Three ECAL graduates in artist residencies abroad

The State of Vaud provides professional artists working in the canton with a studio in Paris and another in Berlin. Put out to tender each year, the artistic residencies are granted for a period of six months, and each comes with a contribution to expenses of 9,000 francs. For 2024, the Paris studio has been awarded to visual artists Romane de Watteville (1st semester) and Gina Proenza (2nd semester). The Berlin residency (2nd semester) goes to Baker Wardlaw.

International artist residencies are an important means of supporting creativity and research. They encourage the development of projects with links to the two capitals concerned, and promote the influence of artists working in Vaud. To this end, the Canton of Vaud has a studio at the Cité internationale des arts in Paris, and (in collaboration with the Canton of Freiburg) a studio in the multicultural Wedding district in the heart of Berlin.

Residence in Paris

1st semester 2024 - Romane de Watteville
Graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts in 2020, Romane de Watteville wishes to reside in the French capital to develop a pictorial project entitled "Picture of You Staring". Focusing on formal issues, this work is centered around the theme of set design in both theater and film, as well as costume design. The residency will foster exchange and close collaboration with other artists working in textiles, ceramics and installation.

2nd semester 2024 - Gina Proenza
During her stay in Paris, Gina Proenza, graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts in 2017, will develop a project linked to the writings and documentary films (one of which is unfinished) produced by French poet Alain Gheerbrant following his travels in the Colombian Amazon during the second half of the 20th century. The artist plans to consult the archives of these journeys held at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BNF) to observe the relationship between colonial history and anthropology.

Residence in Berlin

2nd semester 2024 - Baker Wardlaw
During his stay in Berlin, Baker Wardlaw, graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts in 2014, will continue the conceptual and formal exploration of his work entitled "Berlin Key / Sacred Harp". Centered on the notions of cryptography and cooperation, the artist's approach aims to establish a parallel, or even a confrontation, between the messages sometimes cryptically conveyed by works of art and the complex digital encasement to which all human communication is almost necessarily subject these days.