Zachęta – National Gallery of Art and the British Council announce a competition for disabled artists who, due to barriers which exist in the cultural sector, have limited opportunities to participate in the mainstream and circulation of art.

The competition is inspired by the Europe Beyond Access programme in which the British Council is a lead partner along with six other arts institutions across Europe.

There is low public awareness of the problems that disabled artists may face when they want to present their portfolio, apply for a scholarship or carry out their work. Difficulties can arise from prejudice and assumptions, communication barriers, and low accessibility to creative programmes. 

The organization of the competition is an expression of our conviction that it is necessary to ensure equal opportunities in universal access to the mainstream of art in Poland. It also results from the pursuit of broad system changes in this area.

The organizers of the competition plan to award three equal prizes worth PLN 2,000 gross.

The competition is open and is addressed to artists living in Poland, regardless of age, education, citizenship, etc. The recruitment is open.

The form of submitting works: text files, graphic files, photo documentation, audio files, video in the formats specified in the regulations.

Application deadline: February 28, 2021. The competition will be adjudicated on March 29, 2021 The list of laureates will be published on the Zachęta - National Gallery of Art and the British Council websites.

Europe Beyond Access

Europe Beyond Access is a transnational arts and disability programme aiming to internationalise the careers of disabled artists. The project celebrates the work of disabled performing artists from across Europe, including Poland, who are challenging conventions, developing innovative practices, and presenting high quality works on international stages.

We encourage you to take inspiration from Europe Beyond Access in whatever way this speaks to you. For example, the themes you might explore are:

• Disability rights activism
• Innovative practices by disabled artists in dance and theatre
• Increasing the visibility of disabled artists on mainstream stages
• Solidarity within the disability community
• The formation of community
• Diverse dialogue and exchanges
• Claiming space, the right to be heard and to be active participants
• Accessibility
• Independence and autonomy
• Challenging perceptions of disability and creating positive representations
• Doing the unexpected
• Celebrating diverse bodies
• Imagining new futures
• Constructing a better world for disabled people through the arts

License

Submitting a project involves granting the organizers of the competition a license to publicise the image of the work / project as their descriptions, recordings, including fragments, by the organizers themselves and by the Europe Beyond Access co-partners in the contest of Europe Beyond Access programme.

Organizers: