Call 2023: Enter the Hyper-Scientific

Located in Switzerland, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) is a leading university and one of Europe’s most vibrant and cosmopolitan science and technology institutions. EPFL hosts more than 350 labs at its international campus in the Lausanne area.

After the program’s successful launch in 2022, CDH Direction is now welcoming proposals for its Enter the Hyper-Scientific 2023 edition.

Initiated by EPFL College of Humanities (CDH) Direction, amplified by EPFL Pavilions, and now inaugurating a partnership with The City of Lausanne, the EPFL CDH Artist-in-Residence Program promotes artistic research and experimentation that connects art, humanities, science, and technology by supporting up to four artists for three-months residencies at the EPFL.

The EPFL-CDH AiR Program is open to emerging and established Swiss and international artists interested in the area where arts, science, media, and technology intersect. The program enables invited artists to develop interdisciplinary projects and carry out their research in conjunction with scientists and the PhD and Master students at EPFL. It offers an opportunity to access the cutting-edge engineering, infrastructure, materials, and science developed or made available at EPFL, thus fostering intense experimentation in new forms of expression. At the end of each residency, the resulting project will be presented in a public exhibition or event held at EPFL Pavilions, Amplifiers for Art Science and Society.

The program offers three paths:

• Open transdisciplinary welcomes international artists and practitioners from all disciplines and media to propose projects which reflect the main intention of the program, namely to investigate the fluid intersection between art, humanities, science, and technology.
• Scientific imaging, in collaboration with the EPFL Center for Imaging, prioritizes artists familiar with imaging technologies, CGI, digital practices, and visual arts more broadly. Project proposals in the field of data visualization will be also welcome.
• Environmental transformation in collaboration with CLIMACT, the Center for Climate Impact and Action, invites visual artists (including creators active in the performing arts) and designers to engage in a creative manner with topical themes related to climate transformation. Topics such as climate and social justice, perspectives addressing the disparities between the Global North and Global South, and experimental interspecies, Indigenous, and post-colonial approaches are welcome.

The residency covers:

• Travel costs and accommodation in Lausanne. Preferably, applicants will reside in the city during the period of the residency. Offered by the City of Lausanne, the accommodation is located in a brand-newly inaugurated housing cooperative La Meute, where various cultural practitioners and artists reside. It includes access to a shared studio space, allowing an exchange with the rich Lausanne scene.
• A monthly flat fee for living expenses (of CHF 1,500).
• A production budget (of maximum CHF 15,000).
• Curatorial mentoring and supervision for the duration, including the final presentation of the project.

Proposals should be written in English and submitted by October 3, 2022 (midnight CEST), using the email address [email protected], as one single PDF of maximum 20 MB attached or preferably in a download link, including the following:

• Contact information: name, surname, address, email, phone, and (if applicable) website.
• A short biography.
• A short pitch of the project (maximum 500 words).
• A motivation letter including a statement on how the project investigates the intersection of arts, humanities, science, and technology and the relevance of conducting the project at the EPFL at this specific phase of the artist’s career (maximum 700 words).
• A detailed description of the project, the stages of its development, and the final production imagined as the outcome of the residency, including:  
  – The envisioned benefit of the exchange for the EPFL labs and other EPFL entities involved.
  – A draft of production budget of maximum CHF 15,000.
  – The preferable timing of the artist’s stay.
  NB: Despite a preference for a continuous stay in Lausanne, the program offers flexibility according to artists’ agendas.
• CV
• Portfolio
• Reference letter