Main information
- Artistic field(s): Visual arts ; digital arts ; sound arts, writing
- Setting: Urban
- Number of available artist in residence spots: 1 artist in residence as part of the Nouveau Grand Tour NL
- Dates: 1 April – 30 June 2025
- Duration of the residency: One work period of 3 months
About
Within the depths of the Nieuwe Instituut, the Dutch agency for architecture, design and digital cultures, at the end of a metal staircase, nestled between buzzing servers, lies a new space dedicated to digital cultures: ‘-1’. Both a laboratory and an exhibition space, ‘-1’ aims to respond to the urgent need to address critical issues in digital cultures: the rapid development of artificial intelligence, the re-emergence of ‘DIY’ technology, the growing interest in ‘low-tech’ practices and the inclusion of more diverse and alternative voices in the field of computing.
A testing ground for the intersection of digital culture and its practitioners, ‘-1’ offers artists and researchers creative and research residencies, modelling workshops and collective brainstorming sessions, whilst presenting ongoing and unfinished projects, research documents, prototypes, hardware, software and ideas that bring these works to life, to members off the public.
Location
The second most populous city in the Netherlands after its capital Amsterdam, Rotterdam is a dynamic, cosmopolitan city, renowned for its modern architecture and impressive harbour. The city was largely rebuilt after its destruction during the Second World War, lending it a unique, avant-garde character: iconic monuments such as the Erasmus Bridge and cube-shaped houses stand side by side with contemporary skyscrapers. As well as being a major logistical and economic centre, Rotterdam is also synonymous with culture, home to renowned museums, art galleries and a vibrant music scene. This major port city is working to become one of the greenest and most sustainable urban areas in the Netherlands.
Who is this residency aimed at ?
This residency is aimed at an artist, designer or curator operating at the boundaries of digitally born, digitally mediated or digitally adjacent practices that address critical issues in digital culture through alternative voices in computing. Research interests span across an array of concerns from the sonic resonances of gravitational waves and intimacy in digital bodies to anticolonial photogrammetry and digital decay. There are two types of residencies at –1; artist in residence and researcher in residence. The residencies are distinguished by the expected installation of an artwork at the start of the residency period. Artists in residence are expected to install an existing or prototype artwork at the start of their residency for public display at –1. On the other hand, the Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence is invited to join our researcher in residence programme, whereby no installation is required at the start of the residency. However, an installation can be considered over the 3-month period where appropriate.
At –1, all residencies (artistic and research) including installed artworks are incomplete and in progress, meaning installations can be added or altered over time with no expectation of output at the conclusion of the residency.
In addition, as a researcher in residence, the Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence is offered the opportunity to take advantage of group research meetings, one-on-one research, spatial and technical meetings, public and semi-public showcases, and the broadcast and media studio of the Nieuwe Instituut.
Residents are also provided with open access to resources and teams at Nieuwe Instituut, including the research and production teams, the Research Centre, printing, plotting and copy services, meeting /working space, and free entry to exhibitions. Despite being a public exhibition, research and prototyping space, -1 is also an active working environment, so residents are in close contact with the –1 team.
This residency is for you if you require the following elements :
- A quiet environment
- Professional connections
- Immersion in a community of artists
- Immersion in an urban culture
- Total autonomy
- Access to artistic and technical guidance
- Honing your knowledge of specific techniques and/or materials
- An interdisciplinary setting
Types of eligible projects
-1 welcomes candidates who operate at the boundaries of digitally born, digitally mediated or digitally adjacent practices that address critical issues in digital culture through alternative voices in computing. In process is at the heart of –1, including the desire to think beyond predominant notions of what digital art, digital making and research can be. In this way, all socially engaged or communally embedded (broadly defined) project types, mediums and aims are considered. As a researcher in residence, individuals at all career stages are welcomed.
Practical information
- Working language: English
- Number of artists in residence: Alongside the Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence, three to six Dutch and/or international emerging artists and researchers will be selected in January 2025 to form a small group of residents who will represent the ecosystem of the next ‘season’ of ‘-1’ at the Nieuwe Instituut.
- Accessibility: The Nieuwe Instituut can be accessed by those using a wheelchair.
- Hosting of family members: There is a possibility to host family members, although this cannot be guaranteed.
- Travelling to and from the train station: The Nieuwe Instituut is located in the Museumpark, in the heart of the city, about 20 minutes’ walk from Rotterdam Central Station.
- Access to supermarkets: There are plenty of grocery shops and shops nearby.
- Cultural institutions close by: V2_ lab for the instable media, WORM, Varia, Depot Boijmans, Kunsthal Rotterdam, Kunstinstituut Melly, Nederlands Fotomuseum, Brutus, Huidenclub, Art Rotterdam, International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), etc.
Support and guidance
In addition to the financial, administrative, human and professional support provided by the Institut français NL, the residency offers the following support:
- Artistic guidance: The Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence is invited to participate in monthly meetings for presentations and discussions on subjects chosen by the group as a whole. The Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence is also regularly invited to take part in one-on-one meetings with the ‘-1’ team to discuss the creative and research process.
- Material guidance: The Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence has free access to the resources of the Nieuwe Instituut, including the research and production teams, the research centre, printing, plotting and copying services, meeting and work spaces, and free admission to exhibitions.
- Technical guidance: Technical and other artistic guidance is provided as needed and where appropriate.
- Accommodation: As the Nieuwe Instituut is unable to provide accommodation for the Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence, the Institut français NL will provide a solution.
- Workspace: The Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence can work in the ‘-1’ space, which is accessible during the opening hours of the Nieuwe Instituut, or in any of the Nieuwe Instituut’s working spaces; they also have daily access to the Nieuwe Instituut’s non-public spaces.
- Professional guidance: Residencies at ‘-1’ are tailor-made to meet the needs of each resident. Every effort is made to provide artists with the tools and knowledge they need to carry out their research.
- Public programme: Residencies at ‘-1’ are process- and not outcome-oriented; nevertheless, the Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence has the opportunity to present his or her work privately to the other residents or semi-publicly to the staff of the Nieuwe Instituut and the Institut français NL. If the Nouveau Grand Tour NL artist in residence chooses to install works at ‘-1’, these will only be exhibited during the opening hours of the Nieuwe Instituut.
Contact information
- Address : Nieuwe Instituut, Museumpark 25, 3015 CB, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
- Website : -1
- Programme coordinator: Ramon Amaro, researcher on Digital Culture (Nieuwe Instituut)
