CO.LABS is an independent, professional artistic platform focused on supporting original artworks by independent artists and creators in the fields of performing arts, visual and fine arts, and alternative music and musical composition. The platform supports artists and creators working in these areas, focuses on interdisciplinary creation, engagement and progressiveness with a focus on political and social thematic overlaps.
CO.LABS functions as a cultural center dedicated to supporting independent artists and their creations. It serves as a service organization providing infrastructure, technical equipment, education, and professional development to elevate the sector. In addition, it is a creative space that accelerates the creation of high-quality works of art and thus ensures an equal environment open to creative ideas that try to translate into a high-quality result in the form of works of art.
ABOUT THE RESIDENCY PROGRAM:
The Ephemerality Residency Program is aimed at both established and budding independent artists. It is open to various genres, including performing arts, music, visual and fine arts, multimedia, and more. Individual artists or groups from Slovakia, Hungary, and Poland will spend 2 – 4 weeks in the Outdoor zone of CO.LABS. Artists or collectives will work together or build on each other in the space/environment within a single residency, creating their own artistic projects and networking through regular interactions.
The goal is to create a participatory and inspirational environment around the theme of ephemerality, where the creation of one work leads to the disappearance of another.
With this residency program, we want to accentuate the theme of ephemerality and volatility of works of art across the centuries and at the same time relativize this statement in the context of the works of surviving centuries. We also open the discussion on recycling, both as a global phenomenon affecting our daily life, but also in the context of artistic creation and intellectual property, working with materials and their reuse. We seek parallels between recycling materials and recycling one’s processes, ideas, and self in artistic creation and life.
Ephemerality as a state of awareness: where the physical fades away and the spiritual remains. What is essential is the duration and the process contained within ephemerality. This involves transformation – personal, local, the transformation of place, cultural centre CO.LABS, society, the cultural sphere, resources, political movements, cultural centers, cultural institutions, cultural professionals, the status of artists, and much more.
The connecting element of all outputs will be the connection through space and materials – the condition of working with scenographic elements will be the necessity of using similar materials that are naturally found in the space/environment, their recycling, upcycling, or material connection to another artistic collective by using the same material in a different way.
Areas of Artistic Interventions
Artistic interventions by the creators may focus on the following areas:
Ephemerality in Art and Creation
- Ephemeral materiality: Transformation of art over time and space.
- Ephemeral artistic experience: Uniqueness, temporariness, fleeting nature (anti-composition, anti-replica).
- Site-specific phenomenon: Reaction to the place and the transience of its use; adaptation and new artistic experiences.
- Recycling: Reuse of materials and artworks, implications for new artistic creations.
- Transience of artistic legacy in historical context
Ephemerality in the Operation of Culture/Cultural Organizations
- Sustainability of art: Lifespan of projects and their funding.
- Leadership of cultural institutions: Fluctuations in the leadership of cultural institutions, healthy development, transience of leadership, the art of departure, and new beginnings.
- Archiving vs. transience of artistic outputs
- Sustainability of artistic institutions’ communities: Competition, political environment, gentrification.
- Cultural advocacy: Systematic communication of cultural institutions with competent authorities and political authorities (associations, forums, symposia, advisory bodies), an ideal model of dialogue, the value-based transience of culture, cultural institutions, and political activism.
Ephemerality in Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives
- Transience of cultural identity/development of identity as a societal aspect: Influence of political regulations.
- Transience in times of crisis
- Transience of art as a concept: Definitions, boundaries.
- Transience of artistic reflection and dialogue: Absence of critics (financial compensation, generational exchange, permeability).
- Transience of art in the realm of social media: Viral effect and social media marketing strategies.
- Effective marketing strategies for promoting unique artistic experiences: Festivals, unique presentations of artistic works.
RESIDENCY DETAILS:
The residency is aimed at established and budding independent professional creators working in the field of performing arts, music, visual and fine arts, multimedia, etc. It is intended for creative groups (max. 5 people) or individuals from the three V4 countries – Poland, Hungary and Slovakia.
The projects undertaken within the Ephemerality residency program can be in various stages of creation – from initial interdisciplinary research, data collection, testing and application of theses in different contexts, to final artworks adapted to specific environment and contexts or other. The intention of the residency is to create a space for creation, research and exploration in the context of ephemerality and to work with the locality while sharing the space with other artists. The residency aims to provide a space for the creation of new artworks or the sustainability of existing ones.
Duration:
2 – 4 weeks
Residency Period:
September 2024
Expenses Covered by the Host Organization:
- space
- technical equipment
- production support
- PR
- accommodation
- honorarium 45000 CZK per residency for one selected individual or group (the amount of the honorarium does not depend on the number of people in the residency)
Expenses Covered by Artists:
- travel
- food
Residency Conditions:
Participants should engage with the local community of the CO.LABS cultural center by presenting their work in any form. Outcomes of the residency can include performative works in the form of work-in-progress or digital recordings of individual works (video, audio, and others) as well as other forms of public sharing such as discussions, workshops, community meetings, and more.
Maximum Number of Participants per Residency:
5 people
Deadline to apply:
31. 7. 2024, 23:59
Material:
Within the residence, the essence is the use of the material that provides the space and the recycling of the material. Therefore, the purchase of new materials will not be funded to avoid supporting capitalist patterns of material use for creation.
Application:
I WANT TO APPLY I WANT TO APPLY I WANT TO APPLY I WANT TO APPLY I WANT TO APPLY I WANT TO APPLY
ABOUT THE SPACE:
Outdoor Zone CO.LABS
Shared outdoor space for creation, discussion and presentation of contemporary art. The outdoor zone is located in the immediate vicinity of the center of Brno, next to the Sokol Brno I building, where CO.LABS is located.
This hidden small park with an intimate atmosphere covers an area of 1000 m² with mature linden trees providing plenty of shade. It serves as a shared space suitable for artistic work, networking, and the presentation of contemporary art. In June 2022, the park underwent revitalization and reconstruction, transforming from a minigolf area into a park serving residencies, creation, specific performances, open-air art discussions, workshops, community events, and more.
This created a semi-public space completely adapted to the needs of the performing arts.
The entire surface was strengthened by using a crushed stone surface (reinforced layered crushed stone/gravel). This work was done in collaboration with the Divo studio focusing on landscape architecture, allowing the surface to accommodate various functions such as concerts, discussions, performances, visual installations, temporary stages, and elevations. Additionally, the park offers coworking and community work infrastructure, including small furniture. The park also features basic infrastructure – 380V electrical connections, drinking water, waste management, and access. It can accommodate public events up to 250 people with facilities for refreshments, barbecues, tents, and a built-up raised wooden terrace measuring 7m × 6.5m.
Technical drawing of The Outdoor Zone
For additional questions or to schedule a call to explain the details, contact the residency coordinator:
Klaudia Klembarová
Email: klaudia.klembarova@colabs.cz
Phone: +420 605 029 370
This project is supported by the instrument RRF and Czech National recovery plan as of Next Generation EU program, Call No. 0315/2023 – Development of Competences: Projects of International Artistic and Professional Cooperation in the Czech Republic II.
SOURCE: CO.LABS