Organizer Information
CURRENTS New Media is produced by Parallel Studios, a 501(c)(3) non-profit that has been producing, curating, and designing small- and large-scale exhibitions in Santa Fe since 2002. Parallel Studios launched CURRENTS New Media as an annual, citywide event in 2010, and it has since grown into an internationally recognized new media arts festival: past editions have drawn over 9,000 in-person visitors, and a 2020 online edition was accessed by users in 95 countries. The organization also runs a year-round exhibition space and youth and adult internship programs alongside the annual festival. CURRENTS' stated mission is to support innovative artists working in art and technology, and to give the public year-round access to immersive and expansive art experiences through its festival, educational programs, and exhibitions.
Title & Description
CURRENTS 2027: Art & Technology Festival
CURRENTS 2027 is an international new media art and technology festival opening June 11, 2027, at El Museo Cultural in the Santa Fe Railyard Arts District, New Mexico, USA, and running through June 20, 2027. The festival brings together established and emerging new media artists working across installation, audio, extended reality, robotics, performance, fabrication, and video. Artist submissions for the 2027 edition are open now, with participating artists to be announced in March 2027.
Categories
- New Media
- Installation
- Multimedia
- Performance
- Video/Film
- Sound/Music
- Technology
- Animation
Eligibility
- Open to new media artists working in one of the festival's seven submission categories: Installations (interactive and non-interactive); Audio Experiences; Virtual/Augmented/Mixed Reality Environments; Robotics/Kinetic/Electro-Mechanical Objects and Installations; Multimedia Performance; Fabrication, 2D/3D Printing and Wearables; and Experimental Single Channel Video, Documentary and Animation
- Works in progress are eligible if the artist can submit samples demonstrating a strong existing body of work
- Use of AI as a creative tool is accepted, provided the artist discloses in the Work Statement whether and how AI was used
- Artists may submit to one or more categories, but must complete a separate form and pay a separate fee for each individual submission
- Not specified in the source regarding nationality, age, or career-stage restrictions
Program Benefits & Awards
- Selected artists in Installations, Audio Experiences, VR/AR/MR Environments, and Robotics/Kinetic/Electro-Mechanical Objects and Installations may be eligible for travel, lodging, shipping, and equipment support — travel support depends on whether the artist's physical presence is needed to install the work and on the festival's available funding; support for international shipping costs is not guaranteed due to high and rising international shipping costs
- Selected artists in Multimedia Performance may be eligible for travel, shipping, and equipment support, subject to the same funding limitations
- Selected artists in Fabrication, 2D/3D Printing and Wearables may be eligible for shipping and equipment support (no travel or lodging support is noted for this category)
- No travel, lodging, shipping, or equipment support is noted in the source for the Experimental Single Channel Video, Documentary and Animation category
- A limited number of submission-fee scholarships are available for artists experiencing financial hardship, covering the fee for one single submission, awarded on a first-come, first-served basis
Application Fee
Conflicting information found in the source: the Submission Guidelines 2027 page states the fee as "$30 for a single and $25 each for multiple submissions" in one section, but later in the same page states "$25/single, $20 each/multiple." Both figures appear on the same live page as of this writing — please verify the correct current fee directly with CURRENTS before publishing. Fee waivers are available on request for artists facing financial difficulty (see Program Benefits & Awards).
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Submission Deadline: 8 December 2026
- Notification Date 1 (Installations, Audio Experiences, VR/AR/MR Environments, Robotics/Kinetic/Electro-Mechanical Objects and Installations, Multimedia Performance, Fabrication/2D-3D Printing/Wearables): February 15, 2027
- Notification Date 2 (Experimental Single Channel Video, Documentary and Animation): March 15, 2027
- Festival Dates: June 11 – June 20, 2027
Location
Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States
Additional Details
- Documentation of submitted work must be viewable online (personal website, YouTube, Vimeo, or Google)
- Uploaded hi-res photos and video still captures must be 2MB–4MB, .jpg format only, and each file must be labeled with the artwork title and artist name(s)
- The submission form requires selecting a category first, which determines the remaining set of questions on the form
- Single Channel Video submissions must be 12 minutes or less; multi-channel video installations should be submitted under the Installations category instead
- VR submissions viewable stand-alone on a Quest 2 or Quest 3 (not tethered to a PC) are preferred, though tethered works will still be considered
- The organizers will hold a video call (Zoom) with artists they are interested in presenting, to confirm support needs before final selection