Fluid Earth GroundWork Residency Exhibition Programme

It builds on their track-record of environmental art residencies which have taken a strongly inter-disciplinary approach. They welcome broad and imaginative approaches to the subject.

The Fluid Earth GroundWork Residency runs overall from 4 August – 10 September. During this time, each selected artist is required to join in with a research week from 4-9 August, followed by a choice of venue for the production phase for 10 days.

Theme

• Extractivism: the overarching theme
  • The overall concept for the residency up till now has been about extraction and extractivism: the removal of resources from the earth, whether natural or otherwise.
  • Extractivism describes an overarching attitude which legitimises removal as a default, as opposed to replenishing resources or thinking in terms of regeneration. This is often accompanied by an assumption that extraction is a permissible exercise without full consideration of the longer-term implications for sustainability, for pollution, or of ownership of the materials or environments affected.
• Fluid Earth 2025
  • While extractivism remains an important part of their underpinning focus for 2025, they find that there has been a growing interest in diverse human and broadly natural factors which they need to take into account if they are to consider the future of the planet in terms of justice, equality, equity, for people and for nature.
  • Indeed, they cannot consider the future of issues like nature recovery without considering how humans are both part of the problem and part of the solution. But also, that both the problems and solutions involve immense complexity and diversity and need to be approached creatively with that in mind.

Benefits

• Everything that Groundwork Gallery does is about connecting art and environment and making that more evident and powerful. You will be part of that. One of the main benefits is the sharing of resources and skills that takes place across all the participants, between venues and hosts, expert guides, and all the participating artists. In previous years this has been especially appreciated and each year everyone has formed a strong bond.
• They are working with a growing group of residency host partners and advisers. Their aim is to create a network between them of resident artists, past and present, hosts, and advisers, so that together they can strengthen their practice and have a growing effect on the way they see the resources around them. Last year they launched GroundWork NetWork and many of their partners as well as a wide range of creative environmental practitioners and organisations are represented there and can apply to be part of it.

Eligibility Criteria

• For all chosen artists the residency includes a research week based in King’s Lynn, followed by 10 days production residency based at 1 of the 3 participating sites. The emphasis of this second phase will differ, depending on location.
• Application for residency is also open to Associate artists based in East Anglia, not needing accommodation. In all other respects, Associates will be part of the cohort for the residency, joining in with their excursions, events and discussions.

Selection Criteria

• They prioritise artists who best respond to the criteria and subjects they propose and best answer their questions posed as part of the application. They have a selection panel who score applications according to these criteria.
• They are aiming to select up to 3 artists for GroundWork, up to 2 for Broomhill and 1-2 for the Grange. They also wish to select artists from East Anglia who will not need accommodation.

For more information, visit Groundwork Gallery.