Based at the University of Alberta, the Co-Designing a Smartwear Revolution project is currently trying to develop “smart” garments that can respond to the body and provide support when it is needed.This six-year, federally funded research project aims to develop wearable technologies that look and feel like everyday clothing while providing physical support for movement, posture, balance, and mobility.
As a part of the transdisciplinary research for the Smartwear Revolution project, artists are invited to critically and creatively engage with ideas of care, technology, embodiment, access, identity, and the future of assistive clothing through the 2028 SUPPORT Festival.
The 2028 SUPPORT festival will be hosted across multiple venues at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, including UCommons, FAB Gallery, Gallery A, Sound Studies Institute Sound Arts Gallery, McMullen Art Gallery and the Timms Centre for the Arts.
Artists selected from this initial stage to build out full proposals will receive an honorarium ($50–100 CAD). Final selected artists will receive professional artist fees (CARFAC/CADA/CAEA as applicable), with additional production support available for some projects. The artist selected for the in-person artist in residence program will receive $12,000 CAD covering artist fees, materials, travel, accommodation, and production. The artist selected for the virtual artist in residence program will receive $8,000 CAD, covering materials and production.
For this call for expressions of interest, we invite artists, performers and designers to engage with the concept of SUPPORT in its many forms and meanings, textures and rhythms, presences and absences.
We are looking for new and existing work in the following categories:
Live performances (art performance, dance, theatre)
Visual art
Fashion shows
Curated shows, workshops, talks, in new and alternative forms, especially in the virtual/hybrid
Who should apply?
Local, national, and international artists
Student artists, collectives, organizations, and artist-researchers
People with lived or professional experience related to disability, chronic illness, aging, caregiving, rehabilitation, mobility, or healthcare
The deadline to apply for both calls is December 15, 2026.
Read more about the open call and the artist in residence program here: https://smartwearrevolution.com/open-call/
We will be hosting two free, virtual information sessions about the open calls:
