UNESCO Arts Open Call for Artists

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UNESCO Creative Cities Network Media Arts Cluster

City to City: Human Responsibility

Call Summary

The cities of Austin (United States), Braga (Portugal), Calí (Colombia), Changsha (China), Guadalajara (México), Karlsruhe (Germany), Kosice (Slovakia), Sapporo (Japan), Viborg (Denmark) and York (United Kingdom), members of the Media Arts Cluster of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network are launching an open call to mark their commitment with the importance of cooperation and support to art and creativity as a major force for the sustainable development in these times of uncertainty.

The call is for artists from these cities to develop a project relying on an online artistic collaboration that is aligned to Kosice’s Art & Tech Days 2020 theme “Human responsibility”.

The artwork will be showcased during Kosice’s Art & Tech Days and through the participating cities platforms.

About the UCCN Media Arts Cluster

As UNESCO Creative Cities we are committed to the UN Sustainable Development Goals especially the role of creativity and culture in building sustainable urban communities. As Cities of Media Arts we aim to 1. Promote excellence of practice in media arts 2. Share our knowledge and skills 3. Encourage the engagement of the public and other professions in creativity 4. Foster sector development and 5. Raise the profile of the work of UNESCO Creative Cities.

Artwork Theme

Aligned to Kosice’s Art & Tech Days the theme of the art work must be related to the theme Human responsibility. Since the industrial revolution, there is an ongoing debate on how technology and constant progress influence the way we live as a society. How it defines our relationship with the environment and our planet. In the last hundred years, we as humans have experienced exponential progress in economic and social development which represents an unprecedented leap in the whole history of our species. This comes with great achievements such as the increase in our lifespan and literacy, poverty decrease, improved global interconnectedness, urbanization, internet, nanotechnologies, AI, VR, you can name it.

But at the same time, constant growth in limited conditions on Earth has led to many negative consequences. We exploit more resources than we can sustain, there is a rise in inequalities, many living species became extinct, climate change, fake news, the rise of surveillance, and so on.

It is our role as humans to take responsibility for all the domains we have intervened with and conquered to find a sustainable and resilient way to live fulfilled and prosperous lives as a global society while sharing our precious planet and protecting all the life and beauty it accommodates.

Critical questions

  • Does technology have the ability to solve all the problems in the future?

  • Do we need more arts and empathy to be able to use technology in better and more responsible ways?

  • Are we allowed to make decisions on behalf of the planet?

Artwork characteristics & Budget

  • Budget per city (1,000 Euros)

  • Equipment available at Art & Tech Days exhibition: Kosice can provide VR headset, kinect, computer, camera if needed.

  • Media Arts field

  • Piece to be co-produced:

    • 1 Digital piece per team (made up by two artists from two different cities)

    • Making-of video about the processes

    • Online collaboration *Artists should be aware that they might be in contact in different time zones.

    • Characteristics to be able to share in digital platforms of all UCCN cities.

    • Self sustainable, as simple as possible.

Eligibility

  • Artists/groups/creative artists from eligible cities: (Austin (United States), Braga (Portugal), Calí (Colombia), Changsha (China), Guadalajara (México), Karlsruhe (Germany), Kosice (Slovakia), Sapporo (Japan), Viborg (Denmark) and York (United Kingdom).

Evaluation Criteria and Selection Process

  • The selection of an artist, or artist team, shall be based on their qualifications and ability to meet the requirements as determined and approved by the focal points of the participating Media Arts cities. The team of international media arts professionals will review and consider the following evaluation criteria:

    • Artistic merit and technical expertise with artwork that incorporates media arts;

    • Demonstrated innovative, and effective approach to art projects of a similar scope;

    • Ability to create artwork within the stated constraints; and

    • Ability to respond to the theme/prompt

    • Ability and interest in developing a collaborative digital artwork (as illustrated through the letter of interest)

  • Artists apply using their own City-specific email or process (deadline of September 25th). Application questions can be addressed to the respective focal points of each city.

    • Austin (United States)

      • Name: Laura Odegaard

      • Email: laura.odegaard@austintexas.gov

      • Phone: +1 512.974.6345

  • Artists will be notified of selection by October 5th. Artists selected must confirm their participation by October 7th at 2 PM

  • Artist will have an online kick-off meeting with their local City Focal Point, their partner artist, and their partner artist City Focal Point on October 8th

  • Payment to artists will be made directly by their individual cities (payment schedules/ agreement language dependent on local guidelines).

Submission requirements

  • Application

  • Portfolio, CV, website/online presence, if applicable

  • Letter of interest

    • Please describe interest in co-creation with an artist from another Media Arts city

    • Please list a specific city/artist/medium they are interested in collaborating with (i.e. if you work primarily Augmented Reality and are curious about collaborating with someone who works in digital sound composition)

    • Please describe any potential visions for a collaborative digital artwork you are interested in creating with the reference to the call's theme HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY

    *In this first edition of the call, Cities will select the teams that will be working together based on the artists proposals and the goal/theme of the call.

Schedule/ Important Dates

  • Deadline for reception of proposals: September 27th at midnight

  • Evaluation/Selection: September 28th - October 2nd

  • Announcement of selections: October 5th

  • Artists acceptance: October 7th

  • Artist Team Kick-Off: October 8th

    • Once teams are presented, they shall present a work agenda to develop their piece,

    • Check in meeting once a week with their city focal points about how the piece is evolving.

  • Development of piece: October 15th to November 15th

  • Final presentation of the piece: November 24th-29th

Motion Media Arts Center