ARTECH – Art Camp Albania II

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS:

The UNESCO World Heritage city, Gjirokastra welcomes creators and makers for the second year to be inspired by this historic venue and leave their works of art, crafted through stories.

This is an open call to all artists, artisans, creators, architects, museum curators, cultural managers, makers, and designers alike, both national and international, to take part in the ARTECH Creative Camp between 22 and 28 May 2022 in the historic center of Gjirokastra, Albania.

This camp is organized in the framework of the ARTECH project and is similar to the previous camp, which was organized in June 2021 and gathered participants coming from Albania, Kosovo, Northern Macedonia, Italy, Romania, Spain, and Ukraine. During one week they have been inspired, and they created and co-created artworks and installations in Gjirokastra. The aim of this art camp remains to uphold the exchange between the ARTECH partners and the selected participants, shaping synergy and creating an experience through art, culture, and tradition.

The program of the camp will include discussions about the stories of the first year’s workshop, self-management skills initiation for participants, brainstorming, and co-creation of up to 15 participants. The interactive artworks and installations produced during the residency will be part of a traveling exhibition, this is why all programs of the residency will be photo- and video-documented because, in the case of creations that cannot be moved from the site, the documentation will have an important role in the dissemination process.

The similar events organized in 2021 in Albania, Spain, and Romania will constitute good examples and inspiration for our next camp participants, thus the artworks can be used and replicated or inspire our participants in the camp. The art, creative tools, and solutions that the participants and our partners will bring and develop in the project aim at:

• Developing art projects or project ideas in the historic center of Gjirokastra; we are open to the idea of using as inspiration the products of the art camps/residencies of ARTECH held in 2021 in Albania, Spain, and Romania.
• The participants will need to consider the fact that we are operating in a UNESCO World Heritage Site; only those non-invasive interventions will be allowed to be developed that do not endanger the site’s authenticity.
• Participants can work independently or co-create with other peers and the local artisans/makers.
• Crafting ideas on how public spaces, historic buildings, and in particular the attractions, abandoned sites, etc. can be regenerated.
• Inspiring local artisans and artists to generate and benefit from new concepts and new modern approaches in their daily work and production.
• Developing the particular interests of the Gjirokastra Foundation for the paintings and wall paintings of the late Ottoman period, which are at high risk of loss in the area. Artists may work in

copying and replicating them while keeping in mind the old techniques.

• Developing art projects together with local artisans working in the textile industry, wood, stone, etc.
• Exploring how artists and artisans can match, cooperate, and how they can benefit from one another.
• Developing ideas and products of visual performing art, video making, multimedia, photography, generating from archives, etc.

THE ART CAMP:

The art camp will combine site visits, learning and discovery, and meetings with the local artists and craftspeople, and foresee time for prototyping and working directly with their artworks and productions.

The participants will reside for 7 days in the historic center of Gjirokastra, in direct contact with the context, local groups, associations, and citizens. Through a series of fieldworks, local-led tours, and meetings with the community organized by the local partner and with the involvement of different actors, the participants will have the opportunity to co-create artistic projects and project ideas, designs, artworks etc.

BRIEF CONTEXT:

Situated in southern Albania, Gjirokastra is an authentic hidden gem where people can live an immersive experience and breathe history. The ART camp offers a unique opportunity to experience an unforgettable enriching experience in the historic center, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, known as “the city of stone”, and a rare example of a well-preserved Ottoman town. Its main feature consists of exceptional examples of vernacular architecture: hundreds of Ottoman period tower family houses with distinctive stone roofs, wooden balconies, and whitewashed stone walls. Dominated by the sheer flanks of its vast castle, Gjirokastra is a magical city with a tumultuous past. From feudal stronghold to Ottoman jewel, the city has known many rulers throughout history and has inspired poets, authors, and artists.

The local host for the Art Camp:

Gjirokastra Foundation is the local host of this art camp. For its contribution and dedicated work in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Gjirokastra and beyond, this organization is among the most prestigious ones in the country, being awarded the European Heritage Award/Europa Nostra Awards in 2021. For more than 20 years, the Gjirokastra Foundation has been working with the local community and main stakeholders to keep this unique site alive and to protect its heritage as a good base for social and economic development. In recent years the host organization has developed several camps which have aimed at creativity based on the local heritage.

Key words:

Artists, artisans, creators, architects, museum curators, cultural managers, makers and designers; art camp, creativity, heritage, eclectic, exchange, diversity, culture and memory, preservation, authenticity, Gjirokastra, UNESCO, etc.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

1. Application form.docx

2. CV (Details like address, etc. must be included) / Portfolio (if present)

3. Concept of project idea specifying the involved disciplines (e.g. arts, architecture,technology, crafts, etc.)

Please send all documents in one pdf (preferably) not more than 5 MB at  info@gjirokastra.org

*** There are limited places for the art residence which cover the expenses. Other interested applicants will be responsible for their costs and pay a registration fee.

The Art Camp residency is part of project ARTECH-  Arts, Rediscovery, Traditions, Eclectic,Contemporary, Heritage, implemented by Transylvania Trust and its partners: Archikidz,Gjirokastra Foundation and Comarca del Maestrazgo, co-financed by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union.

Friday May 6th, 2022