The CASTRO Studio Program is a 5 months long non-accredited educational programme which hosts a group of artists and researchers, offering workspace and free tuition from international artists, writers, curators and theorists. Amongst the activities are: tutorials, group tutorials, workshops and seminars, CRITS, studio visits, guided tours of Rome, Open Studios. The group of students is selected via open call by an international selection panel which changes every year.
CASTRO fosters collaboration, experimentation and peer-to-peer learning. Each year’s program is tailored to the interests and practices of the students, fostering a dynamic environment where individual and collective pursuits intersect. Furthermore, the program serves as a platform for connecting with local realities, practitioners and organisations, facilitating exchanges that enrich both the students and the broader community. In exchange for participation, students are encouraged to take an active role in planning activities and shaping the program. Applications are welcomed from artists and researchers working with any kind of practice, approach and media. We are looking for people who are eager to experiment with alternative modes of education, open to trying out different ways of learning, questioning and unlearning, and that are committed to creating, facilitating, and nurturing collaborative and supportive work environments at CASTRO and beyond, actively engaging with the broader community.
PREREQUISITES
Students for the CASTRO Studio Program are chosen by a Selection Panel of high level professionals in the arts, who are invited to select a cohort of people who show the potential to work effectively as a group. In 2026 we will award 5 fellowships. Each fellowship covers the program costs and studio costs for one participant or collective.
Selected students are offered a studio, educational activities and pedagogical guidance.
It is important to note that the studio is intended only as a workplace; it is not possible to live at CASTRO. Selected students must find their accommodations independently.Â
Educational activities and tutors change each year and are planned together with an Academic and Artistic Advisor on the basis of the selected students’ practices. The program comprises a series of mandatory activities, such as tutorials, crits, workshops and seminars, and a series of optional activities.Â
Collectives are welcome to apply, but please bear in mind the studio size is similar for both singular and collectives. The studios at CASTRO are shared studios, the sizes vary between 8-15 square meters, and they are allocated depending on needs and type of practice.Â
MANDATORY ACTIVITIES
→ A series of workshops and seminars, planned based on the students’ interests and practices, to provide theoretical and critical insights.
→ Monthly one-on-one tutorials with a mentor, offering personalized guidance throughout the residency. The Mentor changes each year and is chosen on the basis of the selected students’ practices.
→ Regular individual meetings with the CASTRO Team to discuss and plan a number of educational activities (i.e. studio visits, field trips, group tutorials and CRITS)Â
→ Participation in CRITS, public presentations in which artists present their work and offer it to a collective discussion, getting feedback in a group context.Â
→Group tutorials to foster collaboration and exploration of research topics
→ At least 3 studio visits with local and international artists, curators, gallerists, collectors, writers and a variety of other professionals involved in contemporary art.
→ Open studios at the end of the program.
Participation to at least 80% of the mandatory activities is required in order to complete the program.Â
SELECTION COMMITTEE 2024/2025
The committee was composed of: Cally Spooner, Paolo Canevari, Roberta Tenconi
SELECTION COMMITTEE 2023/2024
The selection committee was composed of: Sophie Jung, Liliana Moro, Ahmet Ogut, Francesca Pionati, Chris Rawcliffe.
SELECTION COMMITTEE 2021/2022
The selection committee was composed of: Bonnie Camplin, Darren Bader, Edoardo Bonaspetti, Ilaria Mancia, Claire Fontaine.
SELECTION COMMITTEE 2020/2021
Special thanks to this year’s Selection Committee: Yates Norton, Ola Hassanain, Leonardo Bigazzi, Anna Franceschini, Leopold Thun and Monster Chetwynd
SELECTION COMMITTEE 2019/2020
The selection committee was composed of: Stefano Collicelli Cagol, Anna Colin, Lili Reynaud-Dewar, Damiana Leoni and Marco Palmieri.
