Artist Residency: International

Alexandria: (Re)activating Common Urban Imaginaries

Sixteen artists will be able to enjoy a year-long artist residency across several locations focusing their attentions on the city of Alexandria. Alexandria, the largest city on the Mediterranean Sea, is a unique cultural centre. It has a rich intellectual heritage reflecting the influences of many civilisations. Its advantageous geographical position and its influence made it an attractive target for conquest by rival empires. Alexandria has a long history of being under siege and under occupation by many different cultures.

Alexandria: View of Bibliotheca by Ahmed Sherrif
Alexandria: View of Bibliotheca by Ahmed Sherrif

The project offers the artists a chance to explore the infrastructure, networks, dynamics and histories of urban regions, the power structures and colonization and seafaring cultures.

The Creative Europe Programme of the EU is funding these residencies as part of a three-year project. This project aims to study the cities of Athens, Brussels, Marseille and Nicosa through the perspective of Alexandria.

Details of artist residency

Residency locations

The Cittadellarte – Pistoletto Foundation is offering the selected participants a chance to practice their art across several locations. All the artists will spend time in Biella, Italy and Alexandria, Egypt, with individuals will also work in either Marseille, Athens, Brussels or Nicosia. The artists will work towards a final project.

Biella battistero municipio Photograph by Alessandro Vecchi. Location of artist residency.
Biella battistero municipio Photograph by Alessandro Vecchi

Individual requirements

The residencies are open to artists who are fluent in English and who are based in the locations listed below.

  • An EU member state.
  • The United Kingdom.
  • An EU pre-accession country (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey).
  • An EFTA member state (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland).
  • Selected countries from the EU Southern Neighbourhood (Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisa).

The residencies are open to a wide range of artistic disciplines. Emerging or mid-career artists working within the following areas are invited to apply.

  • Painting and printmaking.
  • Performance.
  • Photography.
  • Sculpture.
  • Sound.
  • Moving Image.
  • Text.

Artist Support

All the participants will receive a €3000 fee, in addition to travel, accommodation and meals. A budget of up to €500 is also available for the artist’s final project. This is to be displayed in Athens, Biella, Marseille, Alexandra and Aarhus as part of the project Forums: Contemporary Alexandria.

Deadline for Artist Residency

The deadline for applications is 30 May 2021. Further details and links to the application form can be found here.