(A)WAKE is pleased to announce its Open Call for a 6-weeks artist residency programme aimed to support emerging artists from West Asia and North Africa (WANA), who are living in The Netherlands and working in the field of visual and digital media arts.

The artist residency programme focuses on the emancipatory potentials of digital culture, for what it offers in imagining counter narratives and re-building socio-political relations. With the internet and the advancement of digital technology, citizens of the WANA region hoped to get a space of equal (re)presentation. However, the vast majority of digital technology being developed in North America and West Europe continues to reproduce the gender and racial biases inherited from the patriarchal colonial era.

Digital culture refers to all the digitally networked technologies we are surrounded by and embedded in. These technologies, whether physical machines or invisible codes or even the internet itself, are deeply intertwined in the everyday design process; from how things are made and distributed, to the overarching geopolitical and economic reality of the 21st century. Through these digital technologies, we are able to produce code-processed images, 3D-print a tiny screw or a real-size house, as well as exist as alter-egos or deep-fakes in a simulated virtual reality space. In this sense, digital culture refers to the code, the machine that produced the code, the people who wrote and own it, and the users at the end of this chain.

(A)WAKE artist residency programme consists of 3 different artist residency programmes, each consisting of 6 weeks, taking place at MONO club space in Rotterdam, the homebase of (A)WAKE. The programme provides access to a working space in addition to a financial grant of 4,000 euros. During this period, the selected artists are supported by a team of professionals in the fields of visual and digital media arts, planned studio visits, a series of curated public talks and workshops, as well as an opportunity to present the artist’s work during (A)WAKE’s annual ‘New Radicalism’ exhibition.

The three residency periods are planned as follow:

Residency #1: 11 October 2021 until 20 November 2021
Residency #2: 1 Feb 2022 until 12 March 2022
Residency #3: 18 April 2022 until 28 May 2022   

Eligibility
Applications are open to emerging artists from the WANA region (West Asia and North Africa) who are living in The Netherlands. You are a recent graduate (within max. 4 years) from an art-related study or have an equivalent experience within contemporary visual arts. You are proficient in English, and have a strong interest in digital culture and digital media technology.

Requirements

Fill in the application form here
Write a short text (max. 500 words) explaining in what way does this open call respond to your artistic practice, and what is your motivation for applying.
Write a brief description (max. 500 words) about the project that you would like to work on or currently working on, and how this artist residency would help you to develop it
Upload your CV including education background and relevant experience
Upload your visual portfolio (max. file size 25MB). In case of large video files, please send us links via Vimeo or YouTube (using password).

Important note: Only completely filled applications will be considered for the selection process. Meeting the criteria makes your application eligible for consideration by the advisory committee, who then make the final selection of three artists. Jury will be soon announced.

Important dates

12 April 17:00 – 18:00 and 26 April 13:00 – 14:00: Opportunity to ask questions about the open call via an open Zoom session.
9 May 2021: Application deadline
13 May 2021: Meeting of short-listed candidates with the jury committee
17 May 2021: Announcement of selected artists

About (A)WAKE
With MONO as its home base, (A)WAKE provides a space for the in-between voices with multiple cultural backgrounds. We develop cultural programs that do justice to the complexity of our current socio-political context and to the perspectives of minorities who have been overlooked and/or tokenized by mainstream institutions. In a world dominated by media and populism, we move freely between the domains of contemporary art and politics. We believe deeply in the seductive power of aesthetics and design, and connect this with voices of counterculture to reach a wide and diverse audience. The direction of (A)WAKE is driven by questioning the emancipatory potential of the digital world in favor of equal access and mutual cultural exchange between WANA and West Europe. Through the focus on these two regions which we personally find ourselves in, we aim towards creative and critical approaches which challenge the greater North-South power dynamics through art and digital culture.

Any questions?
Make sure to read the list of FAQ before applying, and in case you have any other questions you can join the open Zoom session on 12 & 26 April, or contact us directly at: hello@a-wake.world