London’s Design Museum is now welcoming submissions for its Designers in Residence program, which offers young designers the “time and space to research and consider new ways of developing their work,” as well as mentorship from residency alums, established designers and other experts, including the museum’s legal, commercial, learning, development and curatorial teams. The residents also receive a budget and production costs, as well as access to programming, including events, discussions and other opportunities to interact with the viewing public.

and Stephanie Hornig; courtesy Jenny Lewis

“This year, the Design Museum opens the doors to its new home in Kensington,” shares program curator Margaret Cubbage. “The Designers in Residence of 2016 will join the museum on this journey. Through a focused and rigorous proposal, the museum asks for designers to submit creative responses to this year’s theme, ‘Open.’ Design has become more inclusive, a process in which many voices can participate. The spirit of open design offers new and exciting ways to shape and experience the world around us. Tools that were once the preserve of professionals are now available to amateurs. Through hacking, co-creation, downloadable designs, and the sharing of knowledge, more people than ever can take on the role of the designer.”

“The Design Museum is looking for new ways of thinking, doing and making,” continues Cubbage. “Designers in Residence invites designers who demonstrate an openness in their practice. Through the program, the selected designers must offer a unique insight into their process, encouraging museum visitors to engage directly with their work. The Design Museum wants designers who demonstrate originality, be it through technology or through collective modes of working.”

Recent alumni of the program include Giles Miller, Asif Khan, Bethan Laura Wood, Yuri Suzuki and Sarah van Gameren, and this past year’s residents included Chris Green, Stephanie Hornig, Hefin Jones and Alexa Pollmann. The exhibition of the 2015 designers’ work can be viewed at the Design Museum until April 3.

Opened in 1989, The Design Museum is the world’s premier architecture and design museum and has staged over 100 exhibitions, spotlighting the work of top designers, including Paul Smith, Zaha Hadid, Jonathan Ive, Miuccia Prada, Frank Gehry, Eileen Gray and Dieter Rams.

Learn more, and apply by March 1.