OPEN CALL: International Prespa Walking Arts Encounters 2025 (WAC 25)

The International Prespa Walking Arts Encounters 2025 (WAC 25) will be titled Walking Home / Walking in Transition. We invite artists, writers and other creative practitioners, critics, and researchers to gather in Prespa, Greece in summer 2025 (Monday, June 30 to Sunday, July 6). Anyone wishing to participate as an attendee is also welcome.

The International Prespa Walking Encounters 2025 (WAC 25) is an event in the frame of the Creative Europe co-funded project Walking Arts & Local Communities (WALC), starting in January 2024 for four years. Initiated by seven partners from five countries, WALC establishes a larger International Center for Artistic Research and Practice of Walking Arts, in Prespa, Greece, at the border with Albania and North Macedonia, backed up by an online counterpart in the format of a digital platform for walking arts.

The Prespa area, a unique environment with two lakes (Megali Prespa and Mikri Prespa), is the locus where the field research of the walking art project “Visual March to Prespa” is taking place, organized by the 1st Painting Workshop of the School of Visual Arts of the University of Western Macedonia. It was initiated in 2007 and the current International Encounters/Conference is a continuation of three International Encounters/Conferences (WAC) in 2019, 2021, and 2023, during which over 600 participants from all over the world met in Prespa. Since 2024 WAC has been part of the WALC program.

The partners of WALC are Visual March to Prespes, University of Western Macedonia (Leader, Πανεπιστήμιο Δυτικής Μακεδονίας, UOWM, Greece), walk · listen · create (WLC, Belgium), WalkLab2.PT at the University of Minho (UMINHO, Universidade do Minho, Portugal), Contemporary Art Center Nau Côclea (Centre de Creació Contemporània Nau Côclea, Catalonia, Spain), Association Temps Réel (Gigacircus, France), Action Synergy SA (AS, Greece), School of Gaasbeek (De School van Gaasbeek, SvG, Belgium). Artistic co-ordinators of the WALC project are Geert Vermeire (WLC) and Yannis Ziogas (UOWM).

Paper/Walkshop Submission

A proposal for walkshops, papers, and other creative proposals may be submitted online by an individual or small group in relation to the Encounters theme Walking Home / Walking in Transition. The proposals need to be presented or realized in Prespa. The Encounters’ organizers are open to a range of formats, as indicated above.

Submissions should be in English. Following the conclusion of the Encounters/Conference, its proceedings will be published in English.

The application should be submitted at http://icowaf.eetf.uowm.gr/

The application should include the following:

  • Thematic relevance:  How does your artistic work/walkshop/paper take up the theme “Walking Home / Walking in Transition?” (up to100 words)
  • How does/will your artistic piece/walkshop engage with the local community? (up to 50 words)
  • It should be clarified whether the application concerns an artistic work/walkshop or a paper.
  • Description of the walkshop or an abstract of the paper (up to 200 words).
  • Short bio (up to 100 words).
  • 5 photos or images (if needed) or links related to the proposal.
  • For the walkshops: estimated duration, desired time of the day (dawn, morning, midday, afternoon, dusk/evening, night) and a maximum number of participants. Selection of the site in Prespes where the proposal will be developed in the most creative way.
  • Selection of the site in Prespes where the proposal will be developed in the most creative way.

Submission Deadline: February 28, 2025

By March 10, 2025 the selected applicants will receive a notification of acceptance.\The official language of the conference is English.
Important dates
February 28, 2025: Submission of abstract/art projects
March 10, 2025: Author/Artist Notification
March 30, to May 30, 2025: Registration
June 30 to July 6, 2025: Walking Encounters/Conference
August 30, 2025: Submission of the finalized papers / description and documentation of the projects

Registration fees 

The Encounters is not a festival that commissions art work or provides budgets to artists; it is a non-profit meeting place to share work and ideas as a crowd-sourced community, fuelled to a large extent by the agency of this community, and would not be possible without the invaluable and voluntary efforts of many people locally and around the world. As organizers we are aware of the difficult situation affecting many artists globally and we try to take this into account as much as possible, in order to offer equal chances for everyone to take part.

For the unemployed, including artists, and cultural workers with no other means of income (on written declaration of honor), for EETF/UOWM (Department of Fine and Applied Arts / University of Western of Macedonia) graduates and students there is no fee (proof required).

The conference registration includes:

The attendees/participants will receive:

  • a Certificate of Attendance from the University of Western Macedonia
  • access to all official conference sessions
  • conference tote bag with program booklet and digital conference proceedings
  • buffet, coffee breaks, and snacks
  • refreshments during coffee breaks, buffet lunch during lunch breaks of the conference sessions

Early birds payments (till May 15, 2025) 

120€ supporting a participant without the means to take part – for first paper/art proposal per participant for early bird registrations

80€ for first paper/art proposal per participant – authors and co-authors for early bird registrations

20€ for any additional paper/art proposal for early bird registrations

10€ for students (proof required) / student participation for early bird registrations

40€ for any attendee (those not presenting any paper or project)

In case you belong to one of the waived-fee categories please notify the Committee through the contact form of the site: https://icowaf.eetf.uowm.gr/2025/contact/

For those participants/attendees who wish to acquire the printed volume of the 2019 proceedings (Walking Practices / Walking Art / Walking Bodies), there will be a 25% discount in their registration fee. To acquire this publication please consult the following link:
https://icowaf.eetf.uowm.gr/2025/archives/conference-proceedings/

 

Regular payment (after May 15, 2025)

140€ supporting a participant without the means to take part – for first paper/art proposal per participant

100€ for first paper/art proposal per participant – authors and co-authors

30€ for any additional paper/art proposal

20€ for students (proof required)

50€ for any attendee (those not presenting any paper or project)

Donations:

Donations on the conference bank account are welcome. Your contribution will go to the artists- and students-volunteers and the local community during the encounters/conference.

IMPORTANT

Those who will be selected to participate in Prespa will have to sign a Consent Form, concerning safety and health issues.

CONTACT E-MAIL sinedrioteet@uowm.gr

WEBSITE https://icowaf.eetf.uowm.gr/2025/