Organizer Information
APOSTAXIS is an international cultural cooperation project dedicated to exploring displacement, memory, resilience, and cultural heritage through contemporary artistic practice. The initiative is implemented within the ZMINA: Resilience program, a European cooperation project led by IZOLYATSIA (Ukraine) in partnership with Malý Berlín (Slovakia) with the support of Trans Europe Halles (Sweden). The project is co-funded by the European Union and promotes artistic collaboration between Ukraine and Cyprus while strengthening cultural exchange across Europe.
The project responds to the growing need to preserve both tangible and intangible cultural heritage in communities affected by forced displacement. While Ukraine continues to face widespread displacement caused by Russia's full-scale invasion, Cyprus has lived with the legacy of displacement and divided communities since 1974. By connecting artists from both countries, APOSTAXIS creates opportunities for collaborative research, community engagement, and artistic production that examine shared histories while imagining new forms of resilience and solidarity.
Working closely with local cultural organizations, community groups, and curators, APOSTAXIS combines artist residencies, public programs, exhibitions, and digital presentation to encourage socially engaged artistic practices and long-term international partnerships.
Title & Description
APOSTAXIS Artist Residency & Exhibition Open Call 2026
It invites four visual artists—three from Ukraine and one from Cyprus—to participate in an international residency and exhibition program exploring displacement, memory, identity, and cultural resilience.
The project takes its name from the Greek word apostaxis, a process of distillation that separates essential elements through different boiling points. Using this metaphor, the residency asks artists to examine what people preserve—both materially and emotionally—when forced to leave their homes.
Participants will investigate historical and contemporary experiences of internal and cross-border displacement through artistic research, community engagement, archival exploration, interviews, workshops, and non-fiction storytelling. Artists will collaborate with local organizations supporting displaced communities while developing new participatory artworks inspired by shared experiences between Ukraine and Cyprus.
The program includes two simultaneous 20-day residencies in Ternopil, Ukraine, and Larnaca, Cyprus, followed by post-production, a digital exhibition, and a curated physical exhibition in Cyprus. Throughout the project, artists will participate in online meetings, collaborative discussions, public presentations, and cross-border exchange designed to build meaningful artistic dialogue across European contexts.
The residency particularly welcomes artists whose practices combine research, social engagement, documentation, archives, oral histories, or participatory methodologies, encouraging artworks that foster empathy, healing, and community reflection.
Categories
- Visual Art
- Contemporary Art
- Participatory Art
- Social Practice
- Community-Based Art
- Installation
- Mixed Media
- Multimedia Art
- Research-Based Practice
- Archive-Based Practice
- Documentary Art
- Non-fiction Storytelling
- Performance (participatory)
- Interdisciplinary Art
Eligibility
Applicants must meet the following requirements:
- Open to 4 artists in total:
- 3 Ukrainian visual artists
- 1 Cypriot visual artist (from any Cypriot community)
- Applicants should have lived experience or family heritage connected to displacement.
- Artists should work within participatory, research-based, or community-engaged artistic practices.
- Experience with archives, documentation, oral history, witnessing, or non-fiction storytelling is encouraged.
- Applicants should demonstrate a strong motivation to participate in collaborative international research and artistic exchange.
- Ukrainian applicants may choose to apply for:
- The residency in Ternopil, Ukraine
- The residency in Larnaca, Cyprus
- Or indicate interest in both options.
Program Benefits & Awards
- Artist fee of €1,800 (including tax) or the equivalent amount in Ukrainian Hryvnia for Ukrainian participants.
- Production budget of €300 for artistic development.
- Local transportation throughout the residency.
- International travel to and from residency locations.
- Accommodation during the residency period.
- Daily subsistence support.
- Curatorial guidance throughout the project.
- Research support throughout artistic development.
- Participation in two international collaborative residencies.
- Public presentations at the conclusion of each residency.
- Inclusion in a professionally curated digital exhibition.
- Participation in a major group exhibition in Larnaca, Cyprus, scheduled for January 2027.
- Opportunities to build long-term international professional networks.
- Monthly online meetings with fellow artists and the curatorial team.
Artists unable to travel to Cyprus because of war-related restrictions or personal circumstances remain eligible, as hybrid participation options are available.
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 26 July 2026
- Shortlisted Artist Interviews: 29 July 2026
- Final Selection Announcement: 30 July 2026
- Contracting & Online Curatorial Meeting: September 2026
- Joint Residencies: 6–28 October 2026
- Post-Production Period: November 2026
- Digital Exhibition: December 2026
- Final Exhibition in Larnaca: January 2027
Location
Residencies and exhibitions take place across two countries:
- Ternopil, Ukraine (NVAIR Residency)
- Larnaca, Cyprus (D6:EU Residency and final exhibition)
Additional Details
APOSTAXIS places strong emphasis on collaborative learning, community engagement, and socially responsive artistic practice. Rather than focusing solely on producing finished artworks, the residency encourages artists to engage deeply with local communities through interviews, workshops, archival research, and shared storytelling.
Each residency concludes with a public presentation, allowing artists to share research and works-in-progress with local audiences. After the residency period, participants continue developing their projects before contributing to both digital and physical exhibitions.
The project recognizes the ongoing realities of displacement and actively accommodates artists affected by travel restrictions. Hybrid participation is supported where necessary, ensuring that war-related limitations do not prevent selected artists from participating.
Beyond artistic production, APOSTAXIS aims to strengthen international cultural cooperation, encourage dialogue between Ukraine and Cyprus, and contribute to broader conversations surrounding migration, heritage preservation, resilience, and European cultural integration.