Artist Researchers In Residence

Open Call: Artist Researchers In Residence 2024-2025

The UmArts Artist Researchers in Residence Programme (ARIR) provides the opportunity for artists and makers to contribute to the UmArts research environment for one month during 2024 or 2025. The programme will focus on interdisciplinary practice-based researchers from the visual arts, sound arts, media arts, performing arts, architectural, design, maker and hacker communities to develop short term projects in the UmArts research studio and contribute to the UmArts research environment including the Art & AI Working Group. 

To be eligible for ARIR the artist must be resident and eligible to work in the European Union.

This residency will create opportunities to develop your research whatever stage you are at. This is a chance to share knowledge within UmArt’s research groups, make connections and develop collaborations for future research. The selected artists will be contracted through UmArts to develop and or produce a new artistic project at the UmArts Research Studio.

Who can apply?

Artists at any stage of their research career can apply. This can include:

• Artists planning to apply for a PhD 
• Artists currently undertaking doctoral research who would like to undertake a research exchange or project with an UmArts Department. 
• Artists who have completed their PhD but are unable to undertake a postdoc for any reason. 
• International artists working on a research funded project at Umeå University, or with a museum or art gallery in Umeå. 
• Artists who have previously worked in a research project funded by a university or by research funds. 
• Artists participating in an international residency programme.
• Artists with a research-based practice who can demonstrate equivalent research outputs to that of a PhD.
• Artists who have already undertaken an artist’s residency supported by Umeå University in the last 3 years are not eligible to apply.

In 2024/2025 we are looking for two artists and makers, one for the UmArts ARIR programme and one for the TAIGA ARIR programme:

TAIGA ARIR: UmArts will support one artist researcher in residence through the TAIGA focus area in Art and AI micro-project. The artists will be invited to develop new projects investigating Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning as part of the Art and AI Working Group. 

ARIR: UmArts will support an research based artists in a more generalized field of arts practice who will contribute to the UmArts interdisciplinary research environment. 

Practical information

The total time for an the residency is 4 weeks. There are two residency periods, one in autumn, and one in the winter. Applicants can apply for one of these periods. Please tell us which time period you are applying for in your application. The applicant can choose to divide their residency period into week blocks within the time frame, for example a 1 week visit followed by a 3 week visit or any combination of two blocks of time, or choose to complete their residency for four consecutive weeks.

Residency Period 1: 15 August- 31 September (2024)

Residency Period 2: 15 January- 28 February (2025)

We offer a studio space at UmArts Research studio at Arts Campus, Umeå Universitet as well as a fee of 42 000 SEK, to include all personal expenses. In addition UmArts will book travel and accommodation for a maximum of two visits to Umeå. Material and production expenses will need to be negotiated with UmArts. The studio is a large room 42m2 with shared facilities (toilet, kitchenette) with other researchers and events in the building. This studio can also be used for engaging the research community and wider public with the research process during or at the end of the residency period, such as a research exhibition, a seminar or an artist’s talk. The artist is also welcome to organize workshops or other events during the residency. We will organize the structure of the residency period according to the artist’s project. We expect that research artists in residence will engage with UmArt’s program such as seminars and working groups and develop a new artistic research project at the UmArts research studio. 

How and when do I apply?

We welcome your application in a PDF that you email to: info.umarts@umu.se The PDF must contain: 

• Contact details (email, address , website and phone number) 
• If you are applying for a TAIGA (Art and AI) or UmArts ARIR programme.
• Which of the UmArts Departments or working groups you would be interested in working with.
• A 1 page description of your artistic practice and research investigations in text and images. (incl links to publications and exhibitions etc.)
• A 1 page description of how you would make a valuable contribution to the research environment at UmArts, and how the residency would help you to develop your artwork.
• Any other researcher partners or projects which relate to your residency application.
• We also want to know if you are applying for period 1, period 2, or if both are of interest.  Please tell us if you would want to come to Umeå for four consecutive weeks or would prefer to split your residency into two blocks of time within the residency period.
• Please specify if you have any specific materials or facilities requests.

Contract and Fees  

The selected artist will be contracted through UmArts to develop their  artistic research project in the UmArts research studio. This will be an arvode 42 000 SEK (fixed fee) agreement to deliver a project, and it will not be a formal employment. To be eligible for this agreement the artist must be resident and eligible to work in the European Union. Artists are responsible for their own income tax and insurance and must be formally self-employed as a registered company within their national tax system.

Deadline and the selection process

After the application deadline, the panel will make selection based on the most appropriate artist for the role each year in alignment with their current research. The panel will prioritize artists working developing new projects within already established frameworks, eg exhibition projects, gallery commissions, conference or publication projects, funding and project partnerships in line with the aims and objectives of UmArts and the Working Groups.

Open call announced: 6 November (2023)

Deadline for applications: 15 January (2024)

Selection panels meet: January (2024) and present to the UmArts Steering Committee in February

Announcements: 1 March (2024)

Residency: August/September (2024) and January/February (2025)

Further questions about the residence or the application. Please contact Clara West clara.west@umu.se Research Coordinator at UmArts.

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Elena Mazzi, Artist Researcher in Residence, April 2024

Elena Mazzi will be undertaking a residency at UmArts in April 2024 funded by the Italian Council, in partnership with Maria Luna Nobile, Associate Professor at Umeå School of Architecture. Elena Mazzi’s practice is based on the examination of specific territories where she reinterprets the cultural and natural heritage of places, interweaving stories, facts and fantasies handed down by local communities, in order to suggest possible resolutions to the man-nature-culture conflict. Her somewhat anthropological working method favour a holistic approach aimed at repairing the rifts that occur in society. Mazzi studied at the University of Siena and the IUAV in Venice, after which she trained at the Royal Institute of Art (Konsthögskolan) in Stockholm. She is currently undertaking a practice based PhD at the École Nationale Supérieure d’Arts à la Villa Arson in Nice, France.