Who Walks Here — Artistic Residency at OvestLab, Modena

Overview

Who Walks Here is a 28-day artistic residency at OvestLab, the civic centre of Amigdala in Modena's Artisan Village, inviting three artists to examine the neighborhood through a transfeminist urban lens. Participants will conduct situated research into feminist urban practices and develop a site-specific work with local communities.

Theme

Exploring how public space shaped by patriarchal logics produces inequality in the Artisan Village (built 1953, now facing deindustrialization and real estate pressure), and how the social fabric can be reimagined through care, proximity, and artistic and relational practices rather than top-down planning.

Eligibility

• Open to artists and cultural professionals residing in a Creative Europe country other than Italy (Italian residents not eligible)
• Individual artists or collectives of no more than 3 artists
• Applications especially welcomed from people with disabilities, racialised people, queer artists, artist-mothers, and anyone whose presence in public space is made harder by the project's focus

Disciplines & Practices Welcomed

• Performance, choreography, and movement
• Dramaturgy, vocal and sound research
• Visual and public art, architecture and civic design
• Oral history and documentary practice
• Participatory and community-based methodologies
• Amigdala seeks curiosity about bodies and space rather than a single finished discipline

Key Dates

• Application Deadline: 7 September 2026
• Notification of selected artists: 20 September 2026
• Residency period: May 2027, 28 continuous days (must end before 7 June 2027)
• Public restitution at OvestLab: June 2027
• Possible public presentation at Periferico Festival 2027 in October

Program Benefits

• Hosting allowance (Culture Moves Europe scheme)
• Daily allowance (Culture Moves Europe scheme)
• Travel allowance (Culture Moves Europe scheme)
• Accommodation at OvestLab's guesthouse, within walking distance of workspaces
• Mentorship from three territorial curators supporting all three residency phases
• Visa support with attention to barriers faced by non-EU artists
• Linguistic mediation provided as needed
• Fully accessible workspace (step-free, accessible bathrooms)
• Accessible accommodation arranged case-by-case where needed
• Possible public presentation of resulting work at Periferico Festival 2027

Application

Submit all materials by email to [email protected] (Laura Petrucci, hosting coordinator). No application fee.