EU pilot programme for creative artists issues new call

 

i-Portunus is selected and funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union. It is managed by a consortium headed by the Goethe-Institut with Institut français, Izolyatsia and Nida Art Colony of Vilnius Academy of Arts

 

Between April and September 2019, i-Portunus will issue three Calls for Applications, providing support for international mobilities of artists active in the fields of the performing or visual arts and residing in a Creative Europe country.

 

The destination of the mobility must be a Creative Europe country. These mobilities must have a specific and well-defined objective, such as to develop an international collaboration, to engage in a production-oriented residency or in professional development, to present work in another country or to develop projects with local communities in the destination country.

 

A first Call for Applications ran from April 17 to May 15 2019 and resulted in over 1,200 valid applications being received. These were analysed and taken into account for the preparation of the second Call.

 

The focus for the second Call remains on two sectors: the Performing Arts (except music) and the Visual Arts, but it expands the scope and is open to group applications (up to 5 people) and segmented mobilities.

 

The second Call was issued on June 3 to financially support the mobility of artists and culture professionals of all ages, nationalities, educational qualifications and levels of experience, legally residing in a country participating in the Creative Europe programme.

 

With a global budget of one million euros, this project aims to help up to 500 artists establish or improve collaborations and create new works by allowing them to travel to another country for a period of 15 to 85 days.  Next year, the Commission will invest an additional € 1.5 million in similar projects. 

 

The goal is to prepare for 2021, by which time the mobility of artists and cultural professionals should be a permanent part of the new Creative Europe program. 

 

Tibor Navracsics, Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sports, said: “Cross-border mobility of artists is essential to stimulate creativity and competitiveness in our cultural sectors. The number of applications for the first i-Portunus call confirms that demand for our initiative is high. We will continue to pilot the mobility of artists this year and next year so that we can take a specific action in the future. “  

 

This second call, open until June 24 at 14 pm, offers new features: mobility groups (up to five people), segmented mobility (up to three trips of five days each to a minimum 15 days and up to 85 days) and additional financial support for artists with special needs. 

 

A third call is planned for early July.

 

With projects like i-Portunus, the Creative Europe programme of the European Union will be conducting trials on how to best facilitate cross-border mobility for artists. This type of mobility will become a permanent Action under the Creative Europe programme for 2021-2027.

 

The participating countries are: Albania, Armenia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo*, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Tunisia, Ukraine and United Kingdom.