Open Call for Media Art Residency in Creative City Košice

Creative Industry Košice & KAIR Košice Artists in Residence announce an open call for media artists from UNESCO Creative Cities. The deadline to apply for the residency is 20 August 2021.

Open Call: Residency in Košice – UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts 

After the two successful years, here comes a follow-up! Košice – UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts offers media artists a two-month stay in Košice in autumn 2021. The residency is organized by the NGO Creative Industry Košice – a focal point of UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts, and by KAIR Košice Artist in Residence. 

 

About Košice 

Never a place of the biggest names, insane cash flows or Top 10 Lonely Planet’s places to visit. Some say it’s just the last ten years since Košice changed its mindset, became open to different ideas and started to define itself as rather cool and vivid. A hundred years ago, it was a mere speck of a creative centre compared to what defines the city today. 

Slovakia’s second city stands firm on its foundation for a bright future. The European Capital of Culture 2013 literally redesigned the cultural infrastructure of the town, spread culture to the suburban areas and formed exquisite places for the exhibition. Diverse bottom-to-up and up-to-bottom locations, emerging galleries displaying young art, active citizenship initiatives, world concerts and over 15 cultural centres piled with interesting people and nutritious talks.  

Gone are the days of being known as a steel city. Now with a booming ICT industry and a growing creative sector, Košice has been slowly transforming into a cauldron of culture. 

Although we wouldn’t dare to guess what one-quarter of a million people here do, one thing we know for sure. The creative and cultural scene here is small but pretty solid and zealous. 

In 2017, Košice joined the prestigious UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the field of Media Arts to develop this niche industry on the local level. If you are an artist flirting with an idea to come to Košice – do come in autumn. The last months of the year tend to be most generous for the media arts and digital culture showcase. Starting off with White Night, followed by the festivals Moon Ride, Art & Tech Days and DAAVS. All have much to offer for the eligible distinction of the Creative City of Media Arts. 

 

About CIKE & KAIR

The NGO Creative Industry Košice (CIKE) is a focal point of UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts, which aims to inspire new generations through the interdisciplinary and innovative language of media arts. The organisation started as a daring project Interface – European Capital of Culture 2013 and brought a major transformation of the city. One of its key projects was KAIR Košice Artist in Residence, which started in 2011 and got a stable ground to develop the international activities and network of partners. In 2016 KAIR became an independent association.

KAIR is an international Artist-in-Residence programme for artists from all over the world and out of all artistic disciplines and expressions. It is strongly focused on international cooperations between the Slovak and foreign artists and art organisations. Artists have the possibility to work in the inspiring environment of Košice‘s singular cultural surrounding to realize art projects, collaborate with the agile local art scene and present themselves to the local and European public.

 

Media Arts Residency 2021

This specific residency seeks to create space for a media artist from one of the UNESCO Creative Cities to develop his/her own artistic project. The residency is an opportunity to create a new project or to continue work on something in development by shifting its perspective and embracing the open call’s topic.

The open call is limited to the artists who are either born, live or work in any of UNESCO Creative City.

During the residency, the artist will be asked to participate in Open Studios Night to introduce himself/ herself to the local audience. By the end of the residency program, the artist will provide a public exhibition and a final presentation of the work created over the 60-day long residency period. The exhibition and presentation will be a part of the international festival of media arts, technology and digital culture – Art & Tech Days. The artist will be also given the option to be one of the speakers at the Art & Tech Conference (optional).

 

Topic: Human Responsibility

In 2021, the residency program focuses on connecting individuals and sharing the responsibility to the world in the time of crisis. The aim of the project is not only to analyze the current situation but especially to look critically at its consequences and the near and distant future. We are all experiencing the very personal and often emotional impact of a common global crisis (pandemic, environmental, economic, social, etc.). Many of us share feelings of fear and anxiety, vulnerability or environmental sadness. It is important to think about the environment in which we live and share with other living organisms. Living space for people is constantly expanding, the way of life shaped by capitalism affects and irreversibly disrupts our fragile ecosystems, following the beginning of an impending catastrophe. For the daily running of the world, unlimited mobility of people and goods is a matter of course today. We must take this into account to protect this and the next generation and to be able to adapt to existing and new challenges. The year 2020 brought, together with the pandemic, the term “social distance”. What does this term mean, what are its consequences? Isn’t this just a time for connection, cooperation and solidarity? During and after the crisis, we must focus on building and supporting future relations, looking for new or different forms of political and cultural group activities and coexistence. Especially during the global crisis, emphasis must be placed on protecting the human rights of all citizens. The state of emergency and the preservation of public health can be used as an excuse for the segregation of minorities. That is why we should try to strengthen the position of minorities, improve their self-image and expose the stereotypes that are still present in the thinking of the majority of the population.

 

Artists can search for answers to questions:

Is the current crisis causing a change in thinking and personal values? Or is it just temporary? 

What are the possible new or different forms of political and cultural group activities and coexistence? And how does the environment in which we live, including other living organisms, fit into this coexistence? 

How could the world slow down in the fight against the virus so that our society and economy respect our fragile ecosystems? 

What are the results and consequences of the process of moving between different places on Earth and beyond? 

How can the protection of human rights be ensured for all citizens? And what can we do to protect this and future generations?

 

The deadline to apply for the residency is 20 August 2021, 23:59 (CEST). 

Timeframe

Open call announcement: 12 July 2021

Deadline for the applications: 20 August 2021, 23:59 (CEST)

Results announced: 30 August 2021

Residential stay in Košice: 1 October – 29 November 2021 

 

What we offer 

Scholarship 2000 EURO (gross)

Covering of transportation costs to and from Košice

Providing accommodation in Košice

KAIR studio

Budget for technical production (up to 4000 Euro)

An opportunity to participate in the art and community life of the city and to promote own work in Košice

 

FOR APPLYING TO THE RESIDENCY, PLEASE USE THIS GOOGLE FORM ONLINE.

May you have any questions or problems with the online form, please contact us at kosice@cityofmediaarts.sk.

In a case of an unfavourable situation in regards to COVID- 19 or another vis major, the residency or its parts will be postponed until spring 2022. It will be agreed individually with a selected artist-in-residence.

The residency program is supported using public funding by Slovak Arts Council.