Interview Directory 

ART

Name: Monika Schnetkamp

Occupation: Entrepreneur, Member of the Board of the ARTHENA FOUNDATION

‘As an entrepreneur, I see entrepreneurship as socially responsible behaviour and want to give something back to society.’

Ms Schnetkamp, why are you involved as a patron of the arts?

As an entrepreneur, I see entrepreneurship as socially responsible behaviour and want to give something back to society. Using private funds for social benefit is important to me. Art is a lifelong passion of mine and it is therefore a matter close to my heart to get involved here, to promote contemporary art and to support artists of the younger generation and accompany them in their development. That's why I set up a charitable foundation to promote art 16 years ago. Based on the Greek goddess Athena, the goddess of culture and science, this foundation sees itself as a link between culture and science.

Numerous international artists have already exhibited at the ARTHENA FOUNDATION's KAI 10 exhibition centre in Düsseldorf's Media Harbour. Do you continue to follow their careers?

The cooperation for our thematic exhibitions is always very trusting. In addition to the exhibition programme, we also support the creative process and thus the creation of artworks or their staging on site - the creative potential is our main focus. I also make regular studio visits and naturally follow the development of individual artists closely. This also means that I visit many exhibitions in order to follow the career of artists and the further development of artistic production.

‘Istanbul is an important art metropolis at the interface between Europe and Asia and offers intercultural impulses.’

How did Atelier Galata come to be founded? Why in Turkey in particular?

Kunststiftung NRW has been running the residency at Atelier Galata since 2009 in order to promote international cultural exchange and initiated the artist-in-residence programme here. Istanbul is an important art metropolis at the interface between Europe and Asia and offers intercultural impulses. Through our new partnership, we are strengthening this important programme and intercultural exchange with Istanbul's vibrant art scene.

Interdisciplinary networking is also important to us. The residency enables several artists from different disciplines such as literature, music, performing arts and visual arts to work on site at the same time. 

‘We want to promote outstanding artistic positions and inspiring works.’

What criteria do you use to select the artists from NRW? Can anyone apply?

The selection is initially based on quality criteria. We want to promote outstanding artistic positions and inspiring works. In addition to these qualitative aspects, we also apply formal criteria. The call for applications is aimed at professional artists based in North Rhine-Westphalia who have already received public recognition and can demonstrate initial professional success. There is no age limit for applications. Students - for whom there are already many funding programmes - are not eligible to apply. The current focus of the scholarship programme is on the drawing category. We look forward to receiving the applications by 30 September 2024 and are excited to see the artists' work projects! 

And how did the collaboration with Kunststiftung NRW come about?

I have been in close and trusting dialogue with Kunststiftung NRW for years. When we decided to set up a scholarship division at the ARTHENA FOUNDATION, it was clear to me that I also wanted to invest in existing, successful programmes. The intercultural aspect and the high quality of the artist-in-residency programme at Atelier Galata, which I also attended myself, were decisive factors in my decision to get involved here with two scholarships.

Last year, you were honoured with the Maecenas Prize for the Arthena Foundation with the KAI 10 art institution. What are your plans for the future?

The targeted promotion of artists is important to me and will remain a key pillar of my work, which I would like to expand further. With ‘Publish Now!’ and the artist-in-residency grants, we already have two programmes that support fundamental aspects of artistic work. After the first successful call for applications for the ‘Publish Now!’ publication grant with several hundred applications, I am now looking forward to a second edition. And of course, our exhibition activities with KAI 10 are also a central component of our work: the solo exhibition ‘Unsolicited Awakening’ by Mary-Audrey Ramirez - a great young artist - is currently on display until 15 September. She has transformed our building into an immersive science fiction course and invites us into the world of video games.

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