Business and Brushwork
Cultural skills for future business leaders: that’s the motto of the annual Kulturkreis Scholarship (formerly Bronnbach Scholarship), which has supported and challenged University of Mannheim students since 2004. Master’s student Jonathan Sattler offers an exclusive look into the program—and explains what makes it so unique.
A weekend to unwind, forget everything else, and dive into a world you might never have explored otherwise—that’s what Jonathan Sattler values most about the Kulturkreis Scholarship. A member of the 22nd cohort, the Mannheim Master in Management student has only completed three of a total of eight workshops, but he’s already sure: applying for the scholarship was one of the best decisions he’s made.
Each year, the program brings together 16 fellows—eight from the University of Mannheim and eight from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)—for eight weekend workshops that explore a wide variety of artistic and cultural fields, such as architecture, music, and dance. The workshops are held at different locations across Germany and are led by various professional artists and curator Konstantin Adamopoulos.
“As a business student, I spend a lot of time with numbers, data, and facts. These workshops are a welcome change of pace,” Sattler says of his motivation to apply. “They give us a completely new way of seeing the world—and ourselves.” So far, the 24-year-old experimented with poetry, acting, and most recently, painting. “The painting workshop has been my favorite so far,” he adds.
Workshops as a safe space
What does a typical workshop weekend look like? “Friday night, we meet the person teaching the course. Then on Saturday, after breakfast, we dive into the topic—last time, we started by building our own canvas frames,” Sattler recalls. To find inspiration for their paintings, the students were asked to play their favorite song and share a few words about it. Then came the creative part: “The canvas was about 1.10 by 1.40 meters, so we weren’t finished painting until Sunday afternoon.”
Over the course of the weekend, Sattler spent roughly ten hours painting, punctuated by feedback sessions with artist Carsten Fock and fellow students. He admits he was a little nervous beforehand: “Making art always involves risk—you never know how people will respond. But this scholarship creates a small safe space. The atmosphere is amazing, and everyone is incredibly kind and supportive.”
A testament to this sense of camaraderie is the tradition of all students spending Saturday nights together. “After the painting workshop, we went out together in Würzburg,” Sattler says with a laugh. “They’ve got a pretty good club there.” Despite coming from very different academic backgrounds—this year’s cohort includes students of psychology, business law, and mathematical economics—they all share the same mindset: “Everyone’s open and curious, and excited to try something new.”
“Incredibly enriching”
The Kulturkreis Scholarship primarily targets master’s students and doctoral candidates from non-humanities fields, offering them a meaningful introduction to the world of arts and culture. The goal is to support personal growth and foster leadership skills. Sattler agrees: “It’s easy to get stuck in your own little bubble and forget that other people see the world in very different ways. Recognizing that can be a huge advantage—especially if you hope to lead a team someday.”
The way he perceives his surroundings has already started to shift, he says. “When I walk past the paintings in the Schloss, I see them differently now. I wonder how they came to be.” He concludes: “The exchange with the other scholars and artists has been incredibly enriching. It’s helped me see things from very different perspectives.”
Text: Jessica Scholich / August 2025
- The Kulturkreis Scholarship is an offer from Kulturkreis der deutschen Wirtschaft im BDI e. V., which has been supporting students at the University of Mannheim since 2004.
- The Kulturkreis der deutschen Wirtschaft is the most traditional institution for corporate cultural sponsorship in Germany. As an independent network of committed companies, it is committed to artistic freedom as a central pillar of democracy.
- The application phase for the 23rd round of the Kulturkreis scholarship starts on 1 November 2025 and ends on 18 January 2026.
- An information event on the scholarship will take place on 19 November 2025 from 6 p.m. in O 048.
- More information can be found on our website.