EHIN Dirty Lab Residencies 2027

About this call

The European Hybrid Intelligence Network (EHIN), co-funded by the European Union's Creative Europe programme, offers six Dirty Lab residencies for artists working with hybrid intelligence and biocomputing: how living organisms generate, exchange and respond to information within ecosystems. Each residency is hosted by one of six partners: Kersnikova Institute (Ljubljana, Slovenia), LABoral (Gijón, Spain), ZKM (Karlsruhe, Germany), CPN (Belgrade, Serbia), KONTEJNER (Zagreb, Croatia) and GLUON (Brussels, Belgium). Each artist is paired with a biocomputing scientist or expert and a local field practitioner such as a herbalist, farmer or ecologist, and does field-based research in a Dirty Lab. The residency runs about 12 months from February 2027: phase 1 on site at the chosen host (February to September 2027), phase 2 at a second partner lab of the artist's choice (October 2027 to January 2028), with online curatorial exchange throughout. At LABoral, the host provides accommodation and studio space. Each residency includes two public Open Dirty Labs and ends in an exhibition-ready artwork, shown by the host and in a final group exhibition and symposium at ZKM, Karlsruhe, Germany, in 2028. Each selected artist receives a grant of up to EUR 25,000 for artist fee and production costs; travel and accommodation are arranged separately with the host institution(s), and the second partner may add a co-production budget that is not guaranteed.

Who can apply

• Limited by country or region
• Medium: New Media / Installation
• Entry fee: See official site
• Open to individual artists and artist collectives who are EU residents or taxpayers in an EU member country, or residents or taxpayers of a non-EU country participating in Creative Europe (the guide links the European Commission list: Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Ukraine, Moldova, Armenia, Tunisia). Applicants must be able to travel to the host institution(s), have a fiscal identification number (VAT or similar), not be affiliated with any EHIN consortium partner, its affiliated entities, employees or permanent collaborators, and not be under liquidation, an enterprise in difficulty or excluded from EU funding. The call is aimed at established artists with an accredited professional artistic trajectory, sustained over time, and demonstrable experience in public exhibitions and artistic projects. Each host may set additional requirements of its own; for example, LABoral asks for 6 to 8 weeks on site in Gijón, and ZKM's working languages are English and German. Apply in English through the online form, with one proposal to one host only: CV and portfolio (each a PDF of up to 5 MB), a project description of up to 1,500 words, visual material (one PDF of up to 5 MB) and a draft budget with the artist fee at no more than 35% of the grant. Material the form does not ask for is not considered. Shortlisted applicants pitch their proposal and must be available for a virtual interview. Selected artists must start in February 2027 and be available for the whole programme (12 months plus dissemination until October 2028), be present at the host for at least 30 days, take part in two Open Dirty Labs and in the final exhibition and symposium at ZKM from 13 September to 22 October 2028, and submit a final report of up to 5 pages with evidence of expenses. The grant is paid in three instalments of 40%, 40% and 20%, the last after the final report is approved. Results by email by the end of January 2027.