Call for applications for artist residency: graphic design
Since 2009, the University of Montpellier has been hosting an artist or artistic team in residence at its laboratories and teaching facilities. Since 2013, the residencies have been co-financed by the DRAC (Regional Directorate for Cultural Affairs) and are now part of the agreement between the UM and the DRAC Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées.
Initially, the artists developed Art/Science projects and explored the relationship between artistic creation and scientific disciplines.
The 2014/2015 academic year marked a change in the UM residences. The Microclimax collective was welcomed in the specific context of the merger between Montpellier 1 and Montpellier 2 Universities, which took effect on January 1, 2015. The work of artistic exploration and production was therefore envisaged as being as much related to the living environment and echoing the University's policy as it was to research and teaching. The new scope of the university allowed for an expansion to include "non-scientific" components. Choreographer Leonardo Montecchia, in residence this year, addressed the theme of (useless) gestures at the university, benefiting from this new wealth of resources.
The 2016/2017 residency calls for reflection on the theme of "graphics." Once again, its goal is to promote points of contact and intersection between the fields of art and the disciplines taught at the University of Montpellier. The artist will work closely with teachers, Professors students, particularly those affiliated with the Faculty of Science (especially the departments of mathematics and computer science), ISEM, the Faculty of Economics, and the Faculty of Education of Montpellier.
The University of Montpellier
Created from the merger of Montpellier 1 and Montpellier 2 Universities in January 2015, the University of Montpellier is currently the largest university in Languedoc-Roussillon and the sixth largest in France.
It has 45,000 students spread across 17 departments, including:
- 9 faculties: Economic and Social Administration (AES), Law and Political Science, Economics, Education, Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Sciences (biology and ecology, evolution and environment, chemistry, earth and water, mathematics and computer science, etc.), Science and Technology of Physical and Sports Activities (STAPS)
- 6 institutes: Business Administration (IAE), Preparation for General Administration (IPAG), Business and Management Sciences (ISEM), Béziers University Institute of Technology (IUT), Montpellier-Sète University Institute of Technology (IUT), Nîmes University Institute of Technology (IUT)
- 2 schools: the Research Environment Research Observatory (OREME), Polytech’ Montpellier.
Beyond the field of education, the University of Montpellier also has 76 research facilities grouped around nine scientific themes. More than 4,500 staff (teachers, Professors administrative personnel) work there.
The UM manages and promotes large collections in botany, paleontology, zoology, mineralogy, anatomy, and documentation.
The art & culture department
The Art & Culture Department is a UM department that is part of the Campus Life Division. Its mission is to offer activities that encourage and promote openness among students and staff to the world of culture and different forms of artistic expression.
The department's activities fall into several categories: artistic workshops, programming cultural events on campus, mediation with local cultural organizations, and supporting cultural initiatives from various university stakeholders (students, Professors, cultural associations, departments, research laboratories). Hosting artists in residence is one of the highlights of the department's cultural and artistic activities.
Artistic fields: visual arts – drawing
Theme : Graphics
The term "graphic" has multiple meanings. As an adjective, it refers to drawing techniques but also to the representation of language through symbols. As a noun, it refers to figures representing the evolution of a phenomenon, techniques for representing information using drawings and diagrams, and tracings produced by a recording device.
From graphics cards in computing, to graphs describing the economic situation, to graph theory in mathematics, many academic disciplines refer directly to this term. Teachers, Professors, students, and administrative staff all use graphics in classes, PowerPoint presentations, posters, and reports. Their educational value is widely exploited in all forms of communication, and to paraphrase Napoleon I: a good graphic is worth a thousand words!
The artist in residence will be required to articulate their artistic research with the wealth of activities and semantic palette evoked by the terms "graph" and "graphic" at our institution.
Their proposal should play on our mental representations and offer an offbeat perspective on disciplines that use graphs and graphics.
Pencil, pen, felt-tip pen, engraving, digital drawing—all techniques are possible.
Particular attention will be paid to the form of the presentation in order to appeal more specifically to student audiences (publication, screening, exhibition, performance, installation, etc.).
The visiting artist immerses themselves in the disciplines and engages in exchanges with students, teachers, Professors administrative and technical staff.
The artist capitalizes on knowledge that will feed into the artistic production phase.
Step 1: Exploration and research // Fall 2016 (between September and December, depending on the academic calendar):
- establishing contact with partners and students, and immersing oneself in teaching in order to design an artistic project;
- exploration of research areas;
- immersion in the issues at stake and spaces for designing artistic work.
Step 2: Creation // Spring 2017 (between February and April):
- design and production of the work;
- work restitution;
- meetings and mediation activities aimed at the university community and the population of Montpellier;
- leading an artistic workshop on the artist's approach, or even their specific project for the University.
A suitable workplace will be provided according to the needs of the project.
Financial conditions
A total budget of €8,000* is earmarked to cover the costs of research, creation, and mediation, the supervision of a 20-hour workshop, and the artist's travel and accommodation expenses.
*This amount is subject to the approval of funding from the various partners.
Recruitment process
Applications must be submitted by July 4, 2016 inclusive.
To be sent by email in PDF format or by mail:
For the attention of Éléonore Szturemski / Marta Cases Bobadilla
Email
University of Montpellier
Art & Culture Department
For the attention of Éléonore Szturemski / Marta Cases Bobadilla
Place Eugène Bataillon, cc 438
34095 Montpellier cedex 5
Please include with your application:
- a resume;
- visuals of the work;
- a note on the artistic approach;
- a statement of intent explaining how the residency project relates to the issues addressed in your practice, and possibly a preliminary project proposal.
Applications will be reviewed on July 13, 2016, by a selection committee composed of members of the Art & Culture Department, cultural figures from the University of Montpellier, and representatives from the DRAC Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées. Candidates will be notified as soon as the committee has made its decision.