challenging walls

CALL FOR ARTISTS - Challenging Walls

Challenging Walls invites interested artists/photographers from Cyprus, Northern Ireland, East Germany and Palestine to submit their application to participate in a collaborative work concerning wall divided countries.

Challenging Walls is an art-peace project that shares the vision of bringing together in an active dialogue the diverse communities of people living within the parameters of physical and mental walls in Israel and Palestine along with the experiences and shared wall history in countries like Cyprus, Northern Ireland and Germany, using art as the vehicle of peace and understanding. Initiated by Berlin-based, Walkscreen, this project is deemed to dissolve the concrete wall dividing the nations by transforming it into a silver screen that will reflect photographs of day-to-day life.

Co-organised with INDEX (Cyprus), University of Ulster (Northern Ireland), Academie der Kunste (Germany) and its partners in Israel, Van Leer Institute and Cinemateque, more than 200 international artists and scholars are expected to gather in Jerusalem, Israel on 11-14 July 2007, in conjunction with the Jerusalem International Film Festival. EU Culture 2000 funds this project.

As an integral part of the process, selected photographers are expected to take photos that define the daily lives of people living in Cyprus, Germany, Israel, Northern Ireland and Palestine; collaborate with a photographer/artist coming from the opposite side of his/her country; and finally to link the artistic process with the scientific research on the basis of the wall topics. The photographer will work with a team composed of a researcher, curator and/or cultural manager. The collaborative work in each of the countries should take place between April and May 2007. Edited photographs and photo stories will have to be ready by the first week of June. The collective outcome will be shared through a series of workshops, conference, on-line fora, photo exhibitions and multi-media installations. Walkscreen's Ruthe Zuntz and Michael Reitz will be the
participating photographers for Israel and West Germany being the initiators of Challenging Walls.

Selected artists/photographers will receive a production budget and honorarium amounting to 3,000 Euros, return economy airfare from Europe to Israel and 7 nights hotel accommodation and meal for the duration of the set activities in Israel.

If you are interested to apply for this collaborative work, please visit www.challengingwalls.eu to download the detailed guidelines and criteria. Deadline for application is on 1 March 2007.

www.challengingwalls.eu