Open Call for Rupert’s Residency Programme 2020

Rupert’s Residency programme is dedicated to local and international practitioners and thinkers (such as artists, writers, curators, researchers, cultural managers and academics), providing them with the opportunity to live and work in Vilnius while developing individual projects and immersing themselves in the region’s contemporary art field. The residents can also get involved in Rupert’s Alternative Education and Public programmes, where the residents can attend talks, lectures and workshops by prominent curators, artists and thinkers from all over the world.

From its inception, Rupert’s three programmes have been and are driven by a central ethos of establishing collaborations and conversations between residents, local and international art organisations and artists, and between other initiatives and professional fields in Vilnius and further afield. Our programmes provide a setting for knowledge sharing and develop these collaborations and encounters into artistic, social and/or community-based projects, exhibitions and other outcomes.

Prospective residents are encouraged to specify whether their intended proposal is more research-based or oriented towards a production-based project, requiring particular materials or utilities. They should consider and indicate in their application the desired length of their residency dependent on how they would like to use their time.

It is important that the resident is willing to immerse themselves in Vilnius’ and the region’s contemporary art field. Residents can apply with any project proposal engaging with any theme, and we also welcome residents to engage with Rupert’s Public and Alternative Education programme’s themes, although this is not a requirement.  Specifically, next year, through public talks, seminars, workshops and institutional creative exchanges, Rupert’s programmes will focus on  practices and notions of care, interdependence and hospitality, especially as they have been developed from the disability movement. Together with a variety of guests, our programming will consider these notions from several perspectives –  for example, from artistic, activist, policy and research positions. We will focus these discussions and practices in relation to global and socio-economic issues, while also specifically exploring how they engage with the Baltic and local context. This programming will form part of long term alliances and collaborations.

ABOUT RUPERT

Located in the picturesque area of Valakampiai in Vilnius and only a short distance from the city’s flourishing cultural center, Rupert is set by the river Neris and a small river beach, surrounded by peaceful fields and a forest. The residencies are located in a recently constructed building called Pakrantė, designed by award-winning Lithuanian architect, Audrius Ambrasas. Pakrantė was founded  as an arts incubator and houses a number of creative industries initiatives. Each resident is provided with a studio space and mezzanine (approximately 52 sq m.) to be used as a production and research space during the residency. The studio is fully furnished and equipped with WiFi. The building also houses a reading room, conference room and a kitchen, all of which are open for residents’ use. Each resident is also provided with a Mac computer and a bicycle.

The residencies are FREE this application round thanks to support from the Lithuanian Council for Culture and other grants. Rupert supports the resident with a studio, utilities, curatorial support (a minimum of 2 studio visits or feedback sessions per month), provides administrative support and facilitates access to required contacts, tools, materials and information for research and production. Applicants are responsible for covering personal (daily and travel) expenses, although a limited number of travel and production grants are available for some selected candidates. Rupert’s team will issue acceptance letters for successful residents and support their applications for external grants to cover the residency fee, travel, food, production and other costs.

RESIDENCY DURATION

Individual residencies can last from 1 to 3 months or longer in exceptional cases. Residents are asked to propose their preferred duration of stay and if accepted this can be negotiated according to studio availability and schedule. Artist collectives of up to 3-4 persons can apply to an individual residency spot. Residencies will take place between 1 January, 2020 — 31 December, 2020.

APPLICATION GUIDELINES AND SPECIFICATIONS

Please send as ONE PDF (up to 15mb in total) your Residency Application Form for 2020 along with your CV, portfolio (no more than 5 works; the number of images for each work is not limited) and application fee payment receipt to residencies@rupert.lt before midnight, Monday 24 June, 2019.

Please send the file in the following format:

‘Full Name_Residency application 2020’;

There is a 10 € application fee towards administrative costs of the residency Open Call. It can be paid via PayPal through Rupert’s website before midnight, 24 June, 2019. Bank transfer can also be arranged if the applicant does not have a Paypal account, more here. 

Successful applicants will be selected for Skype or live interviews with the residency admissions jury, which will take place shortly after the application deadline. Open Call results will be announced at the end of August, 2019.

Image: Rupert resident Eleni Papazoglou in her studio, October 2018. Photo credit: Vika Paškelytė