Introducing CLiP #7: The Garage School of Prepping Otherwise

Collective learning for shared survival

Collective Learning in Practice (CLiP) is the successor to Kunstinstituut Melly’s successful Work-Learn Project (2018) and has run six editions to date. CLiP gives participants the opportunity to study contemporary art issues and work with our team to make the institution more publicly accessible. Each edition supports 10–14 young participants with the tools, skills, and inspiration to grow as individuals, decision-makers, and professionals through a six-month study period.

This year, CLiP returns with its seventh edition: The Garage School of Prepping Otherwise. Over six months (October 2025 – March 2026), a group of Rotterdam-based participants aged 17–24 is exploring what it means to survive together in times of global crises, militarisation, and social inequity.

CLiP #7 reimagines “prepping” beyond the traditional image of heavily armed, bunker-bound individuals. Instead, it emphasizes creative, collective, and hopeful approaches to survival, fostering skills and practices that are social, inclusive, and forward-looking. Participants are building practical and imaginative strategies, from food preservation, first aid, and foraging, to movement, improvisation, speculative writing, and Live Action Role Playing (LARPing).

At the heart of CLiP #7 is experimentation and co-creation. In addition to weekly sessions on Fridays, participants develop a series of monthly “letters to the future(s) we are preparing for”, in any form: video, song, collage, poem, performance, or other creative formats. Together, they will define the outcome of the school, which may take the form of a public LARP, exhibition, radio show, or publication.

Through this process, CLiP #7 creates a space for young people to connect, reflect, and imagine shared futures. By combining hands-on skills with creative methodologies, participants learn how to act collectively, build community, and explore alternative forms of resilience that challenge conventional narratives of survival.

Meet the CLiPers

Stay tuned for our upcoming CLiPers introduction series, where we’ll introduce the individuals shaping this edition, share their stories, and give a closer look at the tools and ideas emerging from The Garage School of Prepping Otherwise. The CLiPers were selected through an open call earlier this year, bringing together a group of young people eager to explore what collective survival can mean today.

Meet the Curators of CLiP #7: The Garage School

For this edition of Collective Learning in Practice (CLiP), Kunstinstituut Melly has invited The Garage School: a nomadic art and education collective led by Santiago Pinyol and Kari Robertson. Together, they reimagine “prepping” as a collective, creative, and hopeful practice.

Monthly Open CLiP Sessions

CLiP #7 also organizes monthly public events, offering everyone a chance to engage with the concepts and practices explored in the program. These sessions take place every last Friday of the month, and each one is free and open to the public.

Our first open session, CLiP Open Session 1: Introduction to LARP by Sophie Allerding (31 October 2025), introduced live action role-play as an artistic and educational method, sharing examples of her work and design techniques.

The next open session, Rethinking Care: Health as Relationship and Resistance (28 November 2025), features Dr Rita Issa, a primary care doctor, researcher, and organiser whose work bridges clinical practice, community organising, and policy. In this public lecture, Issa explores health as both relationship and resistance, presenting visionary care models, from community-led initiatives to reimagined public systems, that expand what’s possible in healthcare today.

Each session opens space for collective reflection and exchange, connecting CLiP participants with wider publics. The final upcoming open session of 2025 will take place on Friday, 19 December 2025.

CLiP is made possible with the generous support of Stichting Mostert-Van der Meijden, Fonds 21, and the Fonds voor Cultuurparticipatie.