ARTSLINK INTERNATIONAL FELLOWSHIPS: GUIDELINES and APPLICATION

Letter of Inquiry and Artist Biography due January 15, 2024
Fellowships take place in 2025: online research in March-April and in person residencies in the US in October-November

The ArtsLink International Fellowship program prioritizes applicants whose social practices seek to actively engage communities on issues related to the current climate emergency and human rights. We will actively encourage artists and arts leaders whose work is making a vital contribution to furthering people’s awareness, understanding, and active participation in environmental and/or social justice issues. Additionally, we will prioritize artists recently displaced from their home countries. 

Please read these guidelines carefully.

How to apply

The application for the full Fellowship program is a three-part process.

Due January 15, 2024
Letter of Inquiry (LOI) and Artist Biography
A letter of inquiry is a brief presentation (400 words) of your interest in the Fellowship program, including the impact you see it having on your practice. Consider the question, “Why would you like to participate in the program now?” The LOI is used by CEC ArtsLink and external readers to determine whether to invite a full application. Those invited to submit a full application will be notified by February 5, 2024.

Due February 23, 2024
Full Application
Submit a full application using our online system. We will send you a link if you are invited to submit a full application.  

March 2024
Online Interviews

Finalists will be notified in early March
, followed by online interviews to take place March 11-18, with Fellows receiving notification between April 1-3.

Please note that an invitation for a full proposal does not guarantee acceptance into the program.

CEC ArtsLink welcomes applications from contemporary artists, curators, and arts leaders whose work is shaped by community engagement and social practice strategies, and informed by our most urgent local and global issues. We welcome applications from artists of any generation and invite those with both traditional and non-traditional artistic backgrounds. Applicants must be citizens of one of our network countries. If you are living outside the region, please indicate where you are currently based. Please note that an ability to communicate both verbally and in written English will be essential for success in the program.

Undergraduate students and research scholars are not eligible. Arts leaders/curators must be affiliated with an arts organization in the non-commercial sector or work as individual independent arts professionals. Artists seeking placement in commercial firms are ineligible. ArtsLink International Fellows from prior years are not eligible to reapply.

All ArtsLink International Fellowship applications will be evaluated by an independent review panel comprised of arts professionals based on the following criteria: 

  • Artistic or professional rigor of the applicant’s work 
  • Demonstration of experience and an active commitment to community engagement and dialogue
  • Potential for the applicant to interact with the host communities in the practice or development of their work
  • Benefit to the applicant, at this time in their career, from interaction with US artists, arts institutions, and the US host community
  • Applicant’s plans for sharing the benefits of the exchange with artists and institutions in their home country
  • Applicant’s ability to meet cross-cultural challenges successfully

Preference will be given to those applicants for whom this will be a first-time opportunity for in-depth research/creative work in the US. The program prioritizes applicants whose practices seek to actively engage communities on issues related to the current climate emergency and human rights.

Phase 1: ONLINE Research and networking
Fellows lead a 6-week online research and networking residency facilitated by their US host institution in March-April 2025.

Phase 2:  IN PERSON Immersive residency
Fellows travel in early October to mid-November 2025 for six-week residencies with their US host organization to continue in person research or develop a specific project in partnership with local collaborators. In mid-November, all Fellows travel to New York City (or other appropriate US cities) to share their practices, experiences and to network with Fellows, CEC ArtsLink staff and other colleagues.

Phase 3 (Optional):  PROJECT in home country
Fellows expand collaboration with US organization(s) and individual artist(s) with  a follow-up project in their home country, with CEC ArtsLink as a co-producing partner.

Applicants who have been selected by the review panel are matched by CEC ArtsLink with relevant arts organizations across the US that can provide a research residency experience appropriate to each candidate’s professional skills and goals. The candidate’s professional interests and contacts are carefully evaluated to ensure the best available opportunity for each ArtsLink International Fellow. While we take geographical and organizational preferences into consideration, Fellows should be prepared to fulfill their Fellowship in any of the fifty US states and US territories. In order to provide each group of Fellows with exposure to the geographic and cultural diversity of the US, we seek as broad a range of host sites as possible.

CEC ArtsLink offers a stipend for the online residency and fully covers all the costs associated with the in person residency in the US. A detailed budget is developed in dialogue with Fellow and Host.

At the conclusion of the Fellowship in order to complete the program, each Fellow and Host must submit a feedback form that discusses the experience, research, and project activities and their impact on his or her professional development together with selected images and video documentation as appropriate.



Frequently Asked Questions

Applicants must be citizens of one of the following countries and regions: Afghanistan, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Palestine, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan.

Only individuals may apply to the ArtsLink International Fellowships program. Artists, arts leaders or curators working as a team may apply individually, but there is no guarantee that all members in the team will be accepted. 

Applications are reviewed by CEC ArtsLink staff and experienced guest reviewers from the field. Applications are evaluated according to the review criteria listed in the Application Guidelines.

Please submit materials that represent your organization and your leadership. You are welcome to include brief descriptions of the activities and projects and your role as it relates to them.

Please let us know of any established connections or areas of interest you may have with US organizations. We will consider this when making host selections, though we cannot guarantee a particular organization or city.

Fellows should expect to spend their Fellowship mostly in the city where their host organization is located. In some cases, host organizations will allocate funds for travel, but ArtsLink International Fellowship awards are modest and Fellows should not assume that travel to other cities will be covered. If Fellows choose to travel on their own, they will need to cover the cost of their expenses. The time they spend away from their host city should be limited and coordinated with the host organization. Please keep in mind, the US is a very large country and it can be costly and time consuming to travel between regions.

Regretfully, no. The residency is designed as a professional development experience, and at this time visa regulations and host organization capacity prevent us from accommodating spouses, partners and/or children.

To consult with CEC ArtsLink staff, please make initial contact by email info(at)cecartslink(dot)org

Eligible Countries

Applicants must be citizens of one of the following countries:

Afghanistan, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Palestine, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan