The deadline: midnight on Monday 25 January 2016.
As part of Wysing’s 2016 programme, Wysing Poly, we are offering residencies across three periods, each lasting eight weeks.
4 April – 30 May 2016
4 July – 5 September 2016
3 October – 28 November 2016
There are 9 residency places in 2016 and we will be selecting 6 artists through this Open Call.
We currently also have an Open Call out for studio artists, for details click here, and will be putting out further Open Calls for participation in aspects of Wysing Poly in the New Year.
For the past ten years Wysing Arts Centre has operated a range of programmes, from the practical to the discursive, that offer opportunities for personal development and artistic enquiry. Integral to Wysing’s ethos has been the provision of space, support and finance to enable artists to experiment, undertake research and make new work, alongside a public events programme. In 2016 Wysing will bring all of these programmes within one over-arching conceptual theme, Wysing Poly.
Wysing Poly takes as its starting point the Polytechnic; a word first used in 1832 when the Cornwall Polytechnic Society was founded to promote “many arts and techniques”. Subsequently, and in 1970s and early 1980s in particular, the Polytechnic (or Poly) offered a form of higher education that placed an emphasis on the practical application of ideas. Since then, the landscape of higher education across the UK has changed beyond recognition and in recent years it has become increasingly clear that many artists are looking to alternative learning programmes that are affordable and which sit outside mainstream education. Wysing Poly aims to offer an alternative model for learning that contributes to this increasing number of learning and peer-support programmes.
With Wysing Poly we are aiming to provide an environment within which practice and theory come together to support the development of new work and new collaborations. Across 2016 we will offer artists’ residencies, artist-led study weeks and study days, a Summercamp comprising of seminars and events devised in collaboration with artists and writers, alongside practical courses, and workshops for young people developed by our Circuit group. Wysing Poly will take an open and pluralistic approach, and intrinsic to it will be the contribution of individuals from outside the arts through a public talks and events programme that will expand thinking and bring new tangents and ideas to the centre.
Through this Open Call we are inviting artists to apply to be in-residence within Wysing Poly. We are particularly looking for artists that can bring alternative cultural perspectives to the programme, who will embrace the ethos of learning and who will be willing to run study days, and participate in events, as part of our public programme.
The artists’ fee for residencies is £4,000 to each artist that will cover fee, materials and travel, plus free on-site accommodation during the period and a free studio. Please read these guidelines before making an application:
Profile of Artists
We are looking for artists, at any stage in their careers, who can bring alternative cultural perspectives to Wysing Poly, who will embrace the ethos of learning and who will be willing to run study days, and participate in events, as part of our public programme.
To Apply
Applications are made online via Submittable. Once you have set up an account you are able to return to your application any time up until the deadline which is midnight on Monday 25 January 2016. It is recommended that you apply with enough time to approach us with any questions or queries in using the Submittable website. We are not able to accept applications after the deadline.
You will need to provide:
1. A statement on your work, why you are interested in Wysing Poly and what you can bring to the programme (max 600 words).
2. Six images of your work, or other relevant material.
3. A current CV.
Visit the website.