Organizer Information
HIAP – Helsinki International Artist Programme
Founded in 1998, HIAP is a long-standing international residency platform based in Helsinki, Finland. It supports artists and cultural practitioners through cross-disciplinary residencies, fostering research, collaboration, and artistic exchange in both studio and community contexts. HIAP operates from two main locations in Helsinki — the Cable Factory multi-arts hub and Suomenlinna Island, a UNESCO World Heritage site — offering facilities such as shared workshops, project spaces, and communal events that nurture creative dialogue and experimentation. The programme regularly partners with global institutions and initiatives to provide international residencies designed to expand artistic practice and networks.
ARES – Arts on the Edge Spaces
This open call is part of the Arts on the Edge Spaces (ARES) initiative, a collaborative programme funded by the
European Union that brings together cultural partners working in “edge” regions — contexts perceived as peripheral geographically or socially — to support art, ecology, and community engagement through residencies, shared research, and collective exchange.
Partner organisations include:
- WASP – Working Art Space and Production (Bucharest, Romania)
- Sciaena (Ria Formosa, Portugal)
- HIAP (Helsinki, Finland)
Title & Description
Open Call: ARES Artistic Residencies – Helsinki, Bucharest & Ria Formosa (2026)
An international artistic residency open call inviting
visual artists, researchers, and cultural practitioners to participate in one of three fully supported residencies across Europe in 2026. Under the Arts on the Edge Spaces (ARES) programme, six artists will be selected to conduct context-responsive artistic research and creation across three distinctive locations: Helsinki (Finland), Bucharest + Danube Delta (Romania), and Ria Formosa (Portugal). Each residency is designed to explore ecological, social, and cultural “edge” conditions by engaging with local communities, environmental systems, and culturally rich site-specificities. Selected artists will create work that responds to themes of climate, justice, ecology, community resilience, and
socio-environmental imaginaries, with outcomes featured in a touring public exhibition in 2027.
Categories
- Visual Arts
- Interdisciplinary Arts
- Environmental Art / Ecology
- Community Arts / Social Practice
- Research
- Public Art / Site-specific Work
Eligibility
This open call is open to individual artists, researchers, and cultural practitioners whose work engages with ecological, social, or political themes in artistic practice. Eligible applicants must:
- Currently reside in one of the ARES partner territories, which include:
- WASP: Romania and Moldova
- SCIAENA: Portugal and Spain
- HIAP: Nordic and Arctic EU countries (Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Greenland)
- Apply for a residency outside their current territory — i.e., the residency host must be in a different partner region than the applicant’s home region.
- Be able to commit to the full duration of the residency at the selected location.
- Demonstrate practice, research interests, and motivation aligning with the ARES themes of climate, justice, community, and ecology.
- Be prepared to integrate community engagement into the residency process, articulated clearly in the application.
- Artists currently displaced (e.g., from Ukraine) residing within one of the partner regions are eligible.
Priority may be given to applicants who demonstrate sustainable and context-responsive practices.
Program Benefits & Awards
Each selected artist will receive:
Core Support for All Residencies:
- Travel to and from the residency location (with encouragement of sustainable/slow travel)
- Accommodation is provided in each residency location
- Working grant: €1,500 per month
- Material budget: €2,000
- Exhibition budget: up to €1,000 (for exhibition build and technical support)
- Public Programme Support: up to €500 for workshops, talks, or related events during the touring exhibition
- Inclusion in the 2027 touring exhibition and public programme across partner sites
Location-specific Support:
- Local facilities, workspace access, and community engagement planning are supported by host partners
- Contextual introductions to regional ecological, cultural and community networks
- Possibilities for collaborative exchange with researchers, environmental experts, and local participants
Note: For collectives or groups, working grants and budgets must be shared among members.
Application Fee
None
Application Requirements
Applications must be submitted online and must include:
- Professional Biography / Background (up to 250 words)
- Motivation Statement (up to 500 words) — outlining how the applicant’s work responds to the ARES themes and why they want to undertake a residency in the chosen host location
- Work Plan (up to 250 words) — describing method, research approach, and community engagement strategy for the residency
- Portfolio / Examples of Previous Work — provided as external links; max 10 images or 3 video/audio files (≤ 25 MB total)
Applications sent by email will not be accepted.
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 5 March 2026
- Selection & Notification: Expected in March 2026 (exact date by host)
- Residency Periods (2026):
- Bucharest & Danube Delta, Romania: 5 June – 3 July 2026
- Helsinki (Suomenlinna), Finland: 28 September – 21 November 2026
- Ria Formosa, Portugal: 1 October – 30 November 2026
- Touring Exhibition & Public Programme: Spring – Autumn 2027
Location
Residencies take place at one of the following European locations:
- Helsinki, Finland (Suomenlinna Island)
- Bucharest & Danube Delta, Romania
- Ria Formosa, Portugal
Additional Details
- The ARES residencies are framed around ecological, social, and cultural edge contexts, encouraging reflection on how global challenges are lived locally.
- Artists must incorporate community engagement into their residency project through workshops, talks, or interactive processes.
- The touring exhibition in 2027 will be curated across the partner regions, showcasing works developed during the residencies.
- The programme emphasises collaborative research and exchange, slow travel, and sustainability commitments.
- HIAP and partner organisations encourage applications from artists with diverse backgrounds and experiences, particularly those investing in social, ecological, and political themes.
