Organisation: Baltic Gallery of Contemporary Art
Location: Ustka, Poland
Residency duration: 10 days
Programme dates: 8 October 2026–16 May 2027
Honorarium: PLN 2,000 gross
Accommodation: Provided free of charge
Application deadline: 13 September 2026, 23:59
Results announced: 18 September 2026
The Baltic Gallery of Contemporary Art invites people working in the visual arts to participate in a series of rest and regeneration residencies in Ustka, organised as part of the Kurort Ustka programme.
The residencies were created in response to the need for a space in which rest, regeneration and time for reflection are recognised as integral parts of professional practice. The programme aims to share the resources of the Baltic Gallery of Contemporary Art and create conditions in which participants can slow down, rest, focus on their own work, spend time with others or simply enjoy ten days by the sea.
Participants will not be expected to develop a new artistic project, prepare an exhibition or deliver public events.
The programme will welcome 16 participants across eight ten-day residency periods, with two people participating in each period. The residencies will take place between October 2026 and May 2027.
Following their stay, each participant will produce an original postcard—a visual or visual-textual record of their residency experience—and take part in a recorded podcast or conversation. The discussion will address their practice, experiences of working in the arts, rest and regeneration, and the conditions required to work in the cultural sector more sustainably.
Who Can Apply?
The open call is intended for people professionally involved in the visual arts sector, regardless of their career stage or role.
Applications are welcomed from people who:
- Create art;
- Curate exhibitions or artistic projects;
- Work in art criticism;
- Deliver educational, mediation or research activities in the visual arts;
- Work in the production, coordination or technical delivery of artistic projects and exhibitions;
- Work in cultural institutions;
- Work in the independent arts sector; or
- Participate in the arts in ways not listed above.
The organisers are particularly interested in reaching people for whom opportunities to rest, travel or participate in residency programmes are limited or difficult to access for various reasons.
Residency Dates
Sixteen people will be selected for eight residency periods, with two participants attending each period:
- Residency I: 8–18 October 2026
- Residency II: 12–22 November 2026
- Residency III: 3–13 December 2026
- Residency IV: 14–24 January 2027
- Residency V: 4–14 February 2027
- Residency VI: 4–14 March 2027
- Residency VII: 1–11 April 2027
- Residency VIII: 6–16 May 2027
Applicants may indicate all the residency periods for which they are available in the application form.
What Is Provided?
Each participant will receive:
- A ten-day stay and free accommodation at the Baltic Gallery of Contemporary Art in Ustka;
- A gross honorarium of PLN 2,000;
- Access to the gallery’s spaces, studios and other resources; and
- Organisational support from the residency coordinator.
Accessibility
The organisers aim to make the residencies accessible to people with a range of needs and personal circumstances.
The Baltic Gallery of Contemporary Art building in Ustka is accessible to people with reduced mobility. It has step-free access, a lift and an accessible toilet.
Participants travelling with one or more children may receive additional childcare support during part of their stay. The scope and form of this support will be agreed individually before the residency begins.
Where participants have other access requirements, the organisers will seek to provide appropriate support and adapt the conditions of the stay to their individual circumstances. Applicants can describe these requirements in the application form. No diagnosis or medical documentation is required.
Accompanying Guests
Participants may attend the residency with an accompanying guest. Due to the structure of the programme and the limited number of beds available, accompanying guests may stay at the Baltic Gallery of Contemporary Art for a maximum of seven of the residency’s ten days.
The cost of an accompanying guest’s stay is PLN 150 per night and must be agreed with the gallery team in advance.
Application Limit
A maximum of 250 applications will be accepted.
The call will close once 250 correctly submitted forms have been received, and subsequent applications will not be considered. Applications will be admitted to the selection process in the order in which they are received.
The open call may therefore close before the stated deadline if the limit of 250 applications is reached earlier.
Selection Process
Applications will be evaluated by a selection committee comprising Katarzyna Roj, Martyna Miller, Magdalena Koperska and Aleksandra Jach.
The committee will primarily consider:
- The applicant’s need for rest and regeneration;
- The potential significance of the stay for their continuing professional or artistic practice;
- Their professional, financial and personal circumstances;
- Their access to other opportunities for rest and support; and
- The diversity of experiences and perspectives represented within each residency group.
Professional achievements, the number of exhibitions or awards, and the length of an applicant’s CV will not be the primary selection criteria.
Information provided in the application form will be treated as self-declared. Applicants will not be asked to submit documents proving their income, financial circumstances, health or personal situation, or to demonstrate their need for regeneration.
Two participants and one reserve candidate will be selected for each residency period.
The results will be announced on 18 September 2026.
