The 23rd China Shanghai International Arts Festival R.A.W.! Calling for Commissioned Works

2024-02-20

 

点击此处切换中文版“扶持青年艺术家计划”委约创作征集通知

 

Established in 2012, China Shanghai International Arts Festival Rising Artists Works program (hereinafter referred to as R.A.W.!) is a leading comprehensive original artwork incubation platform in China. It provides young artists with high-quality soil for their all-round growth and mutual collaboration, and has set up a broad platform for international cooperation. To this day, R.A.W.! has commissioned 105 young Chinese artists in various fields and created 89 diversified original artworks. Close connection has been made between R.A.W.! and Asia Society, USA; COIL Festival, USA; Budapest Spring Festival, Hungary; Southbank Centre, UK; New Vision Arts Festival, Hong Kong; and Sibiu International Theatre Festival, Romania. For 28 times, R.A.W.!'s commissioned works have been showcased in USA, Hungary, UK, Australia, Israel, Norway, Romania, South Korea, Germany, Hong Kong China, etc.

In 2024, R.A.W.! will play a greater role as a platform, promote the incubation and display of global young artists' works of stage performing arts and visual arts, and reflect the new developments, trends and characteristics of this field. All artists in the world under 45 years old (45 included) are welcomed to apply for R.A.W.!, including but not limited to professional young artists, amateur young artists, and curators. Both individuals and teams are accepted. Priority will be given to the works reflecting the Belt and Road development and to those created by artists or teams from the BRI partner countries and regions. This rule is intended to facilitate high-quality BRI development, encourage and enhance the support for young artists from the BRI partner countries and regions, and promote openness, inclusiveness, communication and mutual learning.

The selected artists will receive multi-aspect support in work/project production funds, premiere venue, technical equipment, and publicizing, and may receive one-on-one guidance from arts panel formed by leading figures in each discipline.

 

R.A.W.! Calling for Commissioned Works of Stage Performing Arts

I. Requirements

Theme unlimited, works shall display a distinct creativity with unique artistic style and explore the relationships between the present, the society, the audience, and the performing space. The content shall be artistic, meaningful, and pleasing to the eye, with nothing in defiance of Chinese laws and regulations.

 

II.Terms of commission

1.   The applicant submitting a work of stage performing arts (music, dance, drama/opera, etc.) shall have professional competence, and be able to create independently and lead a professional team to complete the entire process from creation, design and production to performance.

2.   Length of the work: 30-60 minutes; no limit on form or theme; no more than 10 actors; no more than 15 crew members including technicians and management. In particular, the length of the work could be 20-60 minutes if it is BRI-themed or created by artists or teams from BRI partner countries and regions.

3.   The work shall be original; the applicant must ensure that he or she owns the copyright of the independent creation, which has never won an award in any competition, and has not been published or performed in public.

 

 III. How to apply

Only email application is accepted for the commissioned works of stage performing arts. The applicant shall send complete application materials (see the ”What to have ready” part for details) to  youngtalents@163.com, with "2024 Commission Application + Genre+ Applicant Name" as email subject. Netdisk download links and passwords of audio and video files written in email body are highly appreciated.

 

IV. What to have ready

1.   Complete Application Form for the 23rd China Shanghai International Arts Festival (2024) R.A.W.! Commissioned Works.

2.   1 or 2 recent photos of the applicant.

3.   Videos, audios, media reviews and the comments of previous works.

4.   For drama works, the applicant shall submit a complete script or outline and a no-less-than-5-minute video clip of script reading or audition piece; for musical works,  a music score or a no-less-than-5-minute audio file; for dance works, a complete structure description and a no-less-than-5-minute video clip of dance piece; for multimedia installations and others, an outline and a sample/samples.

5.   For non-Chinese-language works, please submit an English version or an English translation of the above application materials.

6.   The total size of application materials shall not exceed 1GB.

 

V.Deadline for Application

April 5, 2024 (subject to the time when the email is received)

 

VI. How to evaluate after your submission

The selection for this year's R.A.W.! Commissioned Works of Stage Performing Arts consists of three stages: audition, first-round review and second-round review. The audition stage is conducted through online material browsing; the first and second rounds of review are conducted through onsite/online presentations and Q&As. After the selection is completed, a list of selected commissioned works will be released. The selected works will be premiered in the 23rd China Shanghai International Arts Festival Rising Artists’ Works.

 

The copyright of all selected works shall be shared by the author and the organizer, who both own the rights and interests of the selected works' premieres (including but not limited to sponsorship, ticketing, photography and videography).

