esker project

DAS. thinking in refugeɘ program for artists

A micro-residency programme created by artists to set up an intimate refuge for the individual processes of artists from different places. Considering the different realities of artists in terms of productivity, the lack thereof, and the diverse emotional processes that we are constantly going through, we offer a small space to rest, recharge, and breathe. We also offer an audio platform to share thoughts and knowledge, experiences and questions about “safer spaces” for artist vulnerability.

As we know, spaces concerned about periods when artists are not productive are nearly non-existent. What happens to artists during these periods when productivity is not possible for different reasons? How do we take care of ourselves, and who cares for us? What happens with the different states of vulnerability—economic, situational, post-traumatic, health related, or connected to different emotional states such as stress after intense periods of emotional and artistic processes—that artists go through?

DAS. aims to be a small reflection space for reconnection and care, a place to interact with nature and ourselves that invites us to digest personal processes away from our typical context.

DAS. is a cabin found in a beautiful coastal forest in Väddö, about an hour and a half outside Stockholm (Sweden), near the cities of Uppsala and Grisslehamn. In this first phase called –Esker Project–, we are inviting local artists from the Basque Country and artists that have woven connections with the Basque context to initiate a dialogue that exchanges and crosses spaces with the outside.