Open Call: EMBracing the Ocean Artist-in-Residence Programme

Deadline Date: February 17, 2025

 Donor Name: European Marine Board

Grant Size: $10,000 to $100,000

https://www.marineboard.eu/open-calls

The European Marine Board is inviting applications from two new artists for the 2025 – 2026 edition of their ‘EMBracing the Ocean’ Artist-in-Residence Programme.

A key principle of the EMBracing the Ocean programme is co-creation of work between artists and their scientific collaborators. Co-creation is the process of creating something new together while exchanging and reshaping ideas. The artists and scientists are considered equal and each benefits and learns from the process. The goal of co-created art-science projects should go beyond making complex scientific topics more accessible to the public, and also help scientists to gain new insights and/or perspectives into their work by collaborating with artists.

The EMBracing the Ocean programme additionally supports the goals of the EU Mission Restore “our” Ocean and Waters (Mission Ocean) to protect and restore marine ecosystems and biodiversity, prevent and eliminate pollution in the Ocean and to make the sustainable blue economy carbon-neutral and circular. 

Aim

• The aims of the programme are to:
  • raise societal awareness of and embrace connection to the Ocean
  • inspire positive behaviour towards sustainability
  • contribute new insight and/or perspectives to science.

Funding Information

• Two awardees will be selected for the programme and each will be awarded a grant of €10,000. The grant will be paid periodically throughout the 12-month residency on completion of planned deliverables. 

Expected Outcomes

• By the end of the 12-month residency, the awardees must have produced tangible result(s) including an initial public output e.g. a new piece of work, or series of work, through a two-way co-design process with Ocean scientists and first public presentation. This may build on the artists previous work, but there must be an element of novelty that is co-developed with the scientist(s). The work can focus on any Ocean science topic relevant for sustainable development, including but not limited to those covered by the marine science-policy work of the EMB, and/or wider activities within the framework of the Ocean Decade.

Eligibility Criteria

• The programme is open to creative individuals/groups from a wide variety of artistic disciplines. Both emerging and established artists will be considered by the committee. Prior experience in co-creation with scientists and/or communities and working on sustainability topics is desirable. Applications are welcome from across the world, and from a wide range of creative disciplines, including but not limited to:
  • visual arts (e.g. drawing, painting, filmmaking, photography, sculpting, digital arts, installation art);
  • literary arts (e.g. fiction, drama, poetry, storytelling);
  • performing arts (e.g. dance, music, theatre); and
  • traditional and indigenous arts.

For more information, visit European Marine Board.