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The Bernard Grau Foundation-Académie des Beaux-Arts, whose aim is to support the Cuban art scene and promote its vitality, is joining forces with the Cité Internationale des Arts to set up an innovative artists' residency programme.
Each year, this programme supports Cuban creators practising a discipline corresponding to a section of the Academy of Fine Arts (Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, Engraving and Drawing, Musical Composition, Free Members, Film and Audiovisual, Photography, Choreography). The 2023 edition focused on the Painting and Architecture sections. The 2024 edition is devoted to the Engraving and Drawing sections.
These programmes are part of the Cité internationale des arts' overall project, which is being developed in conjunction with a network of 150 French and international partners; and the Académie des beaux-arts' overall project to host artists and researchers in residence, which is being rolled out across several sites it owns (Villa Les Pinsons in Chars, Bibliothèque and Villa Marmottan in Boulogne-Billancourt) or in institutions it partners (Villa Médicis, Casa de Velázquez, Château de Lourmarin, Abbaye de La Prée, etc.).
All the information and practical questions can be found below and in the "downloads" section of this page (please check these items carefully before submitting your application).
Programme for Cuban comic-strip artists
The Fondation Bernard Grau-Académie des beaux-arts x Cité internationale des arts residency programme offers its laureate a six-month residency to develop a project inspired by or related to France or the French art scene. The residency will run from June 03 to November 27, 2024.
The programme includes:
• Travel expenses to Paris;
• A live-in-studio in the Marais site of the Cité internationale des arts;
• A monthly living allowance of 850 euros by the Fondation Bernard Grau-Académie des beaux-arts and production aid of 1,000 euros, subject to prior agreement and presentation of supporting documents;
• Artistic and professional support for members and correspondents of the Académie des beaux-arts and the Cité internationale des arts team.
Programme Cuban engravers
The Fondation Bernard Grau-Académie des beaux-arts x Cité internationale des arts residency programme offers its laureate a six-month residency to develop a project inspired by or related to France or the French art scene. The residency will run from June 03 to November 27, 2024.
The programme includes:
• Travel expenses to Paris;
• A live-in-studio in the Marais site of the Cité internationale des arts;
• A monthly living allowance of 850 euros by the Fondation Bernard Grau-Académie des beaux-arts and production aid of 1,000 euros, subject to prior agreement and presentation of supporting documents;
• Artistic and professional support for members and correspondents of the Académie des beaux-arts and the Cité internationale des arts team.
• The Fondation Bernard Grau-Académie des beaux-arts x Cité internationale des arts residency programme is open to Cuban cartoon-strip artists over the age of 25 living in Cuba or abroad. Artists must have been working professionally for at least 5 years. Cuban artists who have benefited from a residency/scholarship in France for more than 4 weeks in the last 5 years are not eligible.
• The Fondation Bernard Grau-Académie des beaux-arts x Cité internationale des arts residency programme is open to Cuban engravers over the age of 25 living in Cuba or abroad. Artists must have been working professionally for at least 5 years (with at least one solo exhibition, or have been represented by one or more galleries, or have taken part in an international art fair). Cuban artists who have benefited from a residency/scholarship in France for more than 4 weeks in the last 5 years are not eligible.
For both programmes, group applications (duo, couple, collective) are accepted but will only result in the allocation of a single studio flat, the payment of travel expenses for one person only and the payment of a single living grant and a single production grant during the stated residency period.
Applications
From November 01, 2023 to January 22, 2024 at 6 pm Cuban time (UTC−4)
Results
March 22, 2024 at the latest
Residencies
FRom June 03 to November 27, 2024
Applications must be sent before Saturday 22 January 2024 at 18:00 Cuba time, 6 PM (UTC-4)).
By e-mail to alexandra.poulakos@academiedesbeauxarts.fr with "FBG24D Surname-First name" in the subject line, before Saturday 20 January 2024 at 18:00 Cuba time.
The entire file must not exceed 5MB. No download links will be accepted.
For the programme aimed at Cuban comic-strip artists, the application must include :
• A copy of a valid passport (page with photo and identity information) ;
• A complete curriculum vitae (in French or English) in pdf format, 4 pages max. ;
• A note of intent of no more than 2 pages of text written in French and no more than 5 pages of visual support in pdf format. In this note, the artist will present his or her project and approach, and specify the subjects and documents related to the French scene, whether historical or contemporary, that will be the focus of his or her research and production during the residency in Paris. ;
• An artistic dossier presenting the projects carried out (in French or English), including around ten visuals of past works with full captions (between 5 and 10 pages maximum), where appropriate with video links and audio files (mp3, avi).
For the programme aimed at Cuban engravers, the application must include :
• A copy of a valid passport (page with photo and identity information) ;
• A complete curriculum vitae (in French or English) in pdf format, 4 pages max. ;
• A note of intent of no more than 2 pages of text written in French and no more than 5 pages of visual support in pdf format. In this note, the artist will present his or her project and approach, and specify the subjects and documents related to the French scene, whether historical or contemporary, that will be the focus of his or her research and production during the residency in Paris. ;
• An artistic dossier presenting the projects carried out (in French or English), including around ten visuals of past works with full captions (between 5 and 10 pages maximum), where appropriate with video links and audio files (mp3, avi).
Group applications (duo, couple, collective) are accepted but will only result in the allocation of one live-in studio and the payment of one living grant and one production grant.
We regret that the live-in studios proposed by our program do not currently meet the current standards of accessibility for people with disabilities, and we are working on this for the future. For any request concerning the accessibility of the spaces of the Cité internationale des arts, we are at your disposal to answer you case by case.
Created in 2022, the Foundation aims to support Cuban artists while paying tribute to Bernard Grau (1949-2020), a French diplomat who ended his career as Counsellor for Cooperation and Cultural Action in Havana.
A graduate in philosophy and law from the University of Montpellier, France, where he was also head of teaching in the departments of international law, sociology of international relations and public liberties, he held various posts in the French Chancellery, including that of Regional Cooperation Counsellor for Central America, from 2001 to 2005, based in the Costa Rican capital. He was director of the French Institute in Seville and cultural adviser in several Latin American countries (Uruguay, Peru, Cuba).
The Académie des beaux-arts is one of the five academies of the Institut de France. Composed of 63 members, 16 foreign associate members and 63 correspondents, it encourages artistic creation in all its forms of expression through the organization of competitions, the awarding of prizes each year, the financing of artists' residencies, the granting of subsidies and the defense of French cultural heritage. As an advisory body to the public authorities, the Academy also conducts reflection on questions of an artistic nature.
In order to carry out these missions, the Académie des beaux-arts manages its assets, which are made up of donations and bequests, but also of important cultural foundations such as the Musée Marmottan Monet (Paris) and the Bibliothèque et Villa Marmottan (Boulogne-Billancourt), the House and gardens of Claude Monet (Giverny), the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild (Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat), the Maison-atelier Lurçat (Paris), the Villa Les Pinsons (Chars) and the Galerie Vivienne (Paris) of which it is co-owner.
The Cité internationale des arts is an artists' residency that brings together artists and art professionals in the heart of Paris and allows them to implement a creative or research project in all disciplines.
For periods of two months to one year, the Cité internationale des arts allows artists to work in an environment that is conducive to creation and open to meetings with professionals from the cultural milieu. Residents receive customized support from the Cité internationale des arts team.
In the Marais or in Montmartre, the live-in studios (a space for living and creating) from which the residents benefit allows them to cohabit with more than 300 artists and actors of the art world of all generations, all nationalities and all disciplines. In collaboration with its many partners, the Cité internationale des arts opens several calls for applications on specific themes and/or projects throughout the year.