A residency by Ars Techne × Studio 20 Collective

Locations: Yerevan & Gyumri, Armenia
Duration: 2–8 weeks
Application Deadline: Ongoing
Residency Period: Rolling throughout 2026

About the Program

Mattering Worlds asks artists to study how relationships between humans and technology, humans and nature, and between humans and material forces create new worlds. The residency program, based on new materialism and posthuman thought, views matter as an active force that participates in creating meaning.

The residency program accepts artists who explore the vitality of materials, the connections between living and nonliving systems, and the hidden structures that enable worldbuilding and ongoing transformation. The residency encourages experimentation, critical reflection, and collaborative inquiry as ways of imagining how we might inhabit the planet otherwise—responsibly, attentively, and in sympoietic relation with the more-than-human.

Program Description

Mattering Worlds is hosted across two cities in Armenia—Yerevan and Gyumri—offering an environment where media art, ecological research, and speculative futures intersect.

Artists-in-residence will have access to studio space, an exhibition venue, and opportunities for public engagement through talks, workshops, and community encounters. Residents may work with materials across biological, digital, synthetic, archival, infrastructural, or hybrid forms, exploring interdependence, embodied knowledge, and ecological attunement.

The residency is self-funded. Participants cover travel, accommodation, production costs, and a modest donation-based curatorial contribution to sustain the program's independent, non-profit nature. Ars Techne and Studio 20 Collective provide studio space, exhibition support, mentorship, and connections within Armenia’s cultural ecosystem.

Mattering Worlds is for artists who seek a posthuman, interdisciplinary, and ecologically grounded space of inquiry—one that values open knowledge, critical thought, and more-than-human collaboration.

What We Provide

• Studio space in Yerevan or Gyumri

• Accommodation in Gyumri

• Access to an exhibition venue for the final presentation

• Curatorial dialogue and mentoring

• Support with local networks, contacts, and communities

• Infrastructure for talks, workshops, and open studios

• Integration into Ars Techne’s open-knowledge, ecologically responsible ethos
  
  

Conditions of Participation

The residency operates through a shared-responsibility model that sustains our independent, small-scale structure.

Participants are asked to cover:

• Travel and accommodation (in Yerevan)

• Production costs for their project

• A modest curatorial contribution supporting guidance, coordination, and community programming
  
  

There are no expectations to produce a finished artwork; process-based and research-oriented projects are equally welcome.

Residency length: 2–8 weeks, coordinated individually.

Eligibility

Open to:

• Media artists, researchers, interdisciplinary practitioners

• Artists from any country and career stage

• Individuals, duos, or collectives

• Those working with ecological, posthumanist, or material-focused practices

• No academic degree required
  
  

Selection Criteria

• Alignment with the theme Mattering Worlds

• Clarity of artistic/research direction

• Sensitivity to ecological and cultural context

• Feasibility within available time and resources

• Interest in dialogue, experimentation, and community exchange

• Commitment to Ars Techne’s values of openness, sustainability, and care
  
  

Application Requirements

Please submit as a single PDF:

1. Project Proposal (1–2 pages)

2. Artist Statement (250–400 words)

3. Portfolio (6–12 works + short descriptions)

4. CV / short biography

5. Preferred residency dates

6. Location preference: Yerevan / Gyumri / both

7. Technical or spatial needs

8. Optional links (website, video, documentation)
   
   

No application fee.

How to Apply

Send your application to:
info[at]arstechne.net
Subject line: Mattering Worlds Residency Application – [Your Name]

If you have any questions or access requests, please feel free to contact us. We are committed to working with artists to accommodate specific needs where possible.