Call for applications for the Artists Development Programme 2025
for one visual artist from an EU Member State to work on the theme
“Art & Development”
© Maurine Tric / Adagp, Paris 2024The European Investment Bank (EIB) Institute is pleased to announce the 2025 edition of its Artists Development Programme (ADP) in partnership with Cité internationale des arts (Paris) and neimënster (Neumünster Abbey Heritage Site for Culture) (Luxembourg), for which it is looking for ONE visual artist (born after 1 January 1990) from an EU Member State to work on the theme “Art & Development,” organised conjointly with the Metis Fund, an innovative public/private institution hosted by the French Development Agency (AFD).
Drawing upon the joint expertise of the EIB and Metis/AFD, “Art & Development” aims to interrogate the role that artistic creation can play in anticipating, facilitating or even actively engaging societal transformations, whether psychic or operational. Artists are invited to reflect on the links and/or ruptures that exist between creative expression and the construction of a more just and sustainable world. The research carried out by the selected laureate will thus explore the position and content of their artistic creation, in relation to their role vis-à-vis sustainability issues faced by societies around the world. These could include technical progress, infrastructure construction, access of vulnerable populations to essential services (health, education, employment, energy, water, food, etc.), the preservation of ecosystems, cultural heritage, the roles and quality of institutions, justice, tolerance, the capacities of human beings to live and compose together and the renewal of narratives on the future.
The ADP offers emerging European visual artists a three-month residency, enabling them to develop their practice and create a new (body of) work(s), boosted by the mentorship of a renowned artist. In 2025, the residency will take place over three months between the Cité internationale des arts in Paris for two months (September-October), and neimënster in Luxembourg for one month (November). The laureate will be mentored by acclaimed Franco-Italian artist Tatiana Trouvé, as well as professor, theorist and art critic Christophe Kihm.
Eligibility criteria
- Born after 1 January 1990 (in the case of an artist duo, both members must be aged 35 or under)
- EU national (in the case of an artist duo, both members must be EU nationals)
- Fluent in English
Budget and duration
The residency will take place from the beginning of September until the end of November 2025.
The EIB Institute will cover the artist’s travel costs to Paris, from Paris to Luxembourg, and from Luxembourg.
The artist will receive an €80 flat-rate daily allowance to cover his/her living costs during the residency and all or part of the production costs, and will be provided with a live-in studio space.
In addition to the above, the artist will be granted a contribution towards production of €500 at the beginning of the residency and a success fee of €1 000 at the end of the residency, provided that he/she has produced a work or body of works.
Upon completion of the residency, the EIB may consider acquiring an artwork produced on-site by the artist.
Application procedure
All applications must be submitted through the online form below.
Required documents
- A CV in English (maximum four pages) including education, work experience, solo and group shows, and media coverage.
- A cover letter (in English) with ideas to be explored during the residency, in line with the proposed theme (maximum 700 words).
- A portfolio (maximum eight pages in A4 PDF format) to showcase a representative selection of the applicant’s works.
Please note that proof of nationality and age will be requested if shortlisted.
Selection procedure
A jury — consisting of Tatiana Trouvé (the mentor), members of the EIB Arts Committee, a representative of Metis Fund a representative of Cité Internationale des Arts, a representative of neimënster, and external art advisors — will select the candidate based on the artistic quality of his/her work, his/her motivation and his/her potential to make the most of the opportunity offered by the residency, as well as the relevance of his/her practice to the cultural context of the EIB Institute.
The selected candidate will be informed of the jury’s decision by email at the end of May 2025.
Application deadline: Midnight (GMT+2), Monday, 31 March 2025.
Any application failing to comply with the requirements will be automatically disqualified.
Apply here
About the European Investment Bank (EIB) Institute
The EIB Institute was set up within the EIB Group (European Investment Bank and European Investment Fund) to promote and support social, artistic, cultural, and academic initiatives with European stakeholders and the public at large.
One of its flagship initiatives is the Artists Development Programme (ADP). The ADP offers European visual artists a residency mentored by an internationally renowned artist. It enables artists to develop their practice and work on the production of an artwork without any material constraints.
Upon its completion, a series of events mark the end of the residency: an exhibition, the introduction of the artists to appropriate public fora, and, typically, the acquisition of the programme’s artworks by the EIB to enrich its contemporary art collection.
About the Cité internationale des arts
The Cité internationale des arts is an artists’ residency centre that brings together artists in the heart of Paris and allows them to implement a creative or research project in all disciplines.
For periods of two months to a year, in the Marais or in Montmartre, the Cité internationale des arts allows artists to work in an environment conducive to creation and open to meetings with professionals from the cultural milieu. Artists in residence benefit from customised support from the Cité internationale des arts team and the opportunity to meet and exchange with more than 300 artists and art professionals of all generations, nationalities, and disciplines.
In collaboration with its many partners, the Cité internationale des arts calls for applications on specific themes and/or projects several times a year.
About neimënster
Neumünster Abbey Heritage Site for Culture, also known as neimënster, is a historical site in Luxembourg City with a rich history spanning four centuries. Originally a Benedictine abbey, it later served as a military bastion and prison, including during the Nazi occupation. Today, it is a cultural center focused on restoring its spiritual vocation and promoting humanist values.
neimënster hosts a wide range of events, including concerts, conferences, arts performances, festivals, and exhibitions. Many of these events are free, and the public parts of neimënster are open seven days a week. Additionally, neimënster provides support and space for artistic experimentation through artist residencies, offering accommodations and workspaces for resident artists, and the possibility of public work-in-progress presentations.
About Metis Arts and Development Fund
“Sharing emotions, creating transformation”.
The Metis Fund – Arts and Development, launched in 2021, aims to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – environment, health, education, employment, peace, gender, food, etc. – by mobilizing the arts as a vector of transformation.
It is hosted by Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and supported by public and private financial partners. Its raison d’être is to reinforce and complement the necessary sector-based technical approach to development dynamics, through the power of the arts and emotions.
The initiatives financed by the Metis Fund lead to the creation of committed works of art inspired by concrete social realities. These initiatives are implemented with and for local populations, in developing territories.
The Metis Fund defends the fact that the arts enable human beings to connect with their sensitive side. They connect, liberate, heal, emancipate, educate, initiate debate, and shift our outlook and perceptions. They stimulate our willingness and ability to learn, and set us in motion.
- Photo: 2024 ADP Laureates. From left: Maria Trabulo, Alessandro Di Lorenzo, Maxine Weiss, Gilad Ashery, Yulia Protsyshyn. © Maurine Tric / Adagp, Paris 2024