Watermelon Residency

Watermelon Residency is a long-term project which in 2022 is dedicated to the support of Ukrainian artists forced to flee their country in face of war. The program aims to offer a period of stability and safety to artists during these unprecedented times. Despite being forcefully relocated and losing not just their homes, but also most of their work, Ukrainian artists have largely expressed their need to keep pursuing their practice, and contributing to the anti-war worldwide movement through their art. Watermelon Residency is joining the many such initiatives all over the world, from institutions to artist-run spaces that open up their doors and offer not just physical refuge, but a public voice to Ukrainian artists, curators, researchers, academics. By using their media channels to transmit the works and messages of our Ukrainian peers, the project aims to fight media manipulation, propaganda and fake-news and contribute to the support of independent and trusted media. Together with the partners, the common goal of the project is to create a network of such programs, focused on Eastern Europe.