Special call for visual artists: The AiR We Breathe

Studio 88 Artist Residency is calling for visual artists to apply for a special residency on the theme “The AiR We Breathe”, to be part of the Art for Air Festival 2023 in Chiangmai.

The four-week programme in our residency space in Doi Saket, 30 minutes from the centre of Chiangmai, explores the topic of air quality. The residency, with a select group of international and Thai artists, is facilitated by locally based arts manager and Studio 88 founder Sasiwimon Wongjarin (Aom).

The residency is open to national and international artists, arts collectives, and creative practitioners with diverse visual art forms and/or cross-disciplinary approaches.

Key dates

Application deadline: 15 April 2023

Mid-May to mid-June 2023

Residents in this second period will participate in a public presentation as part of the Art for Air Festival 2023 in Chiangmai in June 2023.

Theme: Air quality, quality air

In this special residency Studio 88 wants to create a dialogue between different experiences of, and artistic responses, to the air we all breathe.

Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our times. National and local governments are increasingly declaring a climate emergency, although not enough is being done to mitigate the adverse effects of greenhouse gasses. Citizens are demanding more action and lobbying governments for more proactive interventions.

One of the areas that is attracting a lot of attention is the increasingly poor air quality in cities around the world. As the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs UK explains, “The biggest impact of particulate air pollution on public health is understood to be from long-term exposure to PM_2.5, which increases the age-specific mortality risk, particularly from cardiovascular causes.”

In Thailand the Art for Air Project raises awareness about the decade-long smog and pollution problem in Chiangmai due to high levels of PM_2.5. In northern Thailand the biggest causes of poor air are smoke from vehicles, factories, construction, garden burning, agricultural and forest fires. Chiangmai is trying to address the problem, encouraging city residents to reduce the use of their cars. But more needs to be done.

Artists have increasingly tackled these issues of poor air quality, such as Thai artist Ruangsak Anuwatwimon’s“Right to Clean Air–The Art Exhibition” at the Bangkok Art and Culture Center, which featured installations of dust from air pollution gathered from the country’s most polluted provinces, or British artist Michael Pinsky’s “pollution pods” that immerses audiences in the air from some of the world’s most polluted cities.

The programme will draw from the specific Thai context, as well as incorporating global perspectives. The intention of the residency is not to find solutions to this complex problem, but rather to open up dialogues that can lead to more international cooperation and sharing of knowledge.

The programme

The programme includes:

Studio time
Discussion sessions
Site visits
Talk programme with invited international guests
Art for Air Festival participation

Residency fee (for 4 weeks)

USD 1,200 for individual artists

USD 2,040 for duo artists (shared accommodation and studio)

USD 1,000 per person for a group of artists, minimum 4 pax (share accommodation and studio)

Find out about what is included in the fee.

Application

Email expressions of interest to studio88artistresidency[at]gmail[dot]com by 15 April 2023.

Your application should include a CV, 100-word biographical note and a 250-word statement outlining why you would like to participate in the programme and what work you would propose to develop.