The Open Call opportunity has been awarded to Kolxoz Collective

Open Call, with VIAINDUSTRIAE

Residency: 7 June – 12 July
Quasi-Book: 25 June – 11 July

Mahler & LeWitt Studios and VIAINDUSTRIAE are pleased to present an Open Call opportunity for a publisher, artist publisher or artists involved in publishing to join our summer 2021 residency session in Spoleto, Italy, to develop new work and participate in Quasi-Book, a platform for disseminating and contextualising artists’ publishing practices during the Festival dei Due Mondi.

Open for the duration of the festival, Quasi-Book will be an experimental artist’s bookshop, events space and gallery, connected to the former studio of Sol LeWitt in the old town of Spoleto. As a prolific bookmaker and a co-founder of the Printed Matter bookstore in New York, LeWitt is closely identified with the book as an art form. The Festival dei Due Mondi is an international, multi-disciplinary arts festival founded by the composer Giancarlo Menotti in 1958.

Quasi-Book will act as a hub for the activities of the Mahler & LeWitt Studios and VIAINDUSTRIAE throughout the festival. It will be a hybrid space presenting studio activity, hosting events and exhibitions, as well as the daily running of a bookshop. We are interested in supporting alternative and experimental approaches to artists’ publishing and bookshops.

The VIAINDUSTRIAE Archive and the connected De Donno Collection – which contain historic and contemporary collections of artist’s publications alongside related artworks and ephemera, dating from Futurism and with a focus on Italian art – will be made available for research during the residency period and as a resource for programming in Quasi-Book. VIAINDUSTRIAE is a projectspace and publishing group specialising in experimental, contemporary approaches to publishing.

The Mahler & LeWitt Studios / VIANDUSTRIAE programs provide artists, writers and curators with funded periods of research and development to explore new ways of working. It is with this in mind, with respect to alternative publishing methods and approaches – that we will consider proposals. In the context of the pandemic, wherein the Italian government considers books as ‘essential items’ and permits bookshops to remain open even in ‘red-zones’, we are interested in supporting experimental approaches to artists’ publishing which help to facilitate communal reflection and action. Quasi-Book embraces our need to make, read, use and distribute books as tools for artistic investigation. We are interested in the role publishing plays in creating discourse, disseminating ideas and encouraging debate, and in permitting co-generative, co-operative ways of working.

The opportunity is open to single applicants as well as combined (two person) applicants, submitted with one application. It is open to publishers and artist publishers irrespective of age or nationality, comprises:

  • Up to 35 days in residence at the Mahler & LeWitt Studios for 1 or 2 people. An apartment will be provided which has two bedrooms, each ensuite, and a shared living area.

  • Use of studio space and other facilities at the Mahler & LeWitt Studios

  • Archive and collection access at the VIAINDUSTRIAE Archive and De Donno Collection, with curatorial support.

  • Curator mentoring and feedback.

  • Organised excursions and meetings with the residents personal research interests in mind.

  • A stipend of 30euros per day per person (up to 2100euros).

  • Return travel expenses for up to 2 people.

  • Materials/event budget of up to 500euros.

  • Publication budget of up to 500euros. The publication – which can take any format and will be co-published by VIAINDUSTRIAE, the Mahler & LeWitt Studios and the publisher/artist in residence and is to be distributed in a low edition run, free of charge – can either be produced concurrently with the residency or at the end of 2021.

Expectations

  • Participation in the residency in Spoleto.

  •   Applicants are asked to make use of Quasi-Book as a platform through which to develop and share their practice.The space will be provided with technical equipment, including projectors and a sound system.

  • Contribute a review text to the Mahler & LeWitt Studios annual publication.

Eligibility:

Open to publishers, artists of all disciplines, as well as writers and curators.

Covid-19:

The safety of participants in our residency sessions is of upmost importance to us. We are implementing extra vigilant cleaning protocols and we are adhering to guidance outlined by local government. If you have any concerns or questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

How to apply:

The deadline for submissions is 30 April 2021.

Applications should include,

  • Artist’s Statement / description of practice (500 words max)

  • A brief outline of how you would use the residency period, the way you would engage with the Quasi-Book platform, and why it would be helpful to your practice (500 words max)

  • Up to x10 images of work or x1 short video (5 mins max)

All submissions or questions should be clearly marked ‘Open Call: Quasi-Book’ and sent via email to [email protected] and [email protected]

Further information:

For more information please visit www.mahler-lewitt.org and www.viaindustriae.it.

The Mahler & LeWitt Studios is established around the former studios of stone sculptor Anna Mahler (1904-1988) and conceptual artist Sol LeWitt (1928-2007) in Spoleto, Umbria IT. The Torre Bonomo, a medieval tower once used as a residency and exhibition space by the gallerist Marilena Bonomo (1928-2014), is also central to the program. The residencies provide a focused and stimulating environment for artists, curators and writers to develop new ways of working in dialogue with peers and the unique cultural heritage of the region. Each residency is facilitated in response to an individual’s needs and interests: experimentation is encouraged. The studios curators facilitate research as well as events or exhibitions, when appropriate, during the residencies. Each resident is provided with accommodation and 24 hour access to a studio. There are facilities for making ceramic as well as a range of other tools for production. Several libraries are also accessible.

Viaindustriae is a non-profit organization and a collective, active since 2005, developing contemporary art projects – publications, residencies, exhibitions and events – which respond to educational needs and conceive cultural projects as a creative, modular and open practice that can be inclusive and socially permeable. It is based in Foligno, Italy, in a former clothing factory. With its practice, it aims at investigating the intermediate territories between art and architecture, off-media publishing. Viaindustriae establishes a relationship with artists who seeks to engage with and enhance co-operation and co-generative instances of artistic production. In 2009 Viaindustriae launched INbook OUTbook IFbook, a biennial research and residency project on the possibilities of display and archive of artist’s books.