ART and Amnesty International Announce Open Call for Artist/Activist Collaborations
CONVERSATIONS WITH REPORTS
Human rights reports usually draw on a traditional human rights methodology, fact finding or documentation, with a view to identifying a violation, violator and remedy. Reports represent a technical, detail-led, and legal form of speaking truth to power, usually addressing governments and authorities. They build their argument through various sections – stating the problem, mapping the context, making detailed allegations, aligning the allegations to international law – to form of a list of recommendations addressing a target state or institution. Whilst such reports remain the foundation of human rights work and offer comprehensive analysis into human rights violations, they have significant limitations as to the audiences they can reach.
In this call, artists and activists are invited to respond to a particular human rights report by Amnesty International titled Under Protected and Over Restricted: The State of the Right to Protest in 21 European Countries (July 2024). The report ‘reveals a continent-wide pattern of repressive laws, use of unnecessary or excessive force, arbitrary arrests and prosecutions, unwarranted or discriminatory restrictions as well as the increasing use of invasive surveillance technology, resulting in a systematic roll back of the right to protest’. The report is part of Amnesty International’s global campaign called ‘Protect the Protest’.
The full report is available in English and the Executive Summary is available in multiple languages.
In asking artists and activists to ‘respond to’ this report, we do not mean to simply represent or reproduce the report’s content. Instead, we are asking artists to explore creative and new means of response – for example to reframe the report in a different genre, such as satire, graphic novel, or science fiction; or an innovative form, such as soundscapes, installations, performance, or textiles; or within a new meta-narrative, such as centring on care for victims rather than human rights law. Artists may wish to respond to a part of the report, a country profile, the Executive Summary and Recommendations (pp. 20-35), even a footnote; or to its tone and language; or to a particular issue, story, or case study it contains. Interventions could also interrogate issues and themes which feature in the report but were not analysed or developed in depth, or address the question of ‘what next?’ Finally, applicants may wish to celebrate the positive implications and achievements of the right to protest, or tell the human stories behind the statistics, policies and laws.
Artists and activists applying to this call can be of any nationality and based in any country, but proposed projects need to address the right to protest in one of the 21 European countries covered in the report.
We also invite you to consider who the audience is for your project.
BACKGROUND
This call is part of the research project Art Rights Truth , funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), and co-hosted by the Centre for Applied Human Rights (CAHR) and the History of Art Department at the University of York, UK. Its aim is to understand how the arts contribute to the development of new languages of human rights. We are interested in how interventions at the intersection between the arts and activism communicate experiences of violence, suffering and pain on the one hand; and of justice, redress and reparation on the other. We assume that collaborative practice, notably between artists and activists, is crucial to the creation of such new languages.
A core part of the project is to commission new collaborative arts-based interventions; ‘Conversations with Reports – Amnesty International’ is one such call. It is an open call, and the maximum amount we offer for each commission is £4,000. Applicants can use this as micro- or seed-funding that either provides initial support to get a project off the ground or subsidises an ongoing initiative. Our focus is mainly on the visual arts, although applications in other forms will be considered. We are also interested in projects that are process based / seek to document a process, produce a series of works, and are easily replicable between sites (to allow for exhibitions and interventions linked to the art in multiple places and sites).
As this call is part of the Arts Rights Truth research project, successful applicants will also be included in relevant academic research in a light-touch way. It is not anticipated that projects are research-based nor that participants take part in Amnesty International’s research relating to documentation and advocacy. We look forward to discussing the specifics of artists’ and activists’ involvement in the research with successful applicants. We will also support dissemination of the artwork produced, through online and physical exhibitions, social media, at conferences and workshops, etc.
YOUR PROPOSAL
Proposals will be considered by the Art Rights Truth project team and staff members from Amnesty International, who will select the successful applications. You can find out more about the Art Rights Truth team on the project website. We will use the criteria below to assess proposals:
1. Clear demonstration of how your proposal provides a response to the report.
2. Evidence of innovation and creativity – we are willing to take risks with this fund to support work that is provocative and challenging.
3. Feasibility of the project (including consideration of safety, security, ethics, timeline and budget).
Please note: We are interested in using funding both to support ongoing relationships with artists/activists and collectives, and to initiate new relationships with partners.
Applicants should apply by presenting one project proposal that does not exceed three pages in length and includes the following:
1. A brief profile/biography of the applicants involved.
2. A brief description of the proposed project, highlighting in particular how it responds to ‘Conversations with Reports – Amnesty International’ and the criteria set out above; whether it builds on existing initiatives or is a new collaboration; and through which media/methodologies it will be carried out.
3. The main beneficiaries and audiences of the project of work and why the methodology/medium is appropriate for the issue being addressed and context where the applicants will work.
4. Details of additional sources of funding or contributions.
5. The envisioned output(s) of the project. Outputs in local languages are encouraged.
6. The amount of funding you are applying for, and a brief justification for the specific amount requested in the form of a basic budget and justification of resources. The budget can be used for subsistence/salary costs, materials, or other reasonable costs. It is envisaged grants will be for £4,000 or less.
7. One appendix featuring examples of artistic work can be included in the application. The appendix of up to 2 further pages can be additional to the 3-page application.
8. A video proposal will be accepted, if preferred. The video should be no longer than 4 minutes.
Applications should be submitted in English, Spanish, French or Italian. If you would rather submit your proposal in another language, please contact us on the email below to discuss alternatives.
THE DELIVERABLES
Applicants are expected to provide a timeline for outputs in their application, between the start date of the project and the end of September 2025. Applicants are also expected to submit a blog, by 30th September 2025, about their project. Please send inquiries to artrightstruth-project@york.ac.uk, copying in the person or people who sent you the call. To apply, please submit your application by completing the online form.
THE TIMELINE
The timeline for the application process is as follows:
- September 2024: call disseminated.
- 24th October 2024: two online workshops for prospective applicants will take place at 10-11am and 2-3pm. It is strongly recommended that prospective applicants attend one of these workshops to hear more about the report. A significant amount of time will be allocated to answering questions from potential applicants. Please complete the online form to register. A zoom link will be circulated in advance of the workshops.
- 21st November: an additional online workshop will take place at 10-11am GMT. Please complete the online form to register.
- 30th November: deadline for proposals.
- 16th December 2024: applicants notified about outcome of applications.
- February – March 2025: projects begin.
- 30th September 2025: projects end.
- 30th September 2025: submission of final blog and dissemination of projects.
Please note, university bureaucracies can be slow, and there may be delays in processing payments that are beyond our control. We will discuss the payment process with successful applicants and commit to maintaining transparent communication about payment and contractual procedures.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright for the outputs remains the sole and exclusive property of the applicant. Terms of reference/ contracts will provide CAHR and Amnesty International with the limited right to reproduce, publicly display, distribute and otherwise use the expected outputs in relation to CAHR’s research and associated activities, Amnesty International’s advocacy work, and as an example of work commissioned through the AHRC’s grant. Copyright will be addressed in terms of reference/contracts developed with successful applicants.
CONFIDENTIALITY AND ETHICS
CAHR and Amnesty International will discuss anonymity, confidentiality and other ethical issues with applicants as they arise in relation to specific projects.
