Organizer Information
wpZimmer is an international workspace for the arts based in Antwerp's Seefhoek district, with a focus on performance, dance, and hybrid artistic practices. The organization hosts roughly 25 to 30 residencies a year, ranging from 2 to 5 weeks, for individual artists, collectives, or partnerships with other organizations. wpZimmer is structured around a shared leadership model (inspired by Sociocracy 3.0) rather than a conventional hierarchy, dividing its operations across areas such as Space & Cohabitation, Organizing Resources, and Practice. Beyond residencies, it runs recurring formats including the artist-feedback platform Last Month Tonight and the Beyond the Black Box Festival, and it is structurally supported by the Flemish Government (Flanders State of the Art / Department of Culture, Youth & Media).
This edition of the open call is realized in partnership with C-TAKT, a Flemish research and creation platform for performing arts based at the Provincial Domain Dommelhof, which itself grew out of Flanders' first cultural center and has developed a distinct focus on innovation, individuality, and artistic quality within a broader network of partner organizations.
Title & Description
wpZimmer Open Call 2027 — Residency for Collective Artistic Practices
wpZimmer is hosting an artistic residency program focused on collective practices, offering four collectives a dedicated slot of workspace, shared accommodation, and financial support in Antwerp during 2027. The call is aimed at existing, newly formed, or temporary collectives of artists and "artworkers" (a term the organizers use broadly, covering anyone working in a creative field) who want space to experiment with collectivity itself as a practice, rather than to complete a single, predefined project. Applicants are asked to describe their practice in relation to wpZimmer's stated criteria, with the jury basing its decision solely on the submitted text — no supplementary materials such as websites or portfolios will be consulted.
Theme
Collective artistic practice and process-oriented, transdisciplinary ways of working — the call is explicitly not project-based, and instead centers on the desire of an artistic collective to develop, question, or build its own collectivity during the residency.
Categories
- Performance
- Dance
- Theatre
- Interdisciplinary Arts
- Multiple Disciplines
- Curatorial
- Residency
Eligibility
- Applicant must be an already existing, new, or temporary collective of artists/artworkers based in Belgium
- Collective must consist of a minimum of 3 artists or artworkers
- At least one member of the collective must be living or working in Belgium
- Collective is not focused on a single project, but on an emerging, process-oriented practice or methodology
- Practice does not rely on one discipline or medium, and moves freely between contexts and themes
- Practice aims to bring people together in non-traditional or innovative ways, rather than through a classic black-box (theatre) or white-cube (exhibition) setting
- Collective is interested in a reciprocal relationship with wpZimmer (exchange, not just space provision)
Program Benefits & Awards
- A 5-week residency slot (choice of four periods across 2027)
- Access to a technically equipped studio space, approx. 18m x 17m
- Access to a medium-sized atelier space with limited technical equipment, adapted to physical practices, approx. 4m x 13m
- Shared accommodation for up to 6 people per residency slot
- A financial contribution of €5,000, excl. VAT, per collective (budget to be managed by the collective itself)
- Access to wpZimmer's community and knowledge, including a reciprocal working relationship with the organization's team
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Registration Form Opens: 19 June 2026
- Optional Online Info Session: 7 July 2026, 16:30–18:00 (CET)
- Application Deadline: 20 September 2026
- Results Announced: November 2026
- Residency Slot 1: 15 March – 18 April 2027
- Residency Slot 2: 17 May – 20 June 2027
- Residency Slot 3: 10 October – 12 November 2027
- Residency Slot 4: 22 November – 24 December 2027
Location
Antwerp, Belgium
Additional Details
A maximum of 100 applications will be accepted; wpZimmer will post an update once submissions reach the 50% threshold. Applications that don't meet the basic formal criteria (minimum collective size, at least one Belgium-based member) will not be forwarded to the jury. The jury — three external artists/artworkers (Felipe Ferreira, Sezen Atmaca, and Katinka de Jonge), accompanied by a member of wpZimmer's artistic team — shortlists applicants, after which wpZimmer's team makes the final decision jointly with the external jury, based solely on the submitted written text. Selected collectives are not required to be present at wpZimmer every day during their residency period, and are not obligated to produce a public showing, though wpZimmer can support informal sharing through its own newsletter and social channels (without guaranteeing audience turnout). International collaborators may be invited during the residency, but wpZimmer will not cover their travel or insurance costs.