Call for Participation: Lovely Weather Artist Residencies, Donegal, Ireland

Donegal County Council's Public Art Office in partnership with Leonardo/OLATS seeks expressions of interest from artists for one of five residencies (4 – 11 weeks) exploring how art can address issues around global warming and climate change in County Donegal.
www.donegalculture.com

LOVELY WEATHER ABSTRACT

Climate change over the coming century, and the social and political action needed to counter it, will be the major preoccupation of all sectors of society. Just as landscape artists helped reshaped our perception of our place in nature, so 'climate artists' are beginning to reshape the way be perceive the inter relationship of climate and culture.

In the West we have progressively dissolved our ancestral link to climate. This is largely a result of massive urbanisation and the development of modern lifestyle and it has been possible to observe a deterioration of sensitivity to meteorology and climate. Art could help us to question our perceptions and relationships to weather, climate and help us to experience and reveal our inner participation with weather and climate; the rupture of their balance and its meaning for our world; in the same way that landscape artists reframed the relationship of humans to their environment.

Donegal County Council's Public Art Fund will utilise monies from the 5 electoral areas (under the % for Housing Scheme) to initiate a series of residencies for artists to examine on the ground the effect of climate change throughout Donegal. These residencies will examine cultural approaches to weather, climate and their modifications throughout County Donegal. (Please refer to Appendix I on the project web site).

PURPOSE

* The Lovely Weather Project is a national and international residency programme for artists to be based in County Donegal, Ireland.
* The residencies are multi - disciplinary and will explore how artists can address issues around global warming and climate change in County Donegal.
* Lovely Weather residencies should directly touch on the earth sciences, communication technologies and ecological activism, to challenge the boundaries of what art can accomplish alongside these disciplines in the climate change debate.

FORMAT

* Five residencies are proposed in the five Electoral Areas of County Donegal, Ireland. One per area. (Please refer to Appendix II on the project website).
* Residencies will be of 4 - 11 weeks in duration (although proposals for shorter or longer periods can be considered).
* The residencies will not be studio based. The Regional Cultural Centre and other bodies in the region may accommodate proposals, which require studio space.
* The successful artists will not necessarily have to be resident in Donegal for the entire duration of the project. But they must demonstrate a commitment to working on the ground during at least part of the residency.
* The residencies will be managed by co-curators for the project John Cunningham (Regional Cultural Centre) and Annick Bureaud (Leonardo/OLATS). Workshops and seminars will be held with the artists and interested parties, throughout the run of the residencies.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION
PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS A TWO PHASE SELECTION PROCESS

PHASE 1 IS A GENERAL CALL FOR SUITABLE CANDIDATES

SHORTLISTING OF CANDIDATES FOR PHASE 2 WILL TAKE PLACE

SHORTLISTED CANDIDATES FOR PHASE 2 WILL BE ASKED TO SUBMIT A MORE SPECIFIC PROPOSAL RELATED TO ONE OF THE FIVE LOCATION FOR THE RESIDENCY PROGRAMME

The partners invite artists with a specific interest in environmental and climate issues, to submit a proposal for a residency programme examining climate and its changes in one of the five Electoral Areas of County Donegal, Ireland.
The proposals must be relevant to, and engage with, art & climate and the particular environment of Donegal.
Proposals for the project will be accepted from individuals, collaborators and groups.
Submissions MUST ONLY be submitted via the Lovely Weather Residency Website.
The online form will be available MONDAY 8th JUNE 2009 ** (please see below)
Submissions should include :
a current Curriculum Vitae (300 word max).
A maximum of 6-images/ audio/ video of previous works.
A proposed project outline (including timescale, costings etc.) of no more than 750 words.An artist statement of no more than 500 words.

TIMESCALE

1st PHASE
Call for submissions – May / June 2009
Final date for Phase 1 submissions – 3rd August 2009
Shortlisted artists for Phase 2 informed – 17th August 2009

2nd PHASE
Final date for Phase 2 submissions – 25th September 2009
Successful applicants for residencies informed – 16th October 2009

RESIDENCIES
Start date for Lovely Weather Residencies – 1st November 2009
Completion date for projects – 1st November 2010
Exhibition – 23rd November 2010 – 25th February 2010

** Thank you for your interest in the Lovely Weather Artists Residency Project. Due to unforeseen technical difficulties, the on-line application facility will not be available until MONDAY 8th JUNE 2009. After which time we will look forward to receiving your application.

Closing date for Phase 1 applications is Monday 3rd August 2009.

Further information is available at www.donegalculture.com.
For further info contact Declan Sheehan Declan.Sheehan@donegalcoco.ie or John Cunningham jcunningham@donegalcoco.ie