Open Call 2025: Residence for the Lichtenberg Studios

The residency project gives international artists, but also artists living in Berlin, the opportunity to live and work in a very interesting former East Berlin district and to gain their first impressions of Berlin and its art scenes. With a stay of usually one month, there is enough time for both. The project is primarily aimed at visual artists, but also at others who are interested in the Lichtenberg district. The basis is the idea of activating the district through low-threshold interventions, starting with the “tourist” gestures of the residence guests, who roam the district as researchers or simple strollers, through to concrete projects in the public sphere of Lichtenberg. This means that we are looking for artists who mainly want to work outside; the rooms of the residency offer plenty of space for living but cannot be used as studios. The concept of activation is thus also understood as an offer to residents and passers-by to perceive the (public) space around them in an unfamiliar way, to discover new things and, above all, to gain the experience that (public) space does not have any given, unchangeable characteristics. Projects refer to small and mostly “silent” realizations that usually happen as a matter of course without prior notice. This strategy is based on a view that was already being discussed in the 1970s: Art is part of life, it doesn’t have to be something remote or mythically elevated to a pedestal. The Lichtenberg Studios draw the artists’ attention to the district of Lichtenberg, its history, architecture, inhabitants and their lives. Berlin artists can live in the Lichtenberg Studios for two to four weeks and explore the district. A small amount of funding is available for art supplies and materials.