Artist-Run Initiatives

  Big Shop Friday is an artist-led organization and arts space based in central Milton Keynes, operating on the ground floor of a multi-storey carpark. We provide a space for the creative community and support emerging talent. Our goal is to nurture, inspire, and grow the community of people who create. Big Shop Friday is independent, artist-led and non-profit.  

DOMIE is 400 square meters intended for artistic experiments. It features studio and exhibition, music and performance space, gathering and accommodation. The building undergoes continuous transformation, becoming an artistic medium in itself and provoking site-specific activities. DOMIE welcomes everyone and anyone who believes in the idea of openness, is able to embrace frictions and work in intersections. DOMIE is a place requiring care, a difficult, ghastly place, which responds to the sense of uprooting, chronic nomadism, housing crisis and poverty among artists. Domesticity and ownership have ended. It is time of post-dwelling, zombie-communities, unstable domiciles. The project was initiated by Martyna Miller and Katarzyna Wojtczak, who are developing it with DOMIE community. DOMIE is also an experiment in itself. It focuses on a 10-year plan of reclaiming a building in the center of Poznań/Poland, which due to long-term neglect has been falling into disrepair since 1988. The founders of the project undertook the daunting task of renovating the building without any financial capital. That aimed at spreading the responsibility of the ruin, which used to be an important cultural space in the past (the house of cinema prototype – Kaiser’s panorama of the city), among various – formal and informal […]

SPAO is home to the only 2 year photographic arts diploma in Canada, a unique 6 month artist residency, numerous evening and weekend photography skills classes, and the only gallery in the region dedicated to lens-based art. Established in 2005 as an alternative to photography education, SPAO has seen immense growth and operates more like an artist-run-centre. In 2016 moved to a new purpose-built building complete with the most well-appointed darkroom in the region, lighting studio, digital media lab, and the wheelchair accessible SPAO Centre Gallery. SPAO works hard to cultivate a community of distinct artistic vision, critical dialogue and technical expertise in the photographic arts through exhibition, partnerships and education.  

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  Pocketed right in the heart of the village Baadii Khas, Baadii is a confluence for arts for the three village panchayats in cluster of Kandbari, near Baijnath in Kangra, Himachal Pradesh. The space is a melting pot for artists, artisans, craftspersons, and all residents from the area. A community driven initiative, the space is a platform for arts engagement, exhibition and discussion in the village. Dedicated to maximizing the intrinsic value of the arts in all media, and its impact on communities, Baadii is centered on bringing arts based experiences and interventions, as bridges for cohesion of cultures and people.  

PrintSpace is dedicated to the exploration and experimentation of printmaking techniques, rooted in the desire to build community around a press. It is a truly wonderful space to share ideas, purpose and process. For novice and experienced alike, PrintSpace is designed for small group workshops as well as private rental for press or studio time. First Fridays was established as a way to provide a fun and engaging opportunity using some of the printmaking techniques offered at PrintSpace. Bright Spot Sunday is another monthly program allowing participants a relaxed environment to learn about the beauty of monoprint/monotype while brightening up the day for others. At the end of the session, each participant will choose one print to leave behind. It will be adhered to a card and delivered to the Saint Nicholas Home for distribution to residents. Help create a Bright Spot! Drop in on the Sunday following a First Friday event between 12 – 3.  

OPENART is a contemporary public art biennial taking place for three summer months in Örebro, Sweden. The city center is temporarily transformed into a huge outdoor art arena creating unconventional encounters between the art and the audience. Participating artists are working outside the traditional frames with an opportunity to work big, outdoors and temporary. The exhibition invites a broad and curious audience to experience the art without an admission fee and regardless if they are acquainted with art or not.  

The International Biennale of Performance, Collaborative and Participatory Arts means to shift: to be movable, exchange, modify, transfer… the crux includes the shifting of minds, theories and practices. Grappling with the unconventional and new ways of working. Not being afraid of experimentation and pushing past any stagnant boundaries. Performance art is new within the canonical context of art history. Therefore, [SHIFT: ibpcpa] provide a platform for artists to interpret and present work, for an international biennale based on ‘junction-making’ and ‘networked’ performances which enable an exclusive focus on performance practices including collaborative and/or participatory elements between artists and other non-art disciplines.

  Sonra Sanat Collective is a not-for-profit community created by students and art producers studying in the field of visual arts and music in Kocaeli. The purpose of the collective, which was established in Kocaeli in 2016, is to ensure the continuity of interdisciplinary art production that takes place collectively in the studio named Kara Sanat, and to contribute to the city vision in the field of visual arts by creating a memory in this field by opening this production to the audience through various activities such as exhibitions, seminars and performances. In Kocaeli, Sonra Sanat Collective, tries to create a modest alternative to both the university-based academic environment and Istanbul-centered art field that is under the influence of the same artistic approaches/Institutions, and also undertakes the mission of an independent art space in Kocaeli. Within this mission, the Collective aims to create international encounters in the field of art and to keep track of these motto’s by organizing seminar series/exhibitions/meetings that tries to bring together different disciplines, especially within the students.  

  Helping artists gain exposure during art fairs, We show artists’ works on our Art Display outside art fairs. We hope to include as many artists as possible to help them gain exposure before the eyes of art collectors, art experts and art lovers attending the art fairs. Our display is placed feet away from the entrance to art fairs.     ** We don’t take commissions on any sales generated by the art display. No works need to be shipped as images and artists’ name and Instagram contact is displayed along with images of works. There is a submission fee of $55 and a participation fee if selected. We want to offer an opportunity to all artists who may not be available or cannot travel to show their work, thus this is open to artists from around the world. This is also a good option for artists who cannot access the high fees and commission fees as well as shipping expenses that are associated with art fairs and art exhibits.

