This is an Open call for the presentation and selection of residency projects aimed at artists involved in  the contemporary art scene, both in Brazil and abroad. Candidates must have an artistic career, performance, and proven experience in the area, in addition to being interested in developing or deepening a research project. Based on the proposals received, NACO (Núcleo de Arte do Centro-Oeste) will select up to 12 residents to participate in a residency program, occupying a house-studio for 2 weeks.

NACO Residency is an artistic program that has been in permanent activity since 2014, based at the Núcleo de Arte do Centro-Oeste, located in the village of Olhos D’Água, in the municipality of Alexânia/GO.

Currently, the programming is annual, it takes place in 2-week cycles and welcomes up to 12 artists, committed to Contemporary Art.

Transportation and food is provided. As well as a space for artistic coexistence, critical and curatorial follow-up, portfolio reading, a workspace (collective workshops) and the Final Exhibition (NACO Open) as a result of the processes created and experienced here.

The groups are accompanied by invited curators, who try to facilitate listening and dialogue processes, accompanying and forging, through the most varied conceptual, aesthetic, and technical procedures, a research process to generate collaborative dynamics, transforming local economies, as well as the affective and symbolic thought from the eco-district (Olhos D’Água – GO).

The collaborative construction is supported by different educational perspectives, thought-feeling gesture breakdown, scientific and sensitive praxis that are positioned, mobilizing emotions, inconclusive cognitive and intuitive processes, opening gaps in the surrounding landscapes of our Cerrado and its multiple cultivated relationships.

Specific curatorial context- The artist residency created by NACO (Nucleo de Artes Visuais do Centro Oeste), is based on the local context, which is explored and understood by the participating artists. Recognizing the importance of local engagement, the residency reflects on issues related to the Cerrado biome (Central West), the ecology of knowledge in the immaterial and material realm, and the historical, political, and social dynamics of the place. These issues are considered in the context of life management, having as a main reference the eco-district (Olhos D’Água – GO).

Art, in this sense, is a fertile field for other crops, which promote more ecological and community relations. The residence is an instance to speculate about our gestures and their consequences in the orb of what is planetary, giving rise to scenes from other crops with the Cerrado. The objective is to ground imaginative practices linked to Contemporary Arts, addressed to the social and ecological field, within the scope of stories and their revisions, debts and reparations.

The artistic residence has the objective of being a space for reflection, creation, and dialogue, where artists can investigate and express their point of view on the interactions between the local and the global. The residence also promotes awareness of the socio-environmental problems present in the region, to uses imagination as a resistance technology to create other value economies, in the cultivation of more sustainable ecosystems.

Resident artists are invited to explore the global reverberations that determine the world economy from the routes established (*)here. In addition, they will be stimulated to broaden the meaning of parenthood with living and non-living relatives, betting on coexistence between species, which arises in us.

ACTIVITIES OF THE RESIDENCY PROGRAM:

Curatorial follow-up: The curator of the cycle holds periodic remote and face-to-face meetings, guiding the research and proposing reflections. During these meetings, guidelines for the development and realization of the projects are also discussed. The objective here is a dynamic process based on active listening and dialogue with the cast, seeking dynamics to singularize the research and the links with the collective that are intended in the residency.

Guests: During the research period, the residents will have face-to-face and remote meetings with guests, enabling group and individual moments with the cast of each edition. This dynamic aims to activate the circuit as a complex and diverse ecosystem, understanding the residency as an opportunity to promote encounters and connections. This interaction with external guests will enrich the experience of the residents, giving place to dynamics of collaboration and knowledge sharing, and contributing to the improvement of the projects under development.

Portfolio readings: Individualized portfolio readings will be conducted by a guest curator, in which artists will share their poetic writings, procedures, and conceptual speculations, providing privileged access to each other’s production. The conversations generate debates around the research, presentation and materialization of the artworks, and also function as exercises for the exhibition and production of discourse on the practice in process in the workspace.

Open Studio: These are moments that are developed through conversations and practices related to research, enabling the presentation of artistic research projects to be carried out during the residency process. These moments also provide a cultural mapping of local artisans, establishments, events and cultural organizations, giving rise to indirect relationships with the community. It is a time to share creative processes with the other residents, the local community and external guests, including the reception and visit of local authorities such as professors, artists, researchers, critics and collectors.

Collective workspace: NACO’s facilities include the Ateliê (Collective workspace), a 200 square meter shed with no internal dividing walls. The space houses multiple forms of artistic expression, allowing artists from different backgrounds, platforms, and media to occupy it in a variety of ways. This place is also indispensable in the processes of sharing and exchange during the residency, fostering isonomic and dialogic sharing.

Final exhibition (NACO Open): This is the culminating moment of the processes developed and experienced during the residency. Resident artists share their artistic journeys, expressing a plurality of languages and approaches. “NACO Open” opens its doors to the public, allowing them to share their creative processes with the other residents, the local community and external guests, including the general public. The exhibition establishes dialogues and emotional connections with the works on display while strengthening the bonds between the artists, and fostering mutual learning and collaborative ties.

General information

Food: During the residency period, three meals per day will be offered, a varied and diverse menu, focused on local and organic ingredients, inspired by traditional and home cooking. Cultural and/or regional aspects of the cuisine will be incorporated to create a warm and caring environment, to provide adequate nutrition to the participants, who will be considered within their particularities and restrictions, and will be duly accompanied by a specialized team.

Transportation: To facilitate and make the displacement of the participants more accessible, we will provide private transportation from Alexânia to the village of Olhos D’Água.  This initiative aims to ensure a greater opportunity for participation for everyone involved, overcoming geographical barriers and promoting regional integration. Greater mobility will provide comfort and safety during the trip, allowing the artists to fully concentrate on the experiences and learning made possible by the residency process.

