Travel Grants for Artists and Cultural Actors from the Arab Region to Participate in Activities Inside and Outside the Region

Culture Resource is offering its travel grant program Wijhat for Artists and Cultural Actors from the Arab Region to Participate in Activities Inside and Outside the Region. Wijhat (Destinations) is a program developed by Culture Resource to address these concerns, by merging the Mawa3eed and Tajwaal programs. It is designed to serve artists and cultural actors in the Arab region by offering grants of up to 8,000 US Dollars to support travel both within and outside the Arab region, thereby enabling the grantees to present their works to new audiences and to engage in new and diverse inter-and intra-Arab cultural exchange experiences.

Program Goals:

Wijhat aims to contribute to raising awareness of arts and culture from the Arab region, both regionally and internationally, by supporting the regional or international travels of artists and cultural actors from the region. The program offers artists the opportunity to take part in cultural events and activities and present their work to diverse audiences in wider regional and/or international contexts, to exchange knowledge and expertise with peers, and/or to build their professional capacities.

Culture Resource aspires to make this support available to artists and cultural actors from all parts of the Arab region while ensuring geographic and gender diversity as much as possible.

The program offers 25 to 30 grants per year in three rounds. The support covers:

• Ticket costs
• Visa costs
• Accommodation and partial support for living expenses
• A recommendation letter from Culture Resource to the relevant embassy in order to support the visa application, if necessary.

The program covers all activities that offer potential beneficiaries opportunities to develop their skills and capacities and to present their works to new audiences and potential partners who could have a positive impact on their future professional development. Such activities include:

• Artistic and cultural festivals
• Artistic residencies
• Forums, conferences, and symposia
• Artistic and creative production workshops
• Trainings and capacity building workshops

Eligibility Criteria:

• Applicants must be from an Arab country, regardless of racial or ethnic affiliation or citizenship status.
• The applicant does not necessarily have to reside in an Arab country, but the country of departure or arrival must be an Arab country.
• The grant is available for groups as well as individuals.
• The program targets artists from all disciplines: visual arts, performance arts, literature, music, etc.
• The program targets cultural actors whether working independently or as members or staff of cultural initiatives or organizations.
• Examples of the grant target are dramatists, musicians, writers, cultural directors, cultural researchers, curators, etc.
• Applicants must be at least 18 years old; otherwise, applications must be submitted by an adult on their behalf, with written consent from their parents or guardians.

Required Documents:

Applicants must attach with the application form the supporting documents listed below. Applications that do not include the required supporting documents will be not be considered, thus not submitted to the independent jury.

• An official invitation from a partner or host in the country of destination. (Note: In the event of the lack of a formal invitation, the application may still be accepted and assessed, but on the condition that the applicant provides another proof of acceptance, in principle, to take part in the intended activity).
• Photocopy of passport (the first two pages).
• A detailed budget for the trip.
• The program of the intended activity (i.e. a program of the festival or conference schedule) should the program be available at the time of application.
• A detailed CV for individual applicants, or a bio and an introduction to/description of the applying group. In both cases, the application should include a list of samples of previous works.
• Previous works that are in digital form (text or visual material) can be sent in one of the following ways: as a single PDF file, Word or Zipped file (not exceeding 4 MB), or as 4 JPEG files (of no more than 1 MB per file). If the previous works are audio or audiovisual recordings, include the website links where these works can be found.

About Culture Resource:

Founded in 2004, Culture Resource (Al Mawred Al Thaqafy) is a regional, non-profit organization that seeks to support artistic creativity in the Arab region and to encourage cultural exchange between intellectuals and artists within this region and abroad. The work of Culture Resource emanates from a deep appreciation of the renewable value of Arab cultural heritage, in all its ethnic, religious, and linguistic diversity, and from faith in the importance of generating a new Arab spirit of creativity as a key to liberating the imagination and stimulating progress. Culture Resource also believes that artistic and literary activities are a social necessity that demands moral and material support on the part of all effective forces in society.

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