rashomotion
solar
eclipse
artists
residency
2 - 16 AUG 2026
@ SCHÖNBACH
SEAR 2026 brings artists, scientists, and regional participants together in Upper Lusatia for two weeks of collective research, production, and exchange around the partial solar eclipse on August 12, 2026.
Based at Kulturfabrik Schönbach and working across the surrounding landscape, we develop films, sound pieces, performances, mappings, and installations that connect astrophysics, Sorbian cosmologies, and regional histories with contemporary artistic practice.
The residency is shaped by its specific context: a former weaving mill, nearby forests and hills, post-mining landscapes, and emerging scientific infrastructures such as the planned Einstein Telescope and the Low Seismic Lab. The region is not a backdrop — it actively informs the work.
Together with partners including DZA, CASUS, Cinebus, and Lebenshilfe Löbau–Zittau, SEAR creates a working environment where artistic practice, scientific research, and local knowledge intersect. Inclusive formats are part of this process, with participants from Lebenshilfe actively contributing to selected projects.
The residency culminates in a shared field day during the eclipse and continues into presentations across Lusatia and beyond.
SEAR
is part of a growing network of independent residencies,
research labs, and community-based initiatives working across art, science, and regional contexts.
Together with partners such as FSO Poland & FSO France and other international collaborators, we are building connections that extend beyond a single residency format — creating shared structures for production, exchange, and presentation across borders.
This means that projects developed within SEAR do not end in Schönbach. They continue to move: into presentations in Upper and Lower Lusatia, into partner institutions, festivals, and exhibitions, and into further collaborative formats.
At the same time, SEAR remains rooted in its local context. The work is shaped by the specific conditions of Lusatia — its landscapes, histories, communities, and ongoing transformations — and grows outward from there.
The aim is to create a space where projects can evolve over time: through follow-up invitations, continued collaborations, and the possibility to return, expand, or reconfigure what has been started here.
HOW TO APPLY
We invite artists, filmmakers, researchers, and practitioners working across film, sound, performance, mapping, and related fields to apply.
•
SEAR brings together 6–8 multidisciplinary groups.
Each group combines artistic, scientific, and regional perspectives and develops a project within the framework of the residency.
•
What you get
participation in the residency (2–16 August 2026) in Schönbach
accommodation on site (shared studios with kitchen)
access to film and sound equipment
working spaces, screening and presentation infrastructure
exchange with artists, scientists, and regional collaborators
support during development and production
possibility to present the work during and after the residency (Lusatia + partner contexts)
•
What we are looking for
Your proposal should relate to at least one of the
thematic fields of SEAR, such as:
cosmology, gravity, black holes, measurement and noise
solar eclipses, cycles, and temporal structures
Sorbian cosmologies, language, mapping, and landscape
data, simulation, AI, and speculative systems (“ghosts in the machine”)
Projects can move between these fields and combine multiple approaches.
•
What to submit
a short project idea (max. 1–2 pages)
a brief statement on your approach and interest in SEAR
portfolio & links to previous work
short bio
Selected participants will be invited to join online pre-meetings before the residency to develop initial ideas and group constellations.
Please get in touch through
info@rashomotion.com