Mobility: Olhos D’Água lacks a public transportation network, as does Alexânia. Therefore, mobility will be by motorized vehicles, non-motorized vehicles (bicycles), or on foot. The fact that Olhos D’Água is a village does not imply that access to the entire village is impaired.

Living space: Conceived by architect Nando Cosac as a place to enable collective dynamics, reception and integration, NACO’s facilities include a garden and an architectural ensemble in dialogue with the local landscape. The facilities include 9 rooms with double or single beds, all with bathrooms, Wi-Fi, fan, minibar, hammock, towels and linens, as well as a headquarters to promote community experiences. NACO is an art center open to national and international exchanges, with rooms equipped for artist residencies, workshops, seminars, and exhibitions, covering the multiple languages of contemporary art.

Communication: To promote, encourage and publicize artistic research, we use our portals, such as NACO’s website and social networks, as well as conventional media platforms (newspapers, blogs and magazines) to publicize the contents and activities developed within the framework of the residency. These communication strategies aim to expand the reach of the artistic productions and promote greater engagement with the public, allowing for greater visibility and recognition of the projects developed here.

About Olhos d’Água: In the words of Emerval Crespi, griô (wise storyteller) of the city, Olhos D’água has its origin in a religious promise made by a remnant of enslaved people, Mrs. Sebastiana Magalhães, who lived in the area. This promise brought with it the fear of the slaves’ inheritance and the possibility of their return. Mrs. Sebastiana then promised to build a chapel in honor of Santo Antônio de Pádua in case the village prospered and in case slavery did not return.

The village of Santo Antônio de Olhos D’água grew around the small chapel, built with the efforts of the community and with an inaugural mass on July 13, 1941, by Father Luiz Maria Zephirino on land donated by Geminiano Queiroz and his brother-in-law Juvenal Parente. This settlement also served as a landing point for cattlemen passing through the region and was the first road that gave access to the Castanho site, a piece of the Cruls square – the area demarcated for the construction of the new capital. At the time, it was subordinated to Corumbá de Goiás and its lands were divided by the Catholic Church into small plots, which were given to those who wished to settle there.

The church square is the site of the traditional Feira do Troca (Exchange Fair), created in 1974 by Laís Aderne, a professor at the University of Brasília (UnB), which promotes moments of conviviality and exchange of objects between local artisans and visitors to the village. Since then, it has become a traditional event, promoting local craftsmanship and tourism in the region, in the territory chosen for our residence.

Olhos d’Água demonstrates that sustainable development is not a utopia and that it can be woven with one’s own hands, as in a joint and collective effort. Therefore, we insist on the need to disseminate knowledge and memory in the context of collectivization, reforestation and preservation of memories, regional cultural roots, and the promotion of activities that enhance local economies.

OPEN CALL – NACO RESIDENCY PROGRAM (ANNUAL)

Calendar:

Application deadline: October 02 to November 22, 2023 (Brasilia time).

Results: November 30, 2024

Residency period: from April 28 to May 11, 2024.

Registration form:

Registration form

This is an open call for the submission and selection of residency projects aimed at artists involved in the contemporary art scene, both in Brazil and abroad. Applicants must have a proven track record and experience in the field, as well as an interest in developing or deepening an artistic research project. From the proposals received, NACO will select up to 12 residents to participate in a residency program, occupying a studio space for 2 weeks.

APPLICATION FORMS

  • Interested residents should submit their application by filling out the form available through the link provided, within the deadline. Within the form, artists must attach a CV and portfolio of up to 10MB, and insert a brief residency project to be developed.
  • Each applicant and/or collective must submit only one residency proposal.
  • By registering for this call, the applicant confirms that he/she is the author and exclusive copyright holder of his/her proposal, as well as of the elements that compose it, and accepts all the conditions contained in this call.

-Applicants are entirely responsible for the information and data submitted in their application, as well as for the obligations assumed.

  • The selected candidate will be contacted by e-mail or phone call, using the information provided in the application form.

If the candidate does not respond to NACO’s contact to confirm his/her participation in the program within 48 (forty-eight) hours after the first contact attempt, he/she will be automatically disqualified, and the first candidate from the list of alternates will be selected to replace him/her. Throughout the residency period, alternates may also be called upon if a selected artist is unable to fulfill the residency.

 -NACO is not responsible for possible failures in the transmission of the e-mail due to an excess of information sent by the candidates.

SELECTION

  • Candidates will be selected by a jury composed of a specialized team, accompanied by NACO staff, as well as guest curators and/or artists. During the evaluation process, the coherence of the artistic work developed by the candidate will be analyzed, as well as the pertinence of the specific proposal for the residency.

-A list of alternates will also be created, respecting the ranking order of the participants.

-The result will only be communicated to the selected candidates once the selection process has been completed.

FEES:

Those selected will be offered two housing options:

-R$4,200 reais – room shared by two residents.

-R$ 4,900 – single room

 The residency program does NOT cover or take care of:

  • Allowance for possible daily expenses;

-Artist’s production materials;

TO THOSE SELECTED

-Applicants are responsible for the submission of the application form and other documents, implying their full consent and agreement with the terms of this Call.

  • Payment (in instalments or cash) is required to reserve your place once you have been selected.
  • Regularly attend program activities, whether in person or online.
  • Respect NACO’s internal rules and regulations;
  • At the end of the residency period, vacate the studio space used by NACO and remove all materials and works that may have been installed during the residency period;
  • Assign to NACO, as well as to the sponsors and collaborators that make the program possible, the copyrights of the images and sounds of the artistic projects produced or presented in the context of the residency, as well as the right to use the name, image, voice and biographical data of the artist, for institutional dissemination purposes exclusively related to the artist’s participation in the program. The assignment is total, definitive and for an unlimited period.