We, as students, want to convince the academy to host the upcoming graduation show of 2020 on a location outside of the academy buildings. With this petition we want to show that there is support from all majors by a great amount of students for this idea.

This will be a great opportunity to launch our professional careers as well as that it is a better calling card for the academy than the current situation. For a while now, this has been demanded by the students of this graduating class, the years before and potentially those graduating in the years ahead. We are seeking a building that has more of an open plan that students can play with and exercise the extent of their capabilities. There would be more freedom and professional opportunity for students to curate the works, since there would be fewer restrictions of walls and rooms in comparison to the designated areas in the academy.

After four years of hard work at the Academy, we see the graduation show as the moment to show our hard work and present ourselves to the world.

Consider the slogan of Willem de Kooning Academy, Creating Pioneers. By the same slogan, the act of moving our graduation show to an external location will enable us to apply our professional insights we have gathered in our practices (social, autonomous and commercial) even more and abides by the integrity of ‘creating pioneers’. Pioneering means to do something that hasn’t been done before and to be on the front of change. We want to be that change.

Having the graduation show at an external location should be considered an act of pioneering, not only for the graduating class of 2020, but for future classes that follow. This movement is extended to faculty, tutors, master students, graduates of 2020, WDKA alumni and especially students graduating in the years ahead of us!

Please sign the petition with your Hogeschool e-mail! Let’s make this happen!