VARES invites (landscape) architects, ecologists, artists, engineers, inventors and other spatial practitioners with an interest in the ambiguous and changing boundary between water and land to apply for the early summer residency, from 27 May to 30 June 2025 in Estonia.
Water is an unstable element that keeps landscapes in constant change. It falls from the sky, flows from stream to river, presses the air out of the earth, makes the ground beneath us soggy, or evaporates in the air. The springtime streams, swollen with water, recede by midsummer into network of veins buried under the grass. How can we bring people closer to water? How can we transform the soft, squelching land in urban spaces into something that is not a burden, but a charm? How can we reimagine the boundary between land and water, and embrace the unpredictability of both?
This residency invites everyone to explore this theme in their own way. Over the course of the one-month residency, the organisers encourage residents to work on architectural or landscape interventions, installations, ecosystem enhancements, site-specific art, research, performances, or playful explorations of water’s journey from sky to earth.
The residency welcomes professionals and students, writers and thinkers, practitioners and theorists and the call is available for both individuals and groups to apply.
The one-month residency will culminate in a public weekend from 27-30 June, featuring lectures, seminars, short workshops, walks, and more. The organisers expect residents to publicly share their summary or interpretation of the residency period in their preferred format.
The residency offers accommodation and basic workshop options within the residency building, with more specific workshop conditions available in Valga that will be organised according to the residents’ needs. There is a stipend, travel support and production budget available.
