PolskiThe purpose of the Open Call
Torun Cultural Agenda announces Open Call for the 14th Bella Skyway Festival, which aims to promote the art of light, as well as to increase the level and diversity of Torun’s artistic program. As part of the recruitment, entries from artists from around the world are accepted.
This year the 14th Bella Skyway Festival will be held from 15th to 19th of August 2023, daily from 20:30 to 00:00.
The idea of 14th Bella Skyway Festival
The idea of 14th Bella Skyway Festival is „Dreamers from green planet”
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams
‒ Eleanor Roosevelt
The year 2023 marks the 550th anniversary of the birth of Nicolaus Copernicus ‒ one of the most famous astronomers in history, who, thanks to his persistence in pursuing his goal and his imagination that allowed him to look beyond the what is visible, was named the One who stopped the Sun and moved the Earth. The Torun-based scientist, author of the revolutionary work De revolutionibus orbium coelestium ‒ On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, spent years gazing at the sky and trying to find meaning in the movement of the planets and stars. His boundless dreamer’s imagination allowed him to see what had eluded other scientists for centuries ‒ the Earth is not the centre of the universe, but on the contrary, together with the other planets, it travels in its orbit around a shining Star.
This year’s theme for the Bella Skyway Festival is Dreamers from the green planet. As children, we spent whole days letting our imagination run wild and escaping into the land of dreams. As adults, we often forget how easy it is to give in to our dreams and fantasies. In the grey reality that surrounds us, we ignore that gentle starlight trying to reach us through the noise of the cities and let the criticism to clip our wings. However, there have always been places full of magic and inspiration. Wonderland hiding down the rabbit hole, Narnia accessed through a wardrobe or, finally, Neverland, to which the stars showed the way ‒ although completely different from each other, filled with greenery and nature, they were places where Dreamers could always find a moment of rest and inspiration.
Copernicus’ courage not only to dream, but also to speak out about his discoveries changed the face of science and set in motion the cogs that gave rise to discoveries that changed the world. It is thanks to people brave enough to dream that change happens. Thanks to their imagination, the world around us is becoming more modern, more beautiful, more ecological and more accessible. Dreamers who have not forgotten how to use their childhood imagination change our everyday life and the planet. It is modern solutions and technologies created by true Visionaries that make our planet a unique place, not only full of greenery, but also a place where technology and nature coexist in harmony. Just as nature and centuries of evolution inspire people to create inventions, the wonders of modern engineering support the development of the nature that surrounds us.
That is why this year, during the 14th Bella Skyway Festival, we want to give this freedom of action back to the creators. Like Copernicus more than five centuries ago, let’s look up at the stars and unleash that childlike imagination that allows us to discover new, unknown experiences. This year’s festival will be an ideal opportunity to show everyone gathered on the streets of Torun that there are still many dreamers among us and that they can change the world and inspire to care for our green planet. Show us what your dreamlands look like… Are they, like Neverland, hidden among countless stars or, on the contrary, are they hidden deep inside the Earth? Where will the hidden paths of your imagination lead you? Will you, like Copernicus, dare to look beyond the horizon? Or will you discover a whole new, unknown world full of wonders? Or maybe on the contrary, you will show them that with a little good will, attention and care, we can find magic in the surrounding nature, green refuges that coexist in a world full of technology.
Featured installations
In accordance with this year’s leitmotif of the festival, during the selection of works, we will pay special attention to installations that are in line with the Copernican idea, as well as ecology and care for the environment. As Organizers we are particularly interested in installations that will reduce the carbon footprint, use recycled materials or promote the use of green-energy solutions, therefore reducing energy consumption, e.g. installations:
- that use reflected light;
- that use energy wholly or partially obtained from solar batteries or other renewable sources.
Artists profile
Open Call as part of the 14th Bella Skyway Festival is addressed to all artists and creators, regardless of nationality, who implement their projects as part of multimedia activities, new media or the broadly understood art of light. The works submitted in the open call may belong to a wide spectrum of installations, ranging from carnage, through multimedia large-format projections and 3D mappings, to unusual installations.