SELECTION COMMITTEE 2018/2019
The selection committee was composed of: Michael Archer, Will Benedict, Barbara Casavecchia, Maria Adele Del Vecchio, Alberto Di Fabio, John O’Doherty.
Adriana Gellini and Linda Jensen (Directors of Last Tango, Zurich)
Adrienne Drake (Director and Curator, Fondazione Giuliani)
Ahmet Öğüt (Artist)
Alessandra Biscaro (Coordinator, Han Nefkens Foundation)
Allison Grimaldi-Donahue (Artist and Writer)
Andrea Mei (Director, WOW – The World of Women Foundation, Rome)
Ane Rodriguez Armendariz (Curator)
Anna Gorcharovskaya (Curator)
Antonio Valentino (Collector)
Associazione Giovani Collezionisti
Attilia Fattori Franchini (Curator and Director, Kunsthaus Gardenhaus, Vienna)
Bianca Stoppani (Curator)
Camilla Paolino (LATERAL)
CAMPO, Fondazione Re Rebaudengo
Carla Chiarchiaro (Director of Ada, Rome)
Carolina Ongaro (Director of Jupiter Woods, London)
Cecilia Canziani (Curator and Co-Director of Iuno)
Chiara Nuzzi (Assistant Curator, ICA Milan)
Chris Rawcliffe (Director, Forma Arts & Media, London)
Claire Fontaine (Artist)
Colin Ledoux (Director of Terzo Fronte)
Damiana Leoni (Italy VIP Representative, Art Basel)
Enrico Palmieri (T293)
Eugenia Delfini (Director, Galleria Eugenia Delfini)
Fabiola Fiocco (Curator and Researcher)
Federic Blancart (Head of Fellows Office, Villa Medici)
Flaminia Bonfiglio (Artist)
Flavia Prestininzi (Curator)
Georgia Stellin (Curator)
Gioia Dal Molin (Curator, Istituto Svizzero Rome and Milan)
Giorgia Basili (Journalist)
Giulia Floris (Assistant Curator, Villa Adriana and Villa d’Este)
Hugh Mulholland (Curator, MAC Belfast)
Ilaria Conti (Curator and Researcher, Centre Pompidou, Paris – Director, La Nueva Fábrica, Guatemala)
Ilaria Gianni (Curator and Co-Director of IUNO)
Ilaria Leoni (Director of Ermes Ermes)
Jacopo Rinaldi (LATERAL)
Jose Gracis (Director, Galleria Mazzoleni)
Katherine Weir (Curator)
Kiera Blankey (Director, New Contemporaries, London)
Lorenzo Gigotti (Head of Content and Co-founder, NERO)
Luca Lo Pinto (Director, MACRO Rome)
Manuela Pacella (Curator)
Marco Altavilla (Director, T293)
Maria Alicata (Curator, Fondazione Baruchello)
Marta Federici (Curator and Co-Director, LOCALES)
Matteo Binci (Curator)
Matteo Lucchetti (Curator, Museo delle Civiltà , Rome)
Michele Bertolino (Curator and Co-founder, Il Colorificio, Milan)
Nico Vascellari (Artist)
Nicola Zanella (Journalist, Il Sole 24 Ore)
Paola Capata (Director, Monitor Gallery, Rome and Lisbon)
Paola Clerico (Founder and Curator, Case Chiuse, Milan)
Rä di Martino (Artist)
Roberto Scalmana (Director, Baleno International, Rome)
Samuel Gross (Curator)
Saverio Verini (Curator and Director, Spoleto Museum System)
Shara Wasserman (Director, Temple University Art Gallery)
Stefano Collicelli Cagol (Curator, Centro Pecci, Prato)
Sophie Jung (Artist)
Tommaso De Luca (Artist)
Vasco Forconi (Curator)
Young Curators Residency Programme, Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo
Zoe De Luca (Independent Curator and Co-founder, Siliqoon Agency, Milan)
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CASTRO is funded by a group of patrons who choose to support artistic education and through a number of fundraising events.
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