WIELS calls for applications from Canadian artists (Canadian nationals, or those living and working in Canada) for a 6-month residency at WIELS, January through June 2027, sponsored by Aureus Ars & Scientia. The application deadline is Sunday, 23rd August 2026, 09:00 (CET).
CONDITIONS
The call is open to artists over 21 years of age, no longer students, legally able to travel and work, with Canadian citizenship or living and working in Canadian territory, having contributed to the Canadian art scene in the last few years.
The Residency is aimed at artists seeking to develop their artistic practice in a professional context, through projects involving experimentation, research and/or critical theory. Candidates may work with any medium, but must have developed at least two years of professional practice and have participated in several exhibitions. We welcome emerging artists and those who, with an established professional trajectory, are interested in reorienting their creative process or carry out research or a new project in a different line than previous works.
The selected resident will have their travel, insurance, accommodation and visa-application costs covered, as well as a provision of 850 €/month for living expenses.
The proposed dates of the residency are granted provided the selected artist holds the relevant long-stay visa, or a European passport, in due time.
THE RESIDENCY PROGRAMME
There are 9 individual working spaces located in the WIELS building, for selected artists from various countries across Europe, Africa, Asia, North and South America.
Besides the studio, in-house technical and administrative support, the residency programme also offers weekly meetings with the mentors – established artists Sylvie Eyberg, Simon Thompson and Joanna Zielinska. These collective studio visits bring the residents together to show and assess the progress of their work on a regular basis, to engage in in-depth dialogue, and to consider divergent points of view.
Other guests (artists, curators, critics) are occasionally invited to meet the residents in their studios and discuss their work.
Field trips are organised mainly within Belgium, but also to major cities with a renowned art scene in the surrounding countries, such as Cologne, Düsseldorf, Amsterdam or Paris, where the residents can visit exhibitions, collections, and meet with other artists and cultural producers.
A public programme called Meet the Residents is organised towards the mid/end of the residency session during which the artists are invited to present their work and research matter to a varied audience, including art professionals, in an open, interactive and performative atmosphere. It is not meant as an exhibition nor a result of the residency.
Residents are encouraged to participate in all the complementary activities of WIELS, i.e. lectures, screenings and discussions with relevant professionals of the international contemporary art scene.
Artists have the opportunity to return to WIELS after their residency to present their work in the WIELS AFFILIATE space, with the aim of consolidating links with the institution and providing visibility for the outcomes of the creative processes initiated or developed during their residency.
The resident artists’ work is featured in an online archive on the WIELS website.
If you have any questions about the application or the residency programme in general, please contact: [email protected].
Please do not send emails to enquire about the selection results. Notifications will be sent in due course.
This residency is supported by Aureus Ars & Scientia.
