CONVIVIAL FOODSCAPES: call for an artist
WHAT?
A one-month art and ecology residency Quinta das Relvas x CONVIVIUM
WHEN?
1st > 30th november 2026 (apply until september, 15th!)
WHERE?
Quinta das Relvas, Branca, Portugal
WHO?
Visual artist residing in CONVIVIUM partner countries (Belgium, France, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, and Spain).
COSTS?
All costs covered, including flights & accommodation (meals are not included).
DETAILS:
Food has never simply been about feeding us, nor about managing what feeds us. It is soil, microbes, plants, animals, and people, bound together through relations of eating and being eaten, feeding and being fed. Conviviality begins here: not with the shared meal alone, but with the interconnectedness of the many forms of life that make a meal possible, together with the imbalances and frictions that accompany them. To think convivially about food is to stay with these tensions rather than resolve them away.
The concept: Cultivating conviviality in food systems
Contemporary food systems face interconnected crises – from climate change and supply-chain disruptions to malnutrition and conflict. Mainstream sustainability approaches often treat ecosystems as resources to be managed for human consumption and benefit, reinforcing a false separation between humans and nature. Commonly promoted within sustainable development discourses, such perspectives obscure nature’s limits, the rights and agency of more-than-human elements, and the relational dynamics that shape our economic, social, and ecological systems.
To address this crisis, we must reconfigure how edible biodiversity is conceptualized, valued, and governed. CONVIVIUM proposes Conviviality as an alternative pathway.
By expanding the idea of community beyond humans to a more-than-human relational space, Conviviality challenges dominant development narratives by placing relations, care, and plural ways of living at the center of food systems.
Residency Focus
During this one-month residency, we invite artists to explore how these reconnections can be achieved and how convivial foodscapes can be cultivated.
We encourage proposals that address one or more of the following tracks:
- Multispecies Life & Processes: Microscopic perspectives, fermentation, soil health, and non-human agency.
- Rituals & Representations: Reimagining how entanglements across food systems are mapped, shared, or celebrated.
- Speculative Futures: Exploring what convivial foodscapes look like in a 21st-century European context – and what they could become.
Inspirations for this call include Ivan Illich, Anna Tsing, Tim Ingold, Arturo Escobar, Donna Haraway, Ursula Biemann, Paulo Tavares, Michael Given, and Buen Vivir scholars such as Grimaldo Rengifo and Eduardo Gudynas.
You are welcome to reflect on one or more of the following questions as you shape your application:
- How does your practice make visible or tangible the agency of non-human entities – such as soil, microbes, crops, or ecosystems – within everyday food systems?
- In what ways can your proposed work challenge standard sustainability narratives by reimagining food preparation, consumption, or sharing as a practice of care and relational living?
- How do you plan to interface with the unique landscape, ecosystem, and natural processes of Quinta das Relvas as a site for reimagining 21st-century foodscapes?
- What rituals, representations, or spatial interventions might help communities move away from seeing nature as a resource and toward living alongside it convivially?
Scope and Methods
We welcome both site-grounded physical interventions (utilizing local flora, farm materials, soil, or fermented cultures) and conceptual, digital, performative, or research-based responses that engage with the residency’s core themes.
About CONVIVIUM and Quinta das Relvas
The EU-funded project CONVIVIUM (2024–2027) is an interdisciplinary coalition exploring food as a “living heritage” capable of positive societal transformation. Part of the New European Bauhaus initiative, CONVIVIUM fosters collaborations between research and design around the core values of “beautiful, sustainable, together.”
Know more about the project at https://convivium-neb-project.com/
Application requirements
- Portfolio (maximum 5 pages)
- Website or social media profile
- Motivation letter (1 page)
Please note that although we require a Portfolio and CV to help us understand your profile, language, and background, we give priority to applicants who demonstrate a strong connection to the residency concept in their Motivation Letter.
Accommodation & Amenities
- Lodging: Private stay in on-site eco-tiny houses.
- Shared Facilities: Fully equipped kitchen, shared bathroom, and a common living room. Meals are not included
- Connectivity & Access: High-speed Wi-Fi in working areas; 10-minute walk to local shops; 10-minute drive to major supermarkets and town; arrival/departure transfers to local transit hubs.
Studio & Technical Facilities
- Visual Arts Studio: An 80 m² climate-controlled workspace with high ceilings (4m), white display walls, natural light, a private restroom, a washing station, easel, and dedicated workbench.
- Specialized Workspaces: Performative arts atelier (80 m²) and an analog photography lab (subject to availability).
- Equipment & Tools: On-demand access to carpentry tools, basic art materials, and multimedia equipment (projector, TV displays, DSLR camera, and studio lighting).
- Natural Materials & Site Access: Access to surrounding gardens and woods with seasonal natural resources (wood, clay, flora, natural pigments) provided alongside guidance on sustainable harvesting.
- Educational Resources: On-site research materials, literature, and staff support.
- Security: All studio spaces feature secure keycode access.
Explore photos of our facilities at quintadasrelvas.pt/our-space.
How: Program Structure & Activities
We offer a flexible, non-compulsory schedule designed to support your process without restricting creative autonomy. Activities and mentorship are adjusted to individual project needs and include:
- Ecology & Regenerative Practices: Introductory sessions on permaculture, syntropic agroforestry, composting, and sustainable art techniques.
- Field Trips: Visits to regional cultural institutions (e.g., Oliva Creative Factory, Viarco Pencil Factory, Águeda Arts Center).
- Mentorship & Community: Ongoing support from staff, open-ended movie nights, and the option to host an Open Studio event for the local community.
Key Information & Requirements
- Eligibility: Open to visual artists residing in CONVIVIUM partner countries (Belgium, France, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, and Spain).
- Timeline: 1-month residency in November 2026.
- Financial Support: A fee of €1,000 (covering residency costs at Quinta das Relvas), plus an additional €150 budget for materials and small tools, provided on a reimbursement basis.
- Expected Outcome: One work or project in any visual medium addressing the residency concept.
Exhibition Opportunities
- Solo Presentation: Displayed during CONVIVIUM’s The Convivial Table workshop in the Bairrada region, Portugal (March 2027).
- Group Exhibition: The selected work may be considered for inclusion in the project’s final collective exhibition in late 2027 (Tabakalera cultural center, San Sebastian, Spain). If the work is included, the artist may be invited to participate in the opening event. Contribution from CONVIVIUM to transport and insurance of the art work (round trip): 1250 euros. Any costs above that amount are covered by the artist.
HOW TO APPLY?
Photo on the poster credits: Paulo Cunha Martins
