Organizer Information
The Expanding Technologies Residency: Ibadan/Seattle Visual Arts Exchange is a collaborative initiative led by three culturally significant organizations: New Culture Studios, CoCA Seattle (Center on Contemporary Art), and Wa Na Wari.
CoCA Seattle is a long-established nonprofit contemporary art center dedicated to supporting experimental and emerging artistic practices through exhibitions, residencies, and interdisciplinary programming. It has historically served as a platform for critical dialogue around contemporary visual culture in the Pacific Northwest.
Wa Na Wari is a Black-owned arts space based in Seattle that focuses on preserving and activating Black cultural memory through art, land stewardship, and community-based programming. It operates at the intersection of visual arts, archival practice, and community empowerment.
New Culture Studios is an artist-run initiative focused on cross-cultural exchange, experimental programming, and supporting globally connected artistic research. Together, these organizations aim to build a transcontinental platform connecting Ibadan (Nigeria) and Seattle (USA) through artistic research and lived exchange.
Title & Description
Expanding Technologies Residency: Ibadan/Seattle Visual Arts Exchange
This residency explores an expanded definition of “technology” beyond computational and digital systems, focusing instead on diverse, historically grounded, ecological, cultural, and community-based forms of knowledge and innovation. The program asks artists to reconsider how technology is embedded in indigenous systems, collaborative practices, environmental relationships, and creative traditions.
The residency will select two artists—one based in Ibadan and one based in Seattle—for a reciprocal exchange. Each artist will spend three weeks in the partner city engaging with local cultural ecosystems, presenting work, and developing new research-based or site-responsive projects.
Key thematic inquiries include:
- Indigenous and ancestral technologies
- Community-centered innovation systems
- Ecological and nature-based knowledge structures
- Afrocentric and diasporic artistic systems
- Collaborative and social technologies in contemporary culture
Artists are expected to expand ongoing projects or initiate new research grounded in the cultural, historical, and environmental contexts of the host city. The program includes public presentations, exhibitions, and artist talks in both the host and home communities.
Categories
- Visual Art
- Interdisciplinary Art Practices
- Installation
- Video Art
- Photography
- New Media / Experimental Media
- Performance Art
- Research-Based Art Practices
- Social Practice / Community Art
Eligibility
- International exchange between Ibadan (Nigeria) and Seattle (USA)
- Applicants must be Black, African, or of African descent
- Must be an established visual artist (any medium within visual arts)
- Seattle applicants must live and work in the Seattle area
- Ibadan applicants must live and work in Ibadan, Nigeria
- Applicants must be 21 years or older
- Must hold a valid international passport through December 31, 2026
- Strong emphasis on artists with an existing professional practice
Program Benefits & Awards
- $3,000 artist stipend (approx. $1,000 per week)
- Fully covered travel expenses
- Visa support and fees are covered
- Accommodation and room & board provided
- Public exhibition or presentation opportunities in host cities
- Community engagement programs and institutional support
- Artist talk in home community after residency completion
- Access to local cultural and artistic networks in Ibadan and Seattle
Application Fee
None
Application Requirements
- Artist biography (max 200 words, including birth year, origin, exhibitions, education, awards)
- Artist statement related to residency theme (max 200 words)
- Statement of interest (max 300 words)
- Project proposal (max 1000 words), including:
- How the residency will advance current work
- Engagement with local context and themes
- Community engagement plan
- Up to 12 images of artwork (JPG, min. 2400 px on one side)
- Image descriptions for each work
- Portfolio structure (recommended: current works + completed works)
- Optional video links (YouTube/Vimeo/SoundCloud; must be accessible)
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 14 June 2026
- Info Session 1: 18 May 2026
- Info Session 2: 1 June 2026
- Notification Date: 6 July 2026
- Confirmation Deadline: 30 July 30, 2026
- Residency Period: September 13 – November 14, 2026
- Ibadan artist in Seattle: Sept 13 – Oct 3, 2026
- Seattle artist in Ibadan: Oct 25 – Nov 14, 2026
Location
Seattle, United States
Additional Details
- Includes participation in Wa Na Wari’s Walk the Block and CoCA’s 1st Thursday exhibition series
- Includes engagement during Lagos Art Week (for Ibadan phase)
- Artists must present a public talk in their home community after residency
- Artwork sales are split: 60% artist / 40% institution (or 70/30 for members where applicable)
- Strong emphasis on research-driven, site-responsive artistic development
- Focus on de-centering digital-only understandings of technology in favor of broader cultural and ecological frameworks