Organizer Information
The Australian Network for Art & Technology (ANAT) is a not-for-profit organization incorporated as the Australian Network for Art in Technology in 1988, growing out of an art and technology project first presented at the Adelaide Festival of Arts in 1984. Based in Adelaide, South Australia, ANAT positions itself as a global leader in brokering opportunities for artists to work with science and technology partners, delivering residencies, symposia, workshops, and other professional pathways through national and international networks. Its Synapse residency program, first launched in 2004, has connected artists with science and technology partners across dozens of host organisations in Australia over the past two decades.
Title & Description
ANAT Synapse Residency Program 2027
The ANAT Synapse residency program brings Australian artists together with Australian research organisations for a period of self-guided creative research, without the expectation of a predetermined outcome. Artists apply jointly with a host research partner they have identified and engaged with beforehand, and undertake a 16-week (full-time equivalent) residency combining onsite and offsite work — including in-person visits, online meetings, calls, and independent studio research. The program emphasizes collaborative experimentation at the earliest stage of idea development, connecting practices as varied as sound art and ecology, new media and data science, or poetry and astrophysics.
Categories
- Residency
- Interdisciplinary Arts
- Research
- Technology
- Science-adjacent (see Additional Details)
- Multiple Disciplines
- Cross Disciplines
Eligibility
- Artist must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, based in Australia at the time of the residency
- Applicant must be an individual artist (artist groups are not eligible; the fee covers one artist only)
- Host research organisation must be based in Australia and willing/able to host an artist-in-residence for 16 weeks full-time (or part-time equivalent)
- Artist must have already engaged with the intended host organisation prior to submitting an application
- Not eligible: tertiary students, including PhD candidates, where the residency would count toward an academic qualification
- Not eligible: residencies forming part of the artist's paid employment or contract work
- Not eligible: artists with predetermined outcomes already in mind (e.g. a specific artwork for exhibition)
- Not eligible: artist recipients of an ANAT Synapse residency within the past 10 years of this round
- Not eligible: artist recipients of other major ANAT programs within the past 5 years
- Not eligible: artists submitting the same project proposal for a third time or more
- Host organisations may submit only one application per round
- Proposals involving First Nations knowledge systems, artists, or communities must include letters of support from those people/communities and comply with Creative Australia's protocols
Program Benefits & Awards
- Artist fee of $19,250 (ex GST), plus 12% superannuation, paid in regular instalments across the residency term
- Up to $3,500 contributed by ANAT toward other project expenses, if required
- In-kind access to the host's staff expertise, space, equipment, and resources, as agreed in the application budget
- Dedicated, outcome-free time to develop concepts and explore themes
- Contribution to an online creative research journal, archived and shareable long-term
- Participation in an "ANAT Micro Talk," reaching national and international audiences
- Inclusion in ANAT's Alumni network of artists, scientists, and technologists
- Wider exposure via ANAT's national and international networks
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 14 October 2026
- Notification: Late November 2026
- Residency period: February–October 2027
Location
Australia
Additional Details
- Applications are assessed by an independent panel of art, science, and technology practitioners alongside ANAT staff, against criteria including originality/innovation, artistic merit and depth of research intent, demonstrated collaborative willingness, anticipated mutual benefit, project viability within budget, and community/audience engagement potential.
- Successful recipients must provide images, bio, headshot, and a short project description for ANAT's public announcement; attend a meet & greet, mid-residency check-in, and farewell/wrap-up meeting with ANAT; contribute regularly to the online creative research journal with accompanying social media copy; participate in the 2027 ANAT Micro Talk; and complete an end-of-residency questionnaire.
- ANAT recommends drafting the application in a personal working document before submitting via the online form, and keeping a copy for personal records.
- The online application form conforms to WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards; a Word document version or other alternative formats can be requested directly from ANAT.
- ANAT is supported by the Australian Government through Creative Australia and the South Australian Government through CreateSA.