Open Call recruitment schedule
Open Call as a part of the 14th Bella Skyway Festival will take place according to the following schedule:
- project submission: until 3rd of May 2023 artists can submit their work via electronic form available on: https://www.tak.torun.pl/open_call/en/
- application evaluation stage: after the end of application, the Organizer will select artists whose works will be included in the program of this year’s event
- contact with selected artists: in the next few weeks, the Toruń Cultural Agency will contact the authors of the selected projects to arrange details and sign contracts.
Processing of participants’ data
By taking part in the recruitment, the artist or artistic group agrees to the processing of personal data by Toruń Cultural Agency (based in Toruń, Marii Konopnickiej 13/4) in accordance with the general regulation on the protection of personal data from 27 of April 2016 involving the transmission of information by electronic means or by post correspondence. The permission covers the processing of personal data in the future, as long as the purpose of processing does not change. Artists or artistic groups that take part in the call also have the right to access their personal data and correct them, as well as to withdraw them.
Organizer
The organizers of the 14th Bella Skyway Festival are the City of Toruń and the Toruń Cultural Agency.
Toruń Cultural Agency
- address: ul. Marii Konopnickiej 13/4, 87-100 Toruń
- e-mail: info@tak.torun.pl
- phone: +48 662 072 661
- http://www.tak.torun.pl
- http://www.bellaskyway.pl/en
For matters related to the Bella Skyway Festival, please contact Festival coordinator: Adrianna Krysiewicz – e-mail: a.krysiewicz@tak.torun.pl phone: +48 668 411 753
Frequently Asked Questions
Where and when does the festival take place?
The festival is organized in Toruń, the birthplace of Nicolaus Copernicus, a city with a rich history and tradition. It is a city whose Old Town complex has been adeed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Toruń is also a city with a whole range of cultural attractions and events such as Bella Skyway Festival the Street Theater Festival, EnergaCamerimage, the International Nova Music and Architecture Festival or the Probaltica Festival of Music and Art of the Baltic Countries..
This year, the International Bella Skyway Festival of Light will take place from 15 to 19 August 2023, every day from 20:30 – 00:00.
What is the festival area?
Is the festival an outdoor event?
The Bella Skyway Festival is mainly an open and outdoor event. It assumes the presentation of the installation and projection in the open air, however, it does not exclude, if so assumed by the submitted project, the presentation of the installation/mapping inside the building.
Can artist or group submit more than one project?
Yes, an artist or group can submit more than one project, but each project should be sent as a separate submission.
Can I choose the installation location as an artist? Is there a list of locations for installations?
No, there is no specific list of locations – the artist has the right to submit a site-specific installation, i.e. one designed within the location of his choice. However, it is worth remembering that it must be an installation located in the designated area of the festival. The organizers reserve the right to propose a change of location.
What is the budget for a single installation?
The amount of money foreseen for individual installations depends on the project itself. In the application, the artist proposes budget solutions (cost of installation, fee, accommodation, etc.).
Where and when can I submit my proposition?
Artists may submit their projects as part of the recruitment process only via the electronic form located on the website: https://www.tak.torun.pl/open_call/en/
Proposals can be submitted at the latest by 3rd of May, 2023.
I can’t send attachments – what to do now?
In case of technical problems with the form, please contact the 14th Bella Skyway Festival Coordinator – Adrianna Krysiewicz e-mail: a.krysiewicz@tak.torun.pl phone: +48 668 411 753
How are installation proposals and projections selected?
After the recruitment, all of the works are evaluated by Toruń Cultural Agency. Each application is evaluated in terms of the adequacy of the application, the idea, the artistic level, as well as the relevance to the theme of 14th Bella Skyway Festival.
If my project is chosen, what happens next?
The organizers will contact the artists of selected proposition within few weeks after end of the Open Call via e-mail. In the next weeks we will discuss the process of participation in the festival and related formal steps.