Back to Basic, Intensive Residency Program in 2025
Deadline: January 23, 2025
Submission Fee: Free
Eligibility:
Minimum age is 23 (in 2025)
A university degree (minimum BA), exceptions may be made for individuals with relevant experience
Only individual applicants (Duos, please send two separate applications and mention the other in the "extra notes")
Children are not permitted in the residency
Acknowledgment regarding health and well-being: Due to the nature of activities such as meditation and the absence of distractions, which may bring forth traumatic memories and sensations, it is important to note that this program may not be suitable for individuals coping with severe trauma or serious mental disorders.
About the residency:
Stop the information overflow, go offline and get back to focus in a supportive, natural environment in the middle of the Northern summer.
Back to Basics is a multidisciplinary residency program that allows artists to clear their minds, get back to focus, and (re)discover the very basis of their being. Take a break from your phone, reconnect with your creativity, be part of nature and learn to stay present again.
As the emphasis in this program is on reconnecting with your creative practice and being, no predetermined project plan is required. Participants are encouraged to arrive with their minds open for on-site observations, ideas, self-reflection and interacting with other residents. With support from the professional staff, facilities, and the program structure, Back to Basics allows you to go back to what matters to you.
The program encourages you to step away from the usual ways of escapism, be present where you are, and see how your concentration skills, creativity, and productivity improve. To make this happen, the use of cellphones is not allowed and internet access is limited in this program. Residents also have the possibility to participate in daily meditation sessions. (See program details below.)
The summer season is ideal for exploring and getting inspired by the rich Finnish nature surrounding Arteles Creative Center. There are countless forests, fields, lakes, and small countryside roads in the region. Thanks to Finland’s everyman’s rights, they can all be explored freely.
Summer is full of light: even late into the night, it’s bright enough to go for a walk in the forest. Seasonal berries and mushrooms can be picked from the yard and the woods, and when it’s time to get relaxed, the residency center’s traditional wood-burning sauna is the place to be.
The program structure is designed to be supportive yet open and flexible. Depending on your own preference and interests, you can focus intensively on your own topics of interest, aim at on-site collaborations, or combine both. In either case, the emphasis is on your own creative process and development, and there is no outcome expectations or pressure to produce finalized works.
Program fees:
There is no application fee.
Applicants who otherwise would be unable to join the program can apply for financial support. The number of financially supported residencies is limited.
Regular fee: 1950 € / monthly period
Financially supported fee: 1350 € / monthly period
Contributor's fee (optional): 2610 € / monthly period
All fees include the registration fee (120 € / person, non-refundable, to be paid only if/when becoming selected).
All the residents have accommodation in a private bedroom.
Who can apply:
Emerging and professional artists, writers, designers from all fields of creativity
Researchers, scientists, philosophers, psychologists engaged with areas such as Nature / Plants / Fungi / Psychology / Psychedelic Research / Philosophy / Cosmology / Neuroscience / Meditation / Mysticism / Spirituality / Metaphysics / Math & Physics.
