EMΣΤ | National Museum of Contemporary Arts Athens together with the cultural centre Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Βerlin, announce an artists-in-residence programme for Greek artists (living in Greece) providing an opportunity to spend six months in Berlin. Besides encouraging artistic production and critical reflection, the programme facilitates encounters between those working in arts and culture. The infrastructure and the international environment of the cultural centre offer a suitable setting, allowing participants to experiment with new ideas, engage in critical debates and carry out projects in various media.
WHO WE ARE
Künstlerhaus Bethanien is an international cultural centre in Berlin, in the vibrant neighbourhood of Kreuzberg. As an artist-in-residence programme with 25 workspaces for professional artists, workshops and exhibition spaces, it is dedicated to the advancement of contemporary visual arts. Since 1974 Künstlerhaus Bethanien has been an important stepping stone in the career of more than 950 artists from around the world.
www.bethanien.de
EMΣT is the leading national institution for contemporary art and visual culture in Greece, and one of the flagship institutions in Southern Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean. It was founded in 2000 and for the first years of its existence, it operated as a nomadic institution. In 2015 it moved into its permanent premises, the former FIX brewery, a landmark industrial building of 20.000 metres built by celebrated Greek modernist architect Takis Zenetos (1926-1977) at the end of the 1950s. The pioneering building was renovated for the occasion and now boasts state-of-the-art facilities, eight exhibition spaces, two auditoriums, a library, archive, café, and restaurant and 360-degree views of Athens, including the Acropolis, in the heart of bustling Athens and within reach of some of the city’s most diverse and exciting neighbourhoods, such as Koukaki, Plaka, and Monastiraki. The Μuseum regards art and visual culture as a transformative element in education, knowledge production, storytelling and a tool for the advocacy of progressive and emancipatory values in society. Among the Μuseum’s founding goals is to promote innovative and experimental artistic movements and the production of ambitious works in audiovisual and multi-disciplinary media.
THE 6-MONTH-RESIDENCY COMPRISES
-Bright and spacy studio with Internet connection
-Participation in “open studios” and other events and studio visits
-Professional coaching (curatorial, technical and administrative support) and networking
-Access to workshops for amongst others wood and video-editing
-Presentation of works on the premises of Künstlerhaus Bethanien, in the context of the presentations of other artists-in-residence
-An exhibition at the end or during the residency at the Künstlerhaus Bethanien exhibition space in Berlin
-Contribution to living expenses
-Travel costs (arrival/departure)
-Health insurance is not included
APPLICATIONS
For 2025 the following residencies are available:
1 February 2025 – 30 July 2025
1 May 2025 – 31 October 2025
Who can apply:
The residency is open to outstanding professional artists living in Greece and working in all visual media. Applying artists should have work experience of at least five years. The programme wishes to support visual artists in developing, discussing and presenting their work in an international context and to connect themselves to the vibrant artistic scene in Berlin and beyond.
There is no age restriction.
Conditions of application:
The selected fellows agree to play an integral role within the provided work environment and therefore spend most of their time at Künstlerhaus Bethanien. This includes an intensive process of interaction and communication with the team of Künstlerhaus about their projects and exhibition concept, especially during the preparation of the exhibition.
The applying artists should have a good level of spoken and written English.
Please note that the residency is a work stay. Due to the structural condition of our facilities, the studio is intended to be used as a workplace, not as a private flat where family and friends stay overnight.
Application and selection procedure:
The application must contain:
-Application form: https://forms.gle/dspQypaRjn2qc6q8A
-CV outlining professional career and achievements to date
-Artist statement (max 500 words)
-PDF portfolio with Images/documentation of artistic work and descriptive texts (attachments up to 20 MB or WeTransfer/ Dropbox link)
PLEASE INDICATE YOUR PREFERRED TIME PERIOD (February – July 2025 or May – October 2025)
The application is sent to opencall@emst.gr
The deadline for applications is the 10th of January 2025.
A professional jury will make a decision by mid-January. The artists will be notified immediately afterwards.
GREECE 2.0
The residency at Künstlerhaus Bethanien forms part of the Residency Program of the Project SUB 6.4, “Actions to promote Greek cultural exports and strengthen the Greek cultural name by the National Museum of Contemporary Art Athens”, which is implemented within the framework of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0”, funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU.