme is still taking shape. The formats below are planned and individual elements may still change before the opening.

Monday, 7 September. Soft opening, invite only. All four exhibitions open.

Wednesday 9 to Saturday 12 September. Public days. Open daily for approximately four to six hours, exact times to follow, with tours, artist talks, panels, a performance day and a collectors' brunch planned.

Friday, 11 September. Long Night. The main public opening evening: performances, live music and sound, extended hours, and a night built around the encounter between artists, curators and audiences.

Sunday, 13 September. Open House. A large, family-friendly close: the four exhibitions, open studios, performances, tours, talks, food and drink, and a drawing area for children. Outside, Paul Wheden's Vice Club adds a curated line-up of classic cars, a relaxed counterpoint that brings art and car collectors together for the finale.