Open Call for Artistic Residencies: S+T+ARTS Aqua Motion

This Call for Artists seeks 25 artists to participate in a 9-month Residency, followed by a 4- month Scale-Up programme, hosted across four European regions: Portugal (Atlantic and Arctic basin), the Netherlands (North Sea and Baltic basin), Austria (Danube River basin), and Italy (Mediterranean Sea basin).

Each residency will address pressing regional water issues, co-defined through local Water Innovation Labs (WILs) involving actors from across the quintuple helix — academia, industry, government, civil society, and the environment.

Artists will be supported to develop tangible artistic outputs – such as installations, performances, or functional prototypes – that effectively address distinct regional water management challenges.

Focus Areas

• Key areas of focus in the Aqua Motion programme include:
  • Biodiversity and ecosystem restoration: Addressing marine and freshwater biodiversity loss through ecological and habitat restoration.
  • Pollution reduction: Implementing solutions for mitigating industrial waste, agricultural runoff, and microplastics contamination.
  • Climate resilience and adaptation: Developing strategies to manage the impacts of climate change on water resources, particularly in relation to floods and droughts.
  • Sustainable consumption: Promoting responsible water usage in agriculture, industry, and urban settings through innovative technologies and behavioural changes.
  • Cultural and social engagement: Strengthening emotional and cultural connections to water, thereby fostering community cohesion, health, and well-being.

Benefits

• Access to specialised resources, technological infrastructure, and facilities provided by the residency host institutions.
• Participation in an individualised Mentoring Programme.
• Expert guidance and support within the interdisciplinary 5-Helix structure, enabling artists to collaborate closely with business, academia, government, environment, and civil society representatives.
• Access to the extensive Europe-wide S+T+ARTS network, including participation in community-building events, workshops, and networking opportunities (both online and in-person).
• Opportunities to present artistic outcomes at prominent international exhibitions and events, including potential participation at a conference at the Ars Electronica Festival, Venice Biennale, Brussels-based pop-up events, and other high-visibility events.
• Visibility through high impact communication activities to promote the artistic output and its innovation spillovers.

Funding Information

• EUR 40,000 budget per artist residency, covering artist fees, costs associated with participation in exhibitions and public events, and other relevant expenses necessary for the successful implementation of the residency (including production of artworks or prototypes).

Programme Specifications

• Phase 1 (Ideation, Month 1): Artists collaborate closely with local stakeholders— including scientists, technologists, community leaders, and policymakers—to explore and define regional water challenges.
• Phase 2 (Experiment, Months 2-3): Artists develop concrete project proposals and initial prototypes, leveraging advanced technologies such as AI, digital twins, and nature-based solutions.
• Phase 3 (Sense Making, Month 4): Artists present detailed plans and early prototypes for stakeholder evaluation. Feedback from experts, community members, and industry partners is gathered to assess potential impacts and refine project direction.
• Phase 4 (Prototype, Months 5-9): Prototypes are prepared and works showcased through public exhibitions, performances, and digital platforms. This phase provides a platform to start raising public awareness, engaging stakeholders, and inspiring broader adoption of innovative water management solutions across regions.
• 4-month Scale up Phase:
  • Phase 5 (Immersion, Months 10-11): Artists and stakeholders present their artistic solutions to targeted audiences—including industry leaders, policymakers, and investors—to explore real-world adoption opportunities and strategic partnerships.
  • Phase 6 (Acceleration & Impact, Months 12-13): This phase is focused on advancing the innovative solutions developed and promoting their societal, technological and/or market uptake.

Expected Outcomes

• Development and production: Produce a tangible, presentable, art-driven innovative artistic outputs addressing specific regional water management challenges.
• Collaboration with Residency Stakeholders: Work closely with diverse stakeholders, including the Consortium Partners, Residency Hosts and WIL members to ensure outputs are deeply connected to regional contexts and address specific water-related issues effectively.
• Presence at residency host site and region: Residents are expected to spend a minimum of 5 weeks at the site and region of the residency host/co-hosting partners.
• Community engagement: Actively participate in and contribute to local, national, or international community-driven events, workshops, seminars, and educational activities.

Eligibility Criteria

• To be an eligible applicant, proposals must be submitted by either an individual artist or a collective of artists who meet the following rules:
  • The Call offers equal access to all artists. Applicants from any nationality are eligible, at the condition that they can travel (with a valid visa where applicable) to the country of the residency.
  • Fiscal identification: Applicants must have a valid fiscal identification number (such as VAT or similar).
  • Independence from consortium partners: Applicants must not be affiliated with any of the S+T+ARTS AQUA MOTION consortium partners, their affiliated entities, employees, or permanent collaborators. Former residents from host institutions are eligible to apply.
  • Artistic experience: Applicants must have a documented portfolio of their artistic work, which will be assessed based on their artistic experience. They should have been practicing their art for at least the past 5 years, with a clear focus on creating new work or projects. They should be able to demonstrate a track record of exhibitions, public performances, publications, awards, credits, or grants.
  • Language: All written and verbal communication throughout the application process must be conducted in English.
  • Multiple submissions: An artist can submit maximum 2 proposals provided that submissions are for different challenges, therefore proposals must be entirely different from each other. In the application system, multiple applications should be given a priority of preference and indicated on the application form by the artist.

Ineligibility Criteria

• Previous S+T+ARTS Residency Grants: Applicants who have already received a S+T+ARTS residency grant for 2025 or 2026 are not eligible to apply.

For more information, visit S+T+ARTS Aqua Motion.