Artica Svalbard

Residencies form the core of Artica Svalbard's programme, and artists are nominated by their four key partners: Norwegian Nonfiction Writers' and Translators' Association (NFFO), Nordnorsk Kunstmuseum, Office for Contemporary Art Norway (OCA), and the Queen Sonja Print Award.

Artica provides access to a studio space, print workshop and a network of international peers, offering the space and time needed to research, share and practice new ideas. Their facilities include two printing presses donated by the Queen Sonja Print Award for the opening in 2016.

The establishment of Artica Svalbard reflects a recognition that there is an urgency related to Polar regions due to climate change, and a recognition that the arts are a (bi-)polar force capable of creating and discovering awareness, knowledge and debate about this urgency. Svalbard is Norway’s northernmost region, and one of the northernmost land-areas in the world. Here, climate change is more visible than any other place in the world, leading to deep irreversible changes that are significant to the global world in which we live, affecting the environmental and political challenges we are facing collectively – both internationally and within the circumpolar regions.

Longyearbyen, where Artica Svalbard is located, is a coal mining community; a community facing increased tourism; and a community where the world’s northernmost tertiary education institution is producing cutting-edge knowledge about the Arctic and climate change. This society is a microcosm of global challenges with respect to both changing climates and industries, and Artica uses its unique position in both time and space to promote discussions and thinking about the Arctic.