Dr. Martens & The Institute of Contemporary Arts to support Moving Image Artists

Dr. Martens and The ICA announce partnership to support emerging artists with £60k in grants for new works in moving image

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Dr. Martens, the iconic brand associated with subcultures through initiatives such as the recent Dr. Martens Presents series, and the ICA, home to progressive culture in London since 1946, are working together to offer substantial support for the production of new works by independent voices in artists’ moving image.

The global pandemic has wreaked havoc across the cultural sector – closing organisations and venues, and drastically reducing opportunities for artists. The ICA & Dr. Martens have teamed up to counteract this challenging environment by presenting artists living and working in the UK with this meaningful support at a time when it is needed most.


The seven production grants – six grants of £5,000 and one major production grant of £30,000 – will support the production of new works to be premiered at Image Behaviour 2021.

The ICA’s annual convening dedicated to experiments in artists’ moving image, Image Behaviour is central to the ICA’s decades-long commitment to the development of artist film, from Derek Jarman, Steve McQueen and Matthew Barney to more recent works by the likes of James Richards, Metahaven and Martine Syms.

Artists are invited to submit their proposals through the Image Behaviour Open Call (17 February – 30 March 2021), after which an international jury will make their selections. The Image Behaviour Open Call is part of the ICA’s long-standing support for platforming new voices – and especially for artists whose work falls outside traditional categories.

Stefan Kalmár, Executive Director of the ICA, said: “We are experiencing one of the biggest paradigm shifts in society since 1946, the year of the ICA’s founding in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War.

“For the ICA today, this means to discuss racial justice, social justice, the ecological crisis, the re-emergence of nationalism and the deep-rooted crisis of western democracies – and to discuss them in relation to each other, challenging the underlying conditions that produce them. The ICA was founded to present urgent new works that speak to our contemporary predicament, and I am grateful to Dr. Martens for joining us in our efforts to commission such work at a time when it is needed most.”

Darren Campbell, Chief Product & Marketing Officer at Dr. Martens, said: “Dr. Martens has had a long association with independent artists from under-represented communities, and we recognise the need to nurture that burning desire to create and be seen, with our financial support, mentorship and broader visibility. Now, more than ever, the world needs new ideas and fresh perspectives, so we can think of no better way to celebrate six decades than to partner with the ICA, from its renegade HQ on London’s Mall, who have pioneered culture since 1946.”

For more info visit: https://www.ica.art/films/image-behaviour-2021