Open Call 2027 – Urban Ecologies: Coexistence and Control
The city is a shared habitat. In urban spaces, humans, animals, plants and technological systems encounter one another – visibly or out of sight, tolerated or displaced, supported or controlled. They interact within technological infrastructures, social dynamics and ecological conditions. As an interface between water, infrastructure, leisure and ecological processes, Klagenfurt’s Lendhafen provides a distinctive setting for artistic engagement with urban ecologies.
The association Lendhauer invites artists to explore urban spaces as networks of diverse relationships between human and non-human actors. At the heart of the Open Call are questions of coexistence and control: What is considered useful, and what is perceived as disruptive? Who or what is allowed to remain, and who or what is excluded? Who is supported, and who is regulated? Is peaceful coexistence possible, or is it merely a utopian idea? How might possible futures be shaped?
The Open Call is addressed to artists, designers, architects, performers, theorists and practitioners working in interdisciplinary contexts. Individuals and collectives based in Austria and abroad are invited to apply. We welcome both fully developed artistic positions and experimental, process-based or collaborative approaches.
We are looking for artistic works to be realised at Klagenfurt’s Lendhafen that engage with the social, ecological and material conditions of public space. Urban space is understood not merely as a site for presenting a work, but as an active component of the work itself. We are interested in projects that approach urban space as a network of coexistence, control, conflict and mutual dependence – and make these relationships visible and tangible on site.
Projects may take a variety of perspectives as their point of departure: the presence of wild animals in the city and their appropriation of habitats; plants between human use and ecological coexistence; constellations of animals, humans and machines; or material and symbolic forms of urban exclusion, whether directed at particular species such as pigeons or at human bodies.
realisation period
The selected projects will be realised between June and the end of September 2027. The exact dates and duration will depend on the nature and requirements of each project and will be agreed upon with the selected artists.
Lendhauer will support the selected artists in coordinating the technical and organisational requirements for realisation on site, including obtaining any necessary permits.
budget
The following funding is available for each selected project:
production costs of up to €4,000 gross
an artist’s fee of up to €2,500 gross
additional travel expenses of up to €1,000
The exact amount of production funding will depend on the scope and requirements of the individual project. The artist’s fee is awarded per selected project, regardless of the number of participating artists or collaborators.
selection
The submitted proposals will be reviewed by a jury appointed by Lendhauer.
Projects will be assessed according to the following criteria:
Relevance to the theme – engagement with the annual theme “Urban Ecologies: Coexistence and Control”
Relation to the Lendhafen – engagement with the specific site and its spatial, social, ecological and material conditions
Feasibility – feasibility of the proposed project within the available time frame and organisational and financial framework
Contribution to the site – the project’s potential to enable new perspectives, experiences or forms of engagement with the Lendhafen and its surroundings
All applicants will be informed of the outcome of the selection process by the end of December 2026.
submission
Submissions must be sent by 2 November 2026 via email to office@lendhauer.org.
Subject line: Open Call 2027
Please submit one PDF containing the following:
Project proposal (max. 3 A4 pages):Project description: Idea, central questions and relation to the annual theme.
Implementation in public space: Description of the proposed format (e.g. installation, intervention, performance, process-based project), including considerations regarding its specific location and interaction with the urban environment.
Materials / process: Information on installation, materials with consideration for ecological aspects, duration/time frame, required infrastructure and, where applicable, the project timeline.
Audience / accessibility: Considerations regarding how the work can be experienced in public space and what forms of encounter or participation it may enable.
Preliminary estimate of production costs:
An estimate of expected costs for materials, technical requirements and, where applicable, other project-related production costs.
Short biography/CV:
Information about the applicant or members of the collective.
Portfolio:
Documentation of selected previous works (max. 10 pages).
The complete PDF must not exceed 15 MB.
deadline: 2 November 2026
more info: https://www.lendhafen.at/open-call-2027-urban-ecologies-coexistence-and-control/