 

R.A.W. Calling for Commissioned Works of Visual Arts

 

 The “Rising Artists’ Works” for visual art (R.A.W. for VISUAL) was established in 2023. Its 2024 version consists of two exhibition projects and will select one artist and one curator. A solo exhibition of the selected artist's works and a group exhibition curated by the selected curator will be presented in Shanghai's featured art spaces during the China Shanghai International Arts Festival.

 

I. Requirements

1.   The space for the selected artist's solo exhibition is approximately 500. The theme is not limited, and categories can be painting, sculpture, photography, installation, sound, video, new media, etc. The works submitted shall be recently created original works, with a specific quantity, as well as artistic, meaningful and creative content.

2.   The space of the group exhibition designed by the curator shall not exceed 800. There is no limit to the exhibition theme. The quantity of participating artists shall not exceed 8, and the number of works shall be clarified. The exhibition shall demonstrate high-level professionalism and social vision, conducive to promoting the artistic communication between Chinese and foreign young visual art talents.

 

II. Application

Only email application is accepted for the first-round review. The applicant shall submit the complete works and related materials, and the Application Form as an essential (a scanned copy of the signed or sealed form) to the organizer's email box: RAW101@artsbird.com, with "2024 RAW Commissioned Works of Visual Arts + Applicant Name" as email subject. The attachments shall include the following materials:

For participating artists:

1.      Photos of the works (one photo for each graphic work; 2-3 photos from different angles for each multi-material work; a full-length file for video work. The photos shall be in JPG format, each with a size of less than 5MB and a resolution of over 300dpi).

2.      A full biography of the author.

3.      An introduction to the concepts of the exhibited works (no more than 1,000 words, in a Word or PDF file).

4.   No less than 5 works for each applicant. If the works are selected in the preliminary evaluation, another notice will be given about submitting the original works for the re-evaluation and solo exhibition.

For participating curators:

1.   Curatorial proposal for the group exhibition (including a description of the exhibition theme, an introduction to the participating artist and their works, budget and other implementation measures).

2.   A full biography of the curator.

3.   Previous successfully implemented curation cases (including complete curatorial proposals, media reports, etc., in the form of text or video).

For non-Chinese-speaking artists and curators, please provide an English version or an English translation of the above application materials.

 

III. Evaluation

A panel of experts jointly organized by the China Shanghai International Arts Festival and the Shanghai Artists Association shall select one artist and one curator from the applicants. The selection consists of three stages: Preliminary evaluation, Re-evaluation, and Create/Curate Guidance and Assessment.

 

Preliminary Evaluation: The organizer will establish a judging panel consisting of authoritative experts, who will be invited for a half-day review meeting based on the online submission materials.

Re-evaluation: Applicants entered the second round are required to attend an offline presentation, and interpret their works or exhibition proposal to the authoritative experts in turn.

Create/Curate Guidance and Assessment: The expert panel offers guidance and assessment opinions regarding the artistry, creativity, operability and rationality of the selected artist's solo exhibition proposal and the selected curator's group exhibition proposal.

 

IV. Deadline

April 12, 2024 (subject to the date when the email is received).

 

V. Terms of application

1.   All works or proposals shall be original. The applicant shall be fully responsible for the copyright of the works involved and ensure that no infringement of any third party's copyright will occur during the use of the works. The organizer will keep all the declaration materials strictly confidential, and no returns for the materials once submitted, whether chosen or not.

2.   The allocation and use of commissioned works production funds are subject to the organizer’s review; the implementation rules and process must comply with government policies. The organizer is entitled to make reasonable adjustments to the project budget based on actual conditions.

3.   The exhibited works must meet the requirements for at least one month of exhibition period in terms of technical safety and operation and maintenance.

4.   To ensure the quality of the displayed works, the organizer is entitled to disqualify a selected applicant and terminate cooperation if the following situations occur: 1) The selected applicant is incapable of actual implementation; 2) The selected applicant does not cooperate with the organizer's work; 3) The selected applicant does not abide by the cooperation agreement, or 4) The selected applicant is unable to complete the work according to the predetermined requirements.

 

Note:

l   The organizer reserves the right to final interpretation of the program.

l   For more information, please visit the WeChat account: RAW_CSIAF (RAW扶持青年艺术家计划).

 

Attachment I Application Form for Commissioned Works of Stage Performing Arts (Individual/Team)

Attachment II-01&02 Application Form for Commissioned Works of Visual Arts (Artist/Curator)


委约创作(视觉艺术项目)报名表(策展人) Appendix II-02 Application Form for Curators

委约创作(视觉艺术项目)报名表(青年艺术家)Appendix II-01 Application Form for Visual Artsits

委约创作(舞台艺术项目)报名表(个人、团体)Appendix I Application Form for Stage Production (Individual Group)