Organizer Information
The Joint Research Centre (JRC) is the European Commission’s science and knowledge service, supporting EU policymaking through scientific research, evidence and interdisciplinary expertise. This artist-in-residence programme is hosted by the JRC’s Digital Health Unit (Unit F7) together with the EU Policy Lab (JRC.S1) and the Centre for Advanced Studies (JRC.S4). The residency brings artistic practice into dialogue with scientists, researchers and policymakers working on mental health, depression and related social and environmental factors.
Title & Description
Decoding Depression Artist Residency 2027 Open Call
Decoding Depression is a six-month artist-in-residence programme exploring depression not only as an individual or clinical condition, but as a phenomenon shaped by personal, social, natural, built and digital environments. Artists are invited to use the concept of the environome as a creative and analytical starting point for investigating how factors such as social isolation, inequality, housing, digital exposure, mobility, stigma, work and access to green space can influence mental health and wellbeing.
The selected artist will develop an independent artistic research project while working in dialogue with JRC researchers, scientists and policy experts. Proposals may be research-based, participatory, speculative, site-responsive, narrative, performative, digital or material.
Categories
- Interdisciplinary Arts
- Artistic Research
- Digital & New Media
- Performance
- Photography
- Video/Film
- Visual Arts
- Writing
- Participatory Practice
- Speculative Practice
- Site-Responsive Practice and Material Practice
Eligibility
Artists and speculative thinkers of any artistic discipline and nationality may apply, provided they are legally able to work in the EU. Applicants should demonstrate artistic excellence, practical experience, originality, the ability to work across cultural and disciplinary contexts, and experience engaging with complex or sensitive social themes.
Lived experience of depression is mandatory, either through direct personal experience or through caregiving or living closely with someone experiencing depression. Previous participation in a JRC residency makes applicants ineligible.
Program Benefits & Awards
The residency provides a total budget of €15,000, covering fees, allowance, accommodation and travel. The selected artist will have access to dialogue with researchers and policymakers and selected background materials relating to depression and its environmental determinants.
The programme requires at least 20 non-consecutive days of on-site presence in Ispra during the six-month residency, with the remainder of the work able to take place remotely. A possible visit to Brussels may also form part of the residency.
The artist will give a closing presentation, provide a short reflective account and prepare a short newsletter text. An artwork proposal may also be developed, although any future commission would require separate confirmation and funding.
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Applicants must send one combined PDF document by email to JRC-Resonances@ec.europa.eu by the deadline.
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 18 October 2026
- Shortlisted Interviews: 2–13 November 2026
- Selection & Contracting: November–December 2026
- Residency: January–June 2027
- Work-in-Progress Presentation: April 2027
- Closing Presentation & Final Materials: June 2027
Location
Ispra, Italy
Additional Details
The call places particular emphasis on ethical approaches to mental health. Proposals should avoid simplification, romanticisation, stigma or harmful representations of depression and should demonstrate care when working with testimony, affected communities, data or sensitive evidence.
Applicants should also be comfortable engaging with scientific knowledge and policy discussions while maintaining artistic autonomy. AI-assisted tools may be used in preparing applications, but applicants must verify their accuracy, respect intellectual-property requirements and disclose which tools they used