Together with various regional cooperation partners, Urbane Künste Ruhr is awarding six artist residencies in the Ruhr region for the year 2025. During a three-month research residency, we invite you to develop a situation-specific project that is expected to be presented to the public in a curated exhibition in Dortmund in 2026.
The program is aimed at artists and collectives who are interested in working in the Ruhr area and a contemporary perspective on the polycentric region and its themes. It is implemented together with the regional cooperation partners Stiftung Geschichte des Ruhrgebiets and Stiftung Industriedenkmalpflege und Geschichtskultur as well as the focus on performance. The connection to one of the cooperation partners or different focal points creates opportunities for different artistic practices and different thematic approaches to the Ruhr region.
Open Call
We invite artists and collectives to develop a draft for an artistic work during a three-month research stay and in close cooperation with the curatorial team on site, which – depending on its suitability – will become part of a joint exhibition in Dortmund in 2026.
When applying for the Open Call, it is necessary to choose one of the three focus areas for the specific project proposal! A total of six positions (two per focus area) will be selected from the submissions by an expert jury.
1st stay in cooperation with the Foundation for the Preservation of Industrial Monuments and Historical Culture
In cooperation with the Stiftung Industriedenkmalpflege und Geschichtskultur, Urbane Künste Ruhr invites two artists or collectives to a three-month research residency on the site of the Hansa coking plant in Dortmund. The foundation was established in 1995 in equal parts by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and RAG AG and currently looks after a total of twelve heritage sites in North Rhine-Westphalia. The foundation’s task is to protect important industrial monuments from demolition, to secure them, to conduct scientific research, to make them accessible to the public and to put them to new, appropriate use. It also provides impetus for integrating industrial architecture into new concepts for urban development and landscape planning, monument protection, business and tourism.
The cooperation between Urbane Künste Ruhr and the Stiftung Industriedenkmalpflege und Geschichtskultur has existed since 2024.
For whom?
This part of the program offers professional artists and collectives a spacious and quiet studio in the middle of the Hansa coking plant in Dortmund. The conditions on site are suitable for an artistic practice that includes sculpture, sound, painting, film and installation. The direct connection to the Stiftung Industriedenkmalpflege und Geschichtskultur (Foundation for the Preservation of Industrial Monuments and Historical Culture) lends itself to an exploration of post-industrial landscapes, their previous and new functions and the transformation of infrastructure and architecture.
The prerequisite is that the artists spend at least 75% of the time on site.
What does the program offer in cooperation with the Stiftung Industriedenkmalpflege und Geschichtskultur?
- A residency from 1.8. to 31.10.2025 with curatorial support and close links to Urbane Künste Ruhr
- Support with networking in the region
- A guest artist’s fee of € 5,000 gross
- A studio on the site of the Hansa coking plant
- A one-off assumption of costs for arrival and departure
- Accommodation in Dortmund
- Reimbursement of journeys by public transport for research purposes
Application deadline: March 31, 2025