Open Call!
Open Call AiR Berlin Alexanderplatz (ABA)
Deadline: Saturday 31st of August 2019, before midnight.
Research residencies for Swiss or artists based in Switzerland
supported by Pro Helvetia
Applications should be e
mailed to: info@airberlinalexanderplatz.de
Saturday 31st of August 2019, before midnight.
ABA offers research-based residencies with a programme which focuses on collective and experimental knowledge production as well an on the direct engagement with Berlin’s artistic and cultural landscape. This opportunity will enable an emerging Swiss or Switzerland-based artist to undertake a fully- funded research residency at ABA in Berlin for 6 months. Annually, there are two residency periods with three residencies:
Two residencies from March till August, one residency from September till February.
The ABA residency offers opportunities for self-led professional development, artistic exchange and experimentation.
This call is open to artists up to the age of 35 who are in the first 5 years of their professional artistic careers (either after they have obtained their artistic degree or following the first public presentation of their work).
The Residency Comprises:
• A fully equipped one-room apartment in the city-center of Berlin
• Access to a shared equipped studio (sharing it with other visiting artists)
• A monthly grant for basic living expenses of CHF 1’000 paid by Pro Helvetia directly to the artist
• A onetime production grant of CHF 500, which can be used either for production costs or for the Salon
• Artistic and curatorial support from the ABA team during the stay
• The artist will have the possibility to present the work in two presentational formats:
1) ABA Lab: a place for presentation of spontaneous and self-organized nature, where the resident discusses previous work.
2) ABA Salon: a gathering held within private or public sphere. The Salon is organized nomadically, meaning that an individually defined location in Berlin is utilized as a temporary platform for this gathering. ABA provides support on the organization of the salon, which is usually held at the end of each residents’ stay.
Selection and Eligibility
The residency is open to contemporary visual artists working in all disciplines, though one must note ABA’s restricted facilities. Aspiring artists producing high quality work who have not had the opportunity to work in Berlin before will be prioritized. Applicants should have at least a moderate level of spoken English or German, and should feel comfortable engaging in artistic discussions in English or German. It is important that all applicants research ABA’s programme thoroughly before submitting their application to be fully aware of the context, which they would – if successful – be entering. Applicants who have previously applied to this residency can reapply.
The selected artist should be able to engage discursively and speculatively with ABA’s environment and Berlin’s wider artistic and cultural context. With this in mind, applicants should submit a project proposal within their application, outlining their specific research interests and intentions for the residency. Those who fail to submit a considered proposal that is specific to this residency and the Berlin context will be disqualified.
Selection Process
The artist will be selected based on their application. A decision will be made by a selection committee comprising: Susanne Kriemann (Artist, artistic director and co-founder of ABA), Aleksander Komarov (Artist, managing director and co-founder at ABA) and Jelena Delic (Specialist Visual Arts, Pro Helvetia). The successful artist only will be notified before September 19th 2018.
Application Procedure
We accept digital applications only. Please note that there is a 15 MB limit on each email sent to us. If your email is over 15 MB you will receive a message saying ‘mailbox is full’ when you submit your application. In this instance, please check the file size of your application and re-size or send your files via ‘we transfer’ or a similar file sharing service, if necessary.
There is no application form but your application should submit the following as part of only ONE PDF file titled as your full name (e.g. ‘Full Name.pdf’):
1. Title and Brief description (500 Characters)
2. A CV/Resume including information on foreign language competence
3. Please explain the motivation behind your application and the targets of your stay, which could include a short description of a research project specific to the context of Berlin or your residency at ABA, .(up to 4000 Characters)
4. Documentation of your work, for video please include links for viewing (PDF, Doc, max. 15 MB).
5. A cover sheet with name, contact address, e-mail and telephone numbers if available, plus confirmation that you will be available during one of the time-frames mentioned above.
Applications that do not follow this format will not be considered.
Application Deadline: Friday 31st of August 2019, before midnight.
Applications should be emailed to: info@airberlinalexanderplatz.de