residency opportunity for Cdn Artists WIELS
WIELS calls for applications from Canadian artists (Canadian nationals, or those living and working in Canada) for a 6-month residency at WIELS, January through June 2027, sponsored by Aureus Ars & Scientia. The application deadline is Sunday, 23rd August 2026, 09:00 (CET).
CONDITIONS
The call is open to artists over 21 years of age, no longer students, legally able to travel and work, with Canadian citizenship or living and working in Canadian territory, having contributed to the Canadian art scene in the last few years.
The Residency is aimed at artists seeking to develop their artistic practice in a professional context, through projects involving experimentation, research and/or critical theory. Candidates may work with any medium, but must have developed at least two years of professional practice and have participated in several exhibitions. We welcome emerging artists and those who, with an established professional trajectory, are interested in reorienting their creative process or carry out research or a new project in a different line than previous works.
The selected resident will have their travel, insurance, accommodation and visa-application costs covered, as well as a provision of 850 €/month for living expenses.
The proposed dates of the residency are granted provided the selected artist holds the relevant long-stay visa, or a European passport, in due time.
THE RESIDENCY PROGRAMME
There are 9 individual working spaces located in the WIELS building, for selected artists from various countries across Europe, Africa, Asia, North and South America.
Besides the studio, in-house technical and administrative support, the residency programme also offers weekly meetings with the mentors – established artists Sylvie Eyberg, Simon Thompson and Joanna Zielinska. These collective studio visits bring the residents together to show and assess the progress of their work on a regular basis, to engage in in-depth dialogue, and to consider divergent points of view.
Other guests (artists, curators, critics) are occasionally invited to meet the residents in their studios and discuss their work.
Field trips are organised mainly within Belgium, but also to major cities with a renowned art scene in the surrounding countries, such as Cologne, Düsseldorf, Amsterdam or Paris, where the residents can visit exhibitions, collections, and meet with other artists and cultural producers.
A public programme called Meet the Residents is organised towards the mid/end of the residency session during which the artists are invited to present their work and research matter to a varied audience, including art professionals, in an open, interactive and performative atmosphere. It is not meant as an exhibition nor a result of the residency.
Residents are encouraged to participate in all the complementary activities of WIELS, i.e. lectures, screenings and discussions with relevant professionals of the international contemporary art scene.
Artists have the opportunity to return to WIELS after their residency to present their work in the WIELS AFFILIATE space, with the aim of consolidating links with the institution and providing visibility for the outcomes of the creative processes initiated or developed during their residency.
The resident artists’ work is featured in an online archive on the WIELS website.
If you have any questions about the application or the residency programme in general, please contact: [email protected].
Please do not send emails to enquire about the selection results. Notifications will be sent in due course.
This residency is supported by Aureus Ars & Scientia.
new tariffs affecting Canadian Craft Artists
Proposed U.S. tariffs may significantly impact Canadian artists and craftspeople.
The U.S. administration has announced plans to impose an additional 50% tariff on a wide range of Canadian goods.
While these tariffs are not currently in effect and could still be changed or withdrawn, the published list is a serious concern for Canada’s craft and visual arts communities.
The list includes:
- Paintings, drawings, pastels and collages
- Original prints and lithographs
- Sculptures and jewellery
- Textiles, wood products and other handmade works
- Raw furskins, fur products, hides and skins
- Bone, whalebone, horn, antler, hooves, claws and beaks
These are not simply unusual product categories.
Fur, hide, bone, horn, antler and other natural materials are used within many Indigenous cultural and artistic practices.
Threatened tariffs on these materials – and the works made from them – could disproportionately affect Indigenous artists and makers, particularly those in Northern and remote communities.
Such measures disrupt livelihoods, cultural production and the transmission of knowledge.
Canadian makers are already been navigating:
- Tariff uncertainty
- stricter customs requirements
- higher shipping costs
- disruptions to cross-border sales.
Even before implementation, the threat of another major tariff adds further uncertainty for artists, businesses, galleries, and buyers.
The Canadian Crafts Federation / Fédération canadienne des métiers d’art has been working on cross-border tariff issues for more than two years.
We are reviewing the announcements and product lists closely. Should these measures come into effect, we will update our tariff toolkit and continue advocating for meaningful support for Canadian craftspeople, visual artists and Indigenous makers.
Current CCF/FCMA tariff information and resources:
https://canadiancraftsfederation.ca/resources/tariffs/
CBC coverage:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/trump-canada-us-trade-tariffs-cusma-usmca-9.7276973
U.S. proclamations and full product list:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/proclamations/
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ANNEX-I-3.pdf
exhibition opportunity: Jane Hartsook Gallery Proposals 2028
Parrallel Play: Workshops with Jenny Mendes and Annie McDonald
Parallel Play is a 1.5-day workshop in Toronto’s east end built around the joy of pure experimentation. Through terra sigillata, slips, engobes, symbolic imagery, narrative mark-making, and low-fire glazes, you’ll shake up your surface language and rediscover what makes making fun.
Jenny Mendes is a full-time studio artist and educator from Chesterland, Ohio, whose practice has been shaped by residencies across Europe and Asia — we are so excited to welcome her to Toronto! Annie McDonald has been running a low-fire ceramics practice in Brighton, Ontario since 2003, and as a former art teacher, FUSION mentorship alumni, and recipient of our Best in Clay award, she brings warmth, expertise, and a whole lot of heart.
As longtime friends and collaborators, Jenny and Annie bring something to the learning environment that goes beyond a typical workshop. It’s a genuine creative exchange, and you’re invited in.
📅 August 8–9
📍 MUD The Clay Studio, Toronto
monday morning eye candy: Evelyn Albrow
Instagram Live with NCECA and Shikha Joshi, moderated by Antra Sinha.
Join us next Friday, July 10, 2026, at NOON/ET right here on Instagram for a live conversation with Shikha Joshi, moderated by Antra Sinha.
Shikha Joshi: “My creative process results from the interplay between form and function. I like to create pots with strong shapes with the guiding principle of good functionality. I am drawn to the Japanese aesthetic of wabi-sabi. Loosely translated, it means beauty in imperfection. I strive to create pieces that echo the earthy landscape reflecting the austere beauty of the natural world.
Experimenting with the chemistry of ceramic material in an electric kiln is the bedrock of my practice. My process consists of layering multiple glazes, incorporating a variety of soils and crushed rock, collected in my travels, directly on the surface of my pots. The results evoke the same natural elements that inform and inspire my work. Reimagining possibilities from electric firing continues to guide my journey and evolution as a potter.”
Shikha Joshi is a studio potter based in Round Rock, Texas. Born and raised in New Delhi, India, she began ceramics through community classes and workshops in the United States. Her work has been featured at galleries, Companion, Charlie Cummings Gallery, and ClayAKAR, and is included in permanent collection of the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts. Joshi has been published in Ceramics Monthly, Surface Design for Ceramics, and 500 Platters. She has taught workshops nationally and internationally and serves on the board of The Studio Potter and on the advisory board of the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts.
Join us on Instagram Live on July 10!
Take my Illustrative Pottery Workshop with the Ceramics School
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