One single uniform for Europe

Unity and / or diversity

for Europe?

International workshop for students
Monday 2 - Saturdag 7 November 2009

Uniformity and Europe are not necessarily concepts that easily go together; even though many politicians hope there will be greater uniformity in the future. Currently the identity of Europe is expressed in terms of differences and diversity. But there are many reasons as to why one might support ‘certain’ uniformity. For instance, it would make the European Union better recognisable, demonstrate common authority and, possibly have a reassuring effect on citizens. Imagine that across Europe one would be addressed by the same police officer as in your own country, wearing a cap instead of a casket or vice versa… wouldn’t that simplify communication? Although you might wish to know from a distance in which language you should be speaking to them. Uniformity when it comes to language is naturally not feasible and probably never will be. The question therefore is - how diverse should uniformity actually be? So that for instance once abroad you would quickly realise you were not dealing with a police officer from your own country. In the end we are all, as Phillippe Starck once said, “Europeans with their own roots”.

The workshop 'Unity and / or diversity for Europe?' is about the identity of Europe and the way in which Europe deals with this identity. During the workshop the European Commission in Den Haag will be visited and a public discussion about identitity and design will be organised. The teachers who will be guiding the workshop are graphic designers Paul Hughes, partner of the design bureau LAVA in Amsterdam, and Catelijne van Middelkoop, owner of the design bureau Strange Attractors Design in Rotterdam and New York and teacher at the Royal Academy of Art Den Haag.

Presentation 
The results will be shown in an exhibition during Design and Government 2010.

Participants
In the workshop 14 students from 7 countries participated.

Academy of Fine Arts, Prague (Czech Republic)
Matous Marek
Richard Nestler

Estonian Academy of Arts, Tallinn (Estonia)
Kristi Rummel
Toom Tragel

Folkwang Hochschule, Essen (Germany)
Jana Lina Berkenbusch
Nina Thöming

Izmir University of Economics, Faculty of Fine Arts and Design,(Turkey)
Elvin Evren

Muthesius Kunsthochschule, Kiel (Germany)
Christian Chalupka
Lukas Franciszkiewicz

Zürich University of Art (Switzerland)
Iris Holtkamp
Jan-Eric Stephan 

ENSAD, Paris (France)
Mathilde Pellé
Lucie Wullschleger

Royal Academy of Art Den Haag (The Netherlands)
Ferguut den Boer