Virtual Residency curated by Abir Boukhari

Virtual Residency for MAWA Members of all genders
Curated by Abir Boukhari (Damascus/Stockholm)
February-April, with international exhibitions April-July 2021
Application deadline: Thursday, Jan 28
Residency begins: Feb 22

Presented in partnership with Platform Centre for Photographic + Digital Art, AllArtNow (Sweden) and Jiser (Spain)

MAWA is excited to partner with curator Abir Boukhari on an experimental international online residency of digital/media art. Six artists from Canada, Sweden, Spain and North Africa with join Boukhari in weekly online meetings, taking as their starting point the following quote from Albert Camus’s The Plague: “Until now I always felt a stranger in this town, and that I'd no concern with you people. But now that I've seen what I have seen, I know that I belong here whether I want it or not. This business is everybody's business.” In these times of global pandemic, how are we connected and what are the implications of these connections?

Each artist will create new work(s) that can be presented on screen (moving or still image), that will be featured by Boukhari in an exhibition at Platform Centre for Photographic + Digital Art (April 30 – May 29), then a venue in Stockholm and finally in Barcelona. Display iterations may change. The Spanish partner, Jiser, is suggesting a radio broadcast.

This is a new residency format, so flexibility will be required. A collegial, sharing approach will also be essential. Because of the compressed time frame, each artist will be expected to devote significant time to their work.

Each artist will be paid a total of 500 Euros ($784) for their participation in this residency plus a $400 exhibition fee from Platform (a total equivalent to 750 Euros).

To apply, send a single PDF document labelled with your name and Virtual Residency (i.e., Shar Ali Virtual Residency). The PDF should contain: a paragraph describing your practice (what you make and the ideas that drive your work); a paragraph describing why you want to participate and what you hope to achieve through the residency; and up to 8 recent images that reflect a commitment to ongoing production, with caption information. Email your application to [email protected] and put “Virtual Residency” in the subject line. If you are not already a member, please also submit a MAWA membership form and payment. Boukari will select two MAWA participants.