Quotes on art by artists, writers, critics and art spectators. The Window Art Project wants to show the value of art to a broader public. It started in 2013 with a new quote on art on the window of our studio at Weesperzijde in Amsterdam every two weeks. The Weesperzijde is a busy pedestrian and cycle route to the center of the city. Every day more then 15.000 visitors are passing by, many in a hurry but more and more people notice the quotes. They read, react, smile, frown, reflect make a note or a picture of the quote. And regularly, we find new quotes in our letterbox or email.  

Mission: Amos Eno Gallery is a nonprofit art gallery providing a full season of exhibits by emerging and mid-career artists working in visual, performance, installation, interactive, and/or digital media/video. Our season is complemented by a diverse series of performances as well as educational and public programs for the New York area. A small community of professional artists runs our nonprofit whose members are vetted through a rigorous reviewing process by their peers. Amos Eno serves as an alternative, artist-run platform for professional artists in a variety of media, giving precedence to artistic expression freed from commercial restraints. By presenting a rich schedule of exhibits and participatory events, we help promote the cultural growth of our community. History: Founded in 1974, Amos Eno Gallery is one of New York City’s longest operating artist-run gallery spaces. As a registered 501(c)3 organization, Amos Eno Gallery offers a diverse calendar of public programming including performance art, film and music, lectures, panels, and workshops throughout the year. See Events at Amos Eno Gallery for more information.

  Since 2000 FILE is a non-profit cultural organization that has been promoting exhibitions, workshops and gatherings that seek to investigate the appropriations of the technologic media in artistic accomplishments. With annual exhibitions in São, in addition to participation in national and international events, FILE is the biggest electronic art event in Latin America. For 2020, artists and researchers can submit their works in the main categories: Interactive Art, Digital Language, Electronic Sonority, Workshops, Symposium and Led Show.  

  Kingsbrae International Residence for the Arts & Amphitheatre (KIRA) was established in 2016 in an effort to support the creativity of artists. We hope to promote excellence in the arts both here in Canada as well as in the International scene, all the while benefiting the local community of St. Andrews, New Brunswick, by becoming a cultural destination. A residency at KIRA creates a rewarding and stimulating experience for any participant seeking to advance their artistic journey.  

  Charlotte New Music is an organization promoting Charlotte’s growing reputation as a creative center for contemporary music and arts since 2012. CNM presents year round educational experiences, compelling performances, and innovative collaborations across many genres and artistic disciplines.

Since 1996, Lump has expanded the possibilities for artists and curators through the support of ambitious projects in exhibition, performance, research and documentation while broadening the community’s exposure to new artistic practices and dialogue. In 2016, Lump officially became a 501(c)3 non profit organization. As an arts organization created to engage and support artists and their audiences, our mission includes a multifaceted approach: To support artists who take risks and help them realize new ambitious projects; to coordinate a strong support system for visual artists; to promote relationships between artists and the community; and to increase access to the visual arts and arts education for the citizens of North Carolina. Lump does not discriminate in any of its operations on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, religion, medical condition, veteran status, marital status, genetic information, or any other characteristic.

Institut for (X) is a culture, business and education platform founded in 2009. It is an independent and not-for-profit culture association arising from citizen initiatives. The (X) is continuously redefined by the members of the platform, which include: 250 + active members 90 studios & workshops 50 businesses 25 associations The outdoor spaces and park areas are public and we invite everyone to use and co-produce them. Mission: Best possible neighborhood for all. Facilitate and enhance cultural activities, combining artistic creativity with business, public debate and public education. A dynamic organization and a laboratory for urban experiments, where initiatives grow organically. Organization: Everyone at (X) pay rent and organize through neighborhood meetings. The administration is reduced to an absolute minimum, and everybody are janitors. The platform produces events and products of cultural and commercial nature, with an estimated yearly turnover of DKK 20 mill.

  L’AiR Arts is a grass-roots non profit association with a mission of supporting intercultural and artistic exchange through providing international artist residency opportunities. Our programs bring together artists, researchers, arts professionals and arts supporters of different nationalities and backgrounds with the aim to foster creativity and artistic practice, while promoting inclusion, diversity and international understanding through arts and cultural heritage.  

  The Platforms Project – Independent Art Fair (Athens, Greece) is an international artist-run art fair which has been createdsince  2013, and it is an annual international meeting of artist groups-platforms. It is an international exhibition, which aims to map how art collectives work, and create channels of communication and cooperation with other countries. The project help to promote the various artists’ groups, collectives, platforms and independent art spaces of a non-commercial (non-profit) orientation which operate in unconventional ways, managing to establish unexpected debates on art. It is an Art Fair for artist’s platforms-groups that produce works or projects together, artist-run galleries and other artists’ initiatives.  

  tactileBOSCH is an itinerant artist led collective championing experimentation and specializing in performance art, multi-media, and site-specific installation. Through its exciting programme of exhibitions and events, tactileBOSCH seek out and adapt to new spaces and contexts, granting permission to artists to experiment with their work in a way entirely impossible in a traditional or gallery setting, offering interesting, transformative and unusual spaces that audiences can explore, and become immersed in creating a complex dialogue between artist, curator, gallery, location and audience.