Programme: Emerging Curators Platform (ECP) 2026 – Materials and Materiality
Duration: April – September 2026 (6 months)
Location: Lithuania (SODAS 2123 and partner spaces)
Participants Selected: 2 emerging curators
Application Deadline: February 16, 2026
Includes:
– €500 honorarium
– Mentorship and consultations
– Exhibition space and production budget
– Technical and communication support
Overview
The Emerging Curators Platform (ECP) invites applications for its 2026 programme “Materials and Materiality”, dedicated to research, experimentation, and hands-on learning in contemporary curatorial practice.
Programme Concept
The Emerging Curators Platform programme, organised by SODAS 2123 coordinator–curator Agnė Bagdžiūnaitėand artist–curator Ona Juciūtė, invites participants to explore the relationships between the materiality of artworks and exhibition content. This year’s theme proposes approaching material as a carrier of meaning—examining its political, poetic, and historical charge, and considering how materiality shapes exhibition narratives, spatial experience, and curatorial language.
Throughout the programme, participants will be encouraged to experiment with exhibition formats and to develop an authentic, personally articulated curatorial position.
About the Emerging Curators Platform
The Emerging Curators Platform (ECP) is an educational and community-oriented space open to experimentation, the exploration of new exhibition formats, and the development of contemporary curatorial practices. Responding to the needs of the Lithuanian contemporary art field, the platform provides opportunities for those interested in curating to realise their curatorial ideas and gain practical experience in exhibition-making.
By focusing on curating as both a creative and critical practice, ECP aims to contribute to ongoing processes within the Lithuanian contemporary art scene, foster dialogue between artists, curators, and audiences, and create conditions for the emergence of unique and experimental artistic and curatorial forms.
Programme Goals (2026)
To support emerging curators in establishing, shaping, and developing independent curatorial practices through mentorship, practical tools, and long-term professional orientation.
To continue the activities of the Emerging Curators Platform, fostering and strengthening a community of cultural practitioners interested in curatorial work.
To create an educational platform grounded in experimentation, responsive to the professional and creative needs of its participants.
To initiate and strengthen connections between emerging curators and art spaces in Lithuania and abroad.
To develop a public programme relevant to both general audiences and art professionals, focused on the theme “Materials and Materiality” through exhibitions and extended event formats.
Programme Duration
6 months (April–September 2026)
Programme Structure
Field Trips and Visits
Participants will visit artists’ studios and art spaces and take part in meetings with artists, curators, and cultural professionals. These activities aim to familiarise participants with diverse curatorial practices and working models.
Discussions and Workshops
Open public events will be organised to encourage audience engagement and discussion around the programme theme. In addition, workshops will focus on practical curatorial topics.
Exhibitions
During the programme, exhibitions will be realised in the SODAS 2123 project space*, where participants will apply the knowledge gained by developing independent curatorial projects.
Application Process
Emerging curators are invited to submit their applications here by February 16.
Applicants are encouraged to propose a flexible curatorial idea, which may evolve during the programme in response to newly acquired knowledge, mentorship, and other circumstances.
Two candidates will be selected through the open call.
Selected participants will receive
a €500 honorarium;
individual consultations with the programme organisers, artists, and curators;
access to an exhibition space within the SODAS 2123 centre;
a production budget for exhibitions;
technical support and communication/visibility for the exhibitions.
Applicants will be informed of the selection results by February 25.
Funding
SODAS 2123 activities are funded by the Lithuanian Council for Culture and the Vilnius City Municipality.
Notes
- The SODAS 2123 project space hosts various exhibitions—most often solo exhibitions—initiated and independently realised by artists.
