Organizer Information
České Budějovice holds the title of European Capital of Culture 2028, with the whole ECoC 2028 project built on the principles of (perma)culture — care for place, community, and an environment that fosters ideas, sharing, and long-term positive change. The (PERMA)CULTURE concept, which uses culture to strengthen the relationship between people, institutions, and the landscape, led to the city's win in the competition, beating out Brno, Broumov, and Liberec. České Budějovice will become the third Czech city to hold the title, following Prague in 2000 and Plzeň in 2015.
The residency's other key partner, Ars Electronica, is an Austrian cultural, educational, and scientific institute focused on new media art, founded in Linz in 1979, and based at the Ars Electronica Center, home to the Museum of the Future. Ars Electronica Linz GmbH & Co KG is a company of the City of Linz, made up of divisions covering its Center, Festival-Prix-Exhibitions, Futurelab, Solutions, and Corporate Services, employing more than 200 people. The organization runs an annual festival in Linz each September, bringing together exhibitions, concerts, talks, conferences, and workshops as part of the international media art scene.
Title & Description
Ars Biologica ArtXScience Residency Open Call
Ars Biologica is a living laboratory for shared ecological futures — an experimental space where art and science meet to explore ways of caring for the world we live in. The ArtXScience residency is one part of the Ars Biologica project, a key pillar of the České Budějovice European Capital of Culture 2028 programme, exploring how art and science can collaborate to address urgent environmental challenges, with a focus on climate emergence, sustainable agriculture, geoengineering, permaculture, water resource management, and the ecological impacts on local communities. Two residency positions are on offer, giving artists, designers, creatives, and artist collectives the opportunity to integrate scientific research into new or ongoing artistic practices, working directly with scientists from the Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences. The residency calls for a spatial ArtXScience artwork (going beyond screen-based work) alongside a public engagement format involving the local community, with the final outcome presented at the Ars Biologica Festival in spring 2028.
Theme
Residents will work with one of two scientific directions offered by the Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences: soil microorganisms and their role in climate and ecosystem balance (with the Institute of Soil Biology and Biogeochemistry), or freshwater microbial ecosystems and water quality (with the Institute of Hydrobiology's Department of Aquatic Microbial Ecology).
Categories
- Residency
- Interdisciplinary Arts
- Science
- Ecology/Environment
- Visual Arts
- Design
- Research
Eligibility
- Open to artists, designers, creatives, and artist collectives of all nationalities
- Applicants must be 18 years or older
- Must be eligible to work and travel in the EU
- Must have prior experience in interdisciplinary collaborations, ArtXScience productions, and community engagement
- Must have more than 5 years of professional creative practice, with a documented portfolio sufficient for artistic assessment
- Ideal candidates show strong interest in collaborating with the residency's scientists and co-producing a new artistic output as part of a team
Program Benefits & Awards
- Total funding of 24,000 EUR, comprising:
- 6,000 EUR artist fee
- Up to 15,000 EUR production budget (proposal required)
- Up to 3,000 EUR for transportation, travel, accommodation, and subsistence (accommodation for the one-month stay in České Budějovice is covered separately)
- Exchange with leading experts in climate-resilient agriculture and scientific communication
- Project development and production support from the Ars Biologica and Ars Electronica teams
- International exposure through the Ars Biologica Festival, including an exhibition
- Video and photo documentation of public engagement activities and the artwork
- Possible engagement with the Ars Electronica Festival
- IP of the artwork remains with the artist, with credit required; community outcomes are licensed CC BY-ND
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 28 September 2026
- Winners notified: November 2026
- Residency period: January 2027 – April 2028
- Kick-off/onboarding meeting: early 2027 (Jan–Feb)
- Online/on-site exchange meetings: mid 2027 (Mar–Oct), closing with a written proposal (Oct/Nov 2027)
- Artwork production: early 2028
- Ars Biologica Festival (installation, exhibition, public engagement, de-install): spring 2028
Residency stays:
- First stay: up to 1 month, February/March 2027
- Optional second stay: up to 1 month, August/September 2027
- Third stay: up to 1 month, March 2028, for the Ars Biologica Festival
Location
České Budějovice, Czech Republic (onsite residency), with additional trips required to Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria.
Additional Details
- Jury includes representatives from České Budějovice ECoC 2028, the Biology Centre CAS (both institutes), the Uroboros ABIS Program, and Ars Electronica
- Selection criteria: originality, local community impact, quality of portfolio, and eligibility/feasibility
- Credit line required: "This project was developed in the framework of the Ars Biologica project enabled by České Budějovice – European Capital of Culture 2028 in partnership with Ars Electronica and Biology Center CAS."
- Selected artists are expected to share updates on social media and provide images of the residency process