Deadline: 26-Apr-23
The Mekong Cultural Hub (MCH) is excited to announce an open call for applications from art and cultural practitioners from across Asia to participate in the Curatorial Conference 2024.
The aim of this program is to create space for diverse cultural practitioners to discuss and explore topics that concern them, and to be able to share the outcomes of their discussions with a wider public audience. There are two topics for this year’s conference program:
- Life Cycles of Grassroots Cultural Organizations in Asia, curated by Phloeun Prim (Cambodia)
- Hitting Pause: Examining Purpose & Practice, curated by Kathy Rowland, Arts Equator (Malaysia/ Singapore)
The selected conference Fellows will be assigned to one group (according to the preference they express at the application stage). From June until December 2023, the Fellows will meet online approximately once per month, for a series of conversations facilitated by their Curator, starting from the prompt statement shared in the program overview, and evolving with the inputs of the group. During January and February 2024, the Fellows and their Curator will focus on preparing the content and format for the public sharing sessions they will host during the Meeting Point on Art & Social Action in March 2024.
The program is a part of Meeting Point 2024 which will take place in March 2024, with an in-person gathering in Hanoi from March 21-23.
Benefits
- MCH is offering a stipend of $300 USD per participant as compensation for the time they will invest in the program, and the contributions they will make to the group discussions. The aim of the program is that all participants will benefit from the new networks they build, the personal and professional development they will gain through the curated exchanges, and the experience of participating in Meeting Point in Hanoi.
Eligibility Criteria
- To be eligible for the program applicants must:
- Be a citizen of Asia
- Be available for all listed program dates
- Be comfortable communicating in English during the conversations
Target Participants
- To be eligible to participate in a curated conference you must:
- Be interested in the topic and willing to engage in exchanging ideas with people from different professional and cultural backgrounds to you
- Be active in the arts and cultural field
- This could be as an artist, an administrator, researcher or any other kind of practitioner
- If you do not work directly in the arts and cultural field, that’s fine but you need to show an active, ongoing connection through your work (professional or otherwise) with the arts
- Be available to make time for roughly 6 sessions with your group between June and December 2023
- Be available to work virtually with your group during January and February 2024 to prepare what you would like to share at the Meeting Point
- Be available to join the Meeting Point in Hanoi between March 21st-23rd 2024 (all costs covered by MCH)
- Arrival 20th March
- Final preparation and group work 21st March
- Meeting Point program 22ndt and 23rd May
- Departure 24th May
- Be able to speak and understand enough English that you can have a meaningful conversation with a peer about the issues raised up in the prompts
- Your English does not need to be perfect, and it definitely doesn’t need to be academic or technical, but you do need to be willing and able to express yourself and share with others in your group
- Be willing to use online platforms for discussion (if you need technical or logistical support for this, or training, then MCH can do their best to help)
- Be a citizen of an Asian country
Selection Criteria
- The criteria that the Curators and MCH will use in selecting the conference Fellows will include:
- Adherence to the eligibility criteria
- Relevance of the topic to the applicant’s experience and expertise
- Evidence of interest and enthusiasm to take part
- Extent of experience that the applicant can bring to the conversation and/ or the uniqueness of the perspective that the applicant can bring to the conversation
- Having a diverse range of experiences and perspectives among the group (considering factors such as countries, artistic disciplines, professional practice, years of experience)
- Extent to which they think participating in the conversation can benefit the applicant in addressing the challenges and opportunities they are facing.
For more information, visit MCH.
