Organizer Information
EL SPACE is described in the announcement as Tunisia's first social innovation hub, founded in 2015 in the wake of Tunisia's democratic transition. Over a decade, it has grown from a single coworking space in downtown Tunis into a network of three sites: EL SPACE Lafayette, the original hub focused on entrepreneurs, designers, and researchers; EL FABSPACE Lac, a digital fabrication lab at the Orange Digital Center offering laser cutters, 3D printers, a PCB milling machine, and a 3D scanner; and the Creative Hub Sidi Bou Said, housed inside the Ennejma Ezzahra Palace and dedicated to craftsmanship, design, and Tunisian creative talent.
Independent sources corroborate this account: EL SPACE was co-founded in 2015 by Adnen Ben Hadj Yahia along with two other founders, initially as a coworking space for social entrepreneurs and activists before evolving into a broader innovation hub with fab-lab and mentorship programming, and it is recognized as a GIST Innovation Hub with international network partnerships. The Creative Hub's venue, Ennejma Ezzahra Palace, is a listed historical monument built between 1912 and 1922 by Baron Rodolphe d'Erlanger in Sidi Bou Said, known for its Moorish and Andalusian architectural style and its role today as the Centre des Musiques Arabes et Méditerranéennes.
Title & Description
Mediterranean Futures Residency 2026 — Cultural Heritage, Contemporary Art & Emerging Technologies
This is the inaugural edition of a selective two-month international residency organized by EL SPACE, bringing together artists, designers, architects, and creative technologists whose work engages cultural heritage, memory, and technological transformation. Five residents will be selected through an international open call to undertake focused research and production in Tunis, with sustained access to the Ennejma Ezzahra Palace in Sidi Bou Said. The program treats heritage not as a fixed inheritance but as a dynamic, contested field, inviting critical, speculative, and transdisciplinary approaches to memory, archives, craft, architecture, and digital technologies, including artificial intelligence and digital fabrication. The residency prioritizes research, experimentation, and process over finished, exhibition-ready work, and will conclude with a public presentation of outcomes, prototypes, and ongoing investigations.
Theme
Cultural Heritage, Contemporary Art & Emerging Technologies — specifically, how cultural memory is transmitted, transformed, and reinterpreted across generations, communities, and technological shifts, and how heritage can be approached as a dynamic field of cultural production rather than a fixed inheritance.
Categories
- Residency
- Culture
- Archeology
- Technology
- AI
- Digital
- New Media
- Interdisciplinary Arts
- Design
- Architecture
- Craft
- Photography
- Video/Film
- Sound/Music
- Research
- Art
Eligibility
- Open to nationals of: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Albania, Armenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Ukraine
- Open to emerging and established practitioners across disciplines, including visual artists, new media and digital artists, designers, architects, video artists, photographers, sound artists, creative technologists, independent researchers and scholars, and interdisciplinary/hybrid practitioners
- Applicants must demonstrate a strong, sustained artistic or research practice and a clear engagement with questions of heritage, technology, and contemporary culture
- Only 5 residents will be selected
Program Benefits & Awards
- Full accommodation for the duration of the residency in Tunis
- Travel support to/from Tunis
- Meal support throughout the program
- Production support, including access to digital fabrication facilities (3D printing, laser cutting)
- Curatorial and research mentorship from the program team and invited specialists
- Access to cultural and heritage institutions, archives, and collections
- Integration into an international cohort of artists and researchers
- Opportunities for public presentation, professional exchange, and critical dialogue
Application Fee
None
Application Requirements
- Curriculum Vitae (maximum 3 pages)
- Artist Biography (maximum 300 words)
- Statement of Practice (maximum 500 words), describing artistic/research background and primary areas of inquiry
- Project Proposal (maximum 1,000 words), outlining research questions, methods, and intentions for the residency
- Portfolio: up to 10 representative works or project examples, with captions and brief descriptions
- Preliminary Production and Resources Plan: outline of intended activities, resources, and timelines, including a list of materials needed
- Links to relevant websites, videos, or online work (optional)
- All materials must be submitted as PDF files in English or French
How to Apply?
Email application to: aslema@elspace.co
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 19 July 2026
- Notification of Results: 30 July 2026
- Residency Period: October 1, 2026 – November 30, 2026
Location
Tunis, Tunisia
Additional Details
- Selection is conducted by an Advisory Committee based on artistic excellence, originality, relevance to the curatorial framework, quality of research approach, feasibility, potential contribution to the cohort, and capacity to engage with Tunisia's cultural environment.
- Shortlisted applicants may be invited to a conversation with the selection committee before final decisions.
- The program states a commitment to assembling a cohort reflecting geographic, cultural, and disciplinary diversity.
- Personal data submitted is processed by EL SPACE solely for administering the selection process, shared only with the selection committee, and handled in accordance with GDPR and Tunisia's Law No. 2004-63 on the Protection of Personal Data. Applicants may request access, rectification, or deletion of their data by contacting aslema@elspace.co.