BankART 1929 studio space in Japan (Credit: Asialink)
Artists wanting to secure an art residency with Asialink from among its 13 host partner countries now have four more destinations to choose from, one each in Japan and China and two in Thailand.
Elysha Rei, Director Sam Rit Residency in Thailand, says that a residency at Sam Rit would give artists the opportunity to connect with the village grass roots level and become involved in the community.
‘Artists can look forward to experiencing a completely authentic way of Thai rural life within a setting that cultivates and nurtures independent creative productivity.
‘With limited exposure to tourism in the area, Sam Rit offers a rare opportunity for cultural immersion into daily life – riding via bicycle, eating local food, engaging with local farmers and the village community,’ she says.
Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts at Khon Kaen University is the other host institution in Thailand. Hosting artists for residencies in performing arts, the faculty encourages artists whose practice explores site-specific performances.
With beautiful village settings, green paddy fields, waterfront studios, serene buildings and celebrity-designed architectural spaces, the new host institutions boast the best environs and networks that artists can ask for. For example, the Three Shadows Photography Art Centre in China is designed by the renowned artist and architect Ai Weiwei, and is dedicated to photography and video art. Established in 2007, the Centre is free to the public and has its own library with over 2000 books and journals on video and still photography.
Japan’s BankART 1929, based in Yokohama’s docklands, has been running since 2004 and has been engaged in revitalising the city’s architectural legacy. Residencies for artforms like writing, arts management, visual and performing arts are offered at BankART 1929. It has an international network of performing art and fine art artists from Taipei, England and Australia, among many others.
Asialink Art Residencies provide the dual advantage of benefiting both the artist’s professional development and the cultural development of the community the artist works within.
‘Sam Rit Residency provides a win-win situation for both artists and the community. Nestled in a beautiful rice farming region of North Eastern Thailand, artists are welcomed into this culturally rich part of the world with the facilities and support network to be completely independent and integrated into the village at the same time.
‘The community benefits by having artist fees support local employment and projects, and encouraging cross-cultural dialogue and interactions with the locals who have limited exposure to foreigners,’ says Rei.
While preparing applications for the residencies, applicants are advised to select and target their application proposals to the host country of their choice. Once successful, the applicants will be introduced to the host organisation/institution by Asialink.
Applications for the 2015 Asialink Arts Residencies Program are now open. To read more about each host country and the artforms they cover, go here.
