Organizer Information
The Encura IX residency is a collaborative curatorial research program developed through a multi-institutional partnership involving several leading cultural organizations in Spain. The primary host, Hangar, is a contemporary art production and research center based in Barcelona that supports artists and curators through residencies, experimental production frameworks, and international exchange programs. Hangar has long positioned itself as a platform for artistic research, emphasizing process-based practices and critical engagement with institutional and social contexts.
The program is co-developed with BilbaoArte, a foundation and production center in Bilbao dedicated to supporting emerging and established artists through residencies, studio provision, and production resources. Additional institutional collaboration includes Azkuna Zentroa (Alhóndiga Bilbao), a major cultural and contemporary arts center in Bilbao that promotes interdisciplinary cultural programming.
The initiative is supported by AC/E Acción Cultural Española, a public institution that promotes Spanish culture internationally. Curatorial leadership and mediation are also shaped by curator Leire Vergara, while program coordination and international residency development at Hangar is supported by Veronica Valentini.
Encura IX continues a lineage of collaborative curatorial research programs previously developed across Barcelona and Madrid, now expanded to include Bilbao as a central geographical and conceptual axis.
Title & Description
Encura IX: Curatorial Research Residency Between Barcelona and Bilbao
Encura IX is a three-and-a-half-month curatorial research residency designed for curators and researchers interested in developing situated, process-oriented, and interdisciplinary curatorial investigations. The residency takes place between November 2026 and March 2027 across two cities—Barcelona and Bilbao—encouraging a deep engagement with both local artistic ecosystems.
Rather than emphasizing exhibition outcomes, Encura prioritizes research processes, collaborative methodologies, and critical inquiry into curatorial practice itself. The program supports investigations that challenge conventional exhibition-making frameworks and instead focus on knowledge production, relational methodologies, and experimental forms of dissemination.
Participants are expected to develop a curatorial research project that engages with local artists, institutions, and contexts in both cities. The residency encourages the creation of non-traditional formats of activation, such as public programs, encounters, workshops, and discursive platforms, rather than finalized exhibitions.
The program is designed as a slow, reflective, and collaborative process that foregrounds ethical, political, and affective dimensions of curatorial work.
Categories
- Curatorial Practice
- Art Research
- Contemporary Art
- Cultural Theory
- Interdisciplinary Arts
- Social Practice
- Critical Studies
- Institutional Critique
Eligibility
- Open to curators and researchers of any nationality
- Applicants must be residents in Spain (including foreign residents living in Spain)
- Individual or collective applications are accepted (with a designated representative for collectives)
- No age limit applies
- Applicants must not be artists participating in their own proposed project
- Applicants must be fully available for the residency duration
- Previous Encura awardees are not eligible
- Only one application per person (individual or collective) is permitted
- Projects may be in-progress research or newly proposed for the residency context
Program Benefits & Awards
Selected participants receive a comprehensive curatorial research package, including:
- Curatorial fee: €3,000 (gross)
- Living expenses: up to €1,500 (gross)
- Research budget for collaborators and participants: up to €1,000 (gross)
- Production budget for public activation/socialization: up to €2,800 (gross)
- Travel support between residence locations: up to €500 (gross)
- Accommodation in Barcelona (Hangar facilities)
- Accommodation in Bilbao (BilbaoArte facilities)
- Dedicated workspaces in both cities
- Institutional mentoring and curatorial accompaniment
- Technical and production support in both locations
- Public presentation opportunities:
- Hangar (Barcelona presentation space)
- Azkuna Zentroa (Bilbao presentation space)
The residency explicitly avoids traditional exhibition outcomes, instead prioritizing experimental formats of public engagement and knowledge dissemination.
Application Fee
None
Application Requirements
Applicants must submit a single PDF (maximum 10 pages) including:
- Personal data (name, contact information, nationality, etc.)
- Short CV or biography (max 1,000 characters)
- Motivation letter
- Curatorial project proposal (max 1,000 characters)
- Full project description including:
- Summary (max 2,000 characters)
- Methodology (max 2,000 characters)
- Collaborators and rationale (max 1,500 characters)
- Activation/socialization strategy (max 1,500 characters)
- Work plan and timeline
- Up to 5 images (minimum 1 required)
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 6 July 2026
- Selection results: Fourth week of July 2026
- Residency period:
- Barcelona: 2 November – 18 December 2026
- Bilbao: 11 January – 14 March 2027
- Public presentations:
- Barcelona: third week of December 2026
- Bilbao: second week of March 2027
Location
- Barcelona, Spain (Hangar)
- Bilbao, Spain (BilbaoArte & Azkuna Zentroa)
Additional Details
Encura IX emphasizes curatorial research as a political, relational, and situated practice. The program explicitly rejects productivity-driven models and exhibition-centric outcomes. Instead, it encourages experimental methodologies, collaborative knowledge production, and interdisciplinary dialogue between artists, curators, and institutional partners.
Participants are expected to engage with local artistic communities in both cities and contribute to public programming formats that emerge organically from research processes. The program strongly values inclusivity, feminist and anti-racist perspectives, sustainability-oriented thinking aligned with Agenda 2030 principles, and non-hierarchical knowledge production models.
Applicants must commit to being physically present for at least 80% of the residency duration.