OPEN CALL: Mapping Norwegian and Sámi Fashion Cultures
Friday, August 29, 2025 – 9:00–Friday, September 19, 2025 – 21:59
International Library of Fashion Research is pleased to announce a new researcher-in-residence program with a focus on documenting and preserving contemporary fashion cultures of Norway and Sápmi. Supported by Arts Council Norway, this initiative seeks to explore the under-researched fashion practices of these regions.
Lack of local fashion infrastructure reveals alternative and ever-evolving ecosystems across the country. This peripheral positioning may challenge conventional, metropolitan-centered narratives. With a large pool of fashion talent per capita, the return to rural crafts and rich textile traditions, understanding Norwegian and Sámi fashion as a means of storytelling, resistance and cultural expression seems ever-so-urgent.
This researcher-in-residence program will map, document and preserve contemporary printed materials connected to, or produced in, Norway and Sápmi. By conducting practical research, studio visits and interviews with the likes of designers, scholars, photographers, schools, publishers, factories and other institutions, the selected research candidate should capture the breadth and width of Norwegian and Sámi fashion practices and cultural contexts.
The program will result in a dedicated archive ultimately mapping contemporary Norwegian and Sámi fashion cultures. This will be integrated as a dedicated part of International Library of Fashion Research’s permanent collection and mediated through exhibitions, digital curations, research publications and educational projects. “Mapping Norwegian and Sámi Fashion Cultures” will share and safeguard a vital part of these regions’ cultural heritage while making it accessible to future generations.
Do you want to expand your research around Norwegian and Sámi Fashion Cultures? The researcher-in-residence program will begin on October 1st 2025 and end on May 1st 2026. A stipend of 50,000 Norwegian kroner is allocated to the selected researcher. It’s fully possible to combine the program with other professional endeavors or studies. Occasional visits to International Library of Fashion Research’s collection in Oslo will be arranged, in addition to a study trip to Innvik factory in Nordfjord and to Sápmi. It is not mandatory to be physically present in Oslo during the entire course of the program.
The advisory board consists of Astrid Skjerven (Professor Emerita of Design Theory, Oslo Metropolitan University), Elin Kathrine Saunes (CEO of Norwegian Fashion Hub), Peter Løchstøer (Oslo National Academy of the Arts), Ramona Salo (fashion designer), Siv So Hee Steinaa (Associate Professor, Fashion and Society, Oslo Metropolitan University), Siv Støldal (fashion designer), Susanne Hætta (Sámi artist, author and photographer), T Michael (fashion designer of Norwegian Rain) and Tone Barnung (designer, Innvik factory), and will act as mentors for the research candidate.
Please submit your application by filling out >THIS< form by Friday 19th of September 2025.
