Multiple Fellowships at Künstlerhaus Schloss Balmoral

Artists’ residence Künstlerhaus Schloss Balmoral in Bad Ems was founded in 1995 and is a place of reflection, artistic production, discussion and meeting. It supports visual artists from all over the world by awarding artists-in-residence fellowships.

The Künstlerhaus is publicly presented through lectures, concerts and exhibitions. Works by the fellows are regularly shown in ‘Made in Balmoral’, the Künstlerhaus’s exhibition space in the Bad Ems city centre. Schloss Balmoral sees itself as an interface between artistic work and theoretical reflection and as a point of contact between former and present fellows. Balmoral intends to build a bridge between the artists' present and their future.

Since 2013, fellowships are offered in one artistic genre or one theme each year. This offering, which is unique in Germany, is intended to intensify the content-related artistic exchange among the artists present. It will also lead to a more intensive specialist exchange of ideas with external artists, speakers, teachers, curators, etc.

The conditions for all fellowships with the exception of the curator fellowship are a completed course of study in art (MFA or comparable degree) and two to three years (depending on the respective fellowship) of continuous artistic work after the conclusion of the studies until the beginning of the fellowship. Applications are also possible for autodidacts distinguished by special artistic achievements, as documented by exhibitions and prizes.

To foster artistic dialog and interdisciplinary collaboration, knowledge of English is expected.

International residential fellowships
Six residential fellowships will be awarded to international visual artists. The annual theme for the Balmoral residential fellowships 2023 is “Coexist.”

The annual theme “Coexist” deals with processes of making differences and spaces-in-between in art and society visible. Our current society is shaped by debates, movements and protests, in which an increased awareness of certain values as well as social and structural grievances is expressed. Advanced forms of digital communication and networking are having the effect of making an enormous diversity of opinions, attitudes, messages and experiences simultaneously visible as they are exchanged and shared. The current discussion of identity-political issues is not only accompanied by a revision of social values, prejudices and norms, but also by the search for new and “correct” forms of expression.

With this annual theme “Coexist,” the Kuenstlerhaus Schloss Balmoral together with its fellowship holders is shedding light on where the possibilities and boundaries of artistic action are located. The focus here will be both on aesthetic and artistic questions and on social issues.

Eligibility
Eligible to apply for a Balmoral fellowship are visual artists of any age from Germany and around the world.

The preconditions for applicants for the residential fellowships for visual artists are a completed course of study in art (M.F.A. or comparable) and three years of continuous artistic work after the conclusion of studies until the beginning of the fellowship. Applications are also possible for autodidacts distinguished by special artistic achievements, as documented by exhibitions and prizes.

Knowledge of German or English is expected.

Benefits and requirements

• Balmoral fellowships are residential fellowships; continuous presence is obligatory.
• The fellowships are endowed with 1,400 € a month plus subsidy to the travel costs for arrival.
• Three fellowships are awarded for the period of four months and three fellowships are awarded for the period of eight months. All residential fellowships run from April each year.
• All artists invited will have their registered residence in Bad Ems for the time of their stay (compulsory registration). Artists must be free of all professional commitments for the period of their fellowships.
• The fellowship holders are provided free of charge with a furnished room in the artists’ residence for living and sleeping, with shower/WC and a studio. Due to the historic nature the building is not barrier-free and the apartments and studios in terms of their size and equipment are normally only suitable for one single person. The conditions of use are governed by the House Rules, which the fellowship holder must observe. The artists’ residence bears all ancillary costs including water, electricity and heating. The lounge, the dining room and the kitchen are for joint use. Pets are not admitted.
• The fellows may use free of charge a in-house library containing approx. 6,000 books, mainly on modern and contemporary art, and the major art magazines.
• After the fellowship acceptance, the applicant will receive an agreement concluded with the Künstlerhaus and the house rules. Once the contract has been signed by the fellowship holder, the award of the fellowship is legally binding.  
• Fellows are required to write a report about their stay in the Künstlerhaus Schloss Balmoral afterwards.

Additional information and application forms are available on their website. Applications must be made with these application forms. Other applications will not be taken into consideration. The deadline for application is 30 April 2022. Please find the details of the application process here. Reach out to [email protected] in case of questions.