Organizer Information
Notations is an annual interdisciplinary production platform hosted in Yerevan, Armenia. It functions as a hybrid laboratory for contemporary artistic practice, bringing together artists, researchers, engineers, and cultural practitioners in a shared experimental environment. The platform is designed to dissolve traditional disciplinary boundaries and prioritize collaborative production over isolated authorship.
The program operates through a curated framework that combines mentorship, technical infrastructure, and collective working sessions. Rather than functioning as a conventional residency or festival, Notations positions itself as a process-driven laboratory where ideas are tested, reworked, and expanded in real time through peer exchange. Participants are encouraged to work across Music, Sound, Performance, Media, Installation, and research-based practices, creating an ecosystem where interdisciplinary methods become the primary creative tool.
The 2026–2027 edition is structured around the theme “Rituals,” exploring how repeated actions, shared structures, and collective processes shape cultural memory, artistic production, and future forms of community. The program frames ritual not as tradition alone, but as an active method for generating new artistic and social systems.
Title & Description
Notations #2 – Interdisciplinary Artistic Laboratory & Public Festival (Yerevan, Armenia)
Notations #2 is a two-week intensive artistic laboratory culminating in a two-day public festival in Yerevan, Armenia. The program invites artists and practitioners to engage in a fully immersive production environment where experimentation, collaboration, and cross-disciplinary exchange form the core methodology.
Participants work collectively across fields including Sound/Music, Performance, Media Arts, Installation, Engineering, and artistic Research. The laboratory structure is designed to break down individual production silos and encourage real-time co-creation. Artists are expected to develop works collaboratively, respond to emerging processes, and continuously iterate their ideas within a shared working rhythm.
The program includes:
- Intensive collaborative production sessions
- Field research activities outside Yerevan
- Daily shared routines (meals, informal discussions, spontaneous sessions)
- Curatorial and peer mentorship (technical + conceptual)
- Fully equipped production environment
- Collective installation and presentation phase
- Public showcase during the Notations Festival
The laboratory culminates in a two-day public presentation of all works developed during the process, hosted across major cultural venues in Yerevan, including the State Philharmonia of Armenia, the National Gallery of Armenia, and additional partner venues.
Alongside presentations, the festival includes curated talks, workshops, and lectures, extending the discourse beyond the lab environment and into a broader public cultural space.
The 2026–2027 theme, “Rituals,” frames the entire program as an exploration of repetition, cultural memory, collective synchronization, and the emergence of new forms of communal artistic practice. Artists are encouraged to investigate how ritual structures can be reinterpreted as creative methodologies.
This is a process-first environment where unfinished ideas are not only accepted but actively valued. The program prioritizes transformation through collaboration, experimentation, and sustained collective engagement.
Categories
- Sound/Music
- Performance
- Media Arts
- Installation
- Interdisciplinary Arts
- Research
- Multimedia
- Engineering (art-tech practices)
- Collaborative Practices
Eligibility
The open call is international and targets professional practitioners working across artistic and research-based disciplines.
Eligible applicants include:
- Artists, researchers, and interdisciplinary practitioners worldwide
- Individuals with approximately 5+ years of professional practice (emerging strong profiles also considered)
- Practitioners working across sound, performance, media, installation, and engineering-based art
- Applicants with art or research as a primary professional focus
- Artists with a demonstrated collaborative and interdisciplinary approach
Required participant profile:
- Ability to work in intensive collective environments
- Openness to cross-disciplinary collaboration
- Readiness for full-time immersion during the lab period
- Commitment to process-driven artistic development
- Capacity to develop work beyond the residency timeframe
Working language: English (functional professional level required)
Program Benefits & Awards
- Fully equipped production facilities
- Curatorial and technical mentorship throughout the lab
- Accommodation and food provided
- Access to collaborative production infrastructure
- Participation in field research activities outside Yerevan
- Public presentation at the Notations Festival
- Inclusion in a high-trust interdisciplinary artistic ecosystem
- Opportunities for post-lab continuation (performances, exhibitions, releases, collaborations)
Additional support:
- Letters of support available for visa and funding applications
Important note:
- Travel stipends are not provided
Application Fee
None
Application Requirements
- Artistic CV/portfolio
- Project or practice description
- Statement of interdisciplinary interest
- Evidence of collaborative or research-based work
- Conceptual proposal aligned with the program theme “Rituals” (recommended but not strictly required)
Applicants should demonstrate:
- Creative potential
- Interdisciplinary methodology
- Collaborative capacity
- Readiness for intensive experimental production
Shortlisted candidates may be invited to an online interview.
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 1 June 2026
- Notification of Results: 15 June 2026
- Program Duration: Two-week laboratory + 2-day festival (2026–2027 cycle)
- Structure:
- Arrival & Research: 3 days
- Lab & Production: 8 days
- Installation & Setup: 1 day
- Notations Festival: 2 days
Location
Yerevan, Armenia
Additional Details
Notations operates as a process-oriented laboratory where artistic production is treated as a collective method rather than individual output. The program emphasizes trust-based collaboration, shared responsibility, and continuous experimentation.
Core evaluation criteria:
- Creative potential
- Interdisciplinary approach
- Collaborative capacity
- Readiness for intensive cross-disciplinary production
The thematic framework “Rituals” guides the conceptual direction of the program, encouraging participants to explore repetition, cultural structures, and emergent forms of collective meaning-making.
The laboratory is designed to extend beyond the residency itself, supporting continued artistic development and future collaborations after the festival concludes.