Funding

Partial / Stipend

Cultural Exchange•Türkiye · Istanbul

Cultural exchange grants of the federal state of Berlin – Istanbul, Paris, New York, Tokyo

Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion – Department of Culture

Application Deadline

September 15, 2026

Official Page

The cultural exchange grants of the federal state of Berlin place professional artists based in Berlin at four partner institutions abroad: DEPO/Anadolu Kültür in Istanbul, the International Studio & Curatorial Program in New York, Tokyo Arts and Space, and the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris. The Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion funds the stay so that the artist can work on site, follow the local art scene and build lasting contacts.

Eight grants are on offer for 2027 and 2028, covering visual art, curating, music and composition, literature, dance and comics. Stays in Istanbul, New York and Tokyo run three months; the Paris stays run six months.

Each applicant chooses one city and submits one application. Being present at the destination for the whole grant period is a condition of the award.

Benefits & funding

  • Istanbul (DEPO/Anadolu Kültür, visual art): €2,500 per month plus a rent-free studio apartment; one grant for September–November 2027 and one for March–May 2028, three months each.
  • New York (International Studio & Curatorial Program, visual art and curating): €3,000 per month, studio access and a €1,000 monthly accommodation allowance; one grant for September–November 2027.
  • Tokyo (Tokyo Arts and Space, visual art): €3,000 per month plus a rent-free studio apartment; one grant for September–November 2027.
  • Paris (Cité Internationale des Arts): €2,500 per month towards travel, materials and living costs, plus a rent-free apartment at the Cité and participation in its programme.
  • Paris grants run six months: two for musicians and composers (April–September 2027 and October 2027–March 2028), one for visual art, literature and dance (May–October 2027), and one for comic artists (November 2027–April 2028).

Eligibility

  • Applicants must be professionally active artists and must show that practice through work samples; curators may apply for the New York residency.
  • Applicants must live and work in Berlin, with their primary residence registered in the city.
  • The discipline must match the location: visual art for Istanbul and Tokyo; visual art or curating for New York; music and composition, visual art, literature, dance or comics for Paris.
  • Applicants may not be enrolled at a university or college, including for a doctorate, and may not be employed there as a professor.
  • Artists from outside the EU need an official endorsement for self-employed activity in their passport or residence permit.
  • Being on site for the whole residency is compulsory; the stay cannot be done remotely.
  • Only one application per person is accepted, and only for one of the four locations.
  • Former grant holders may apply again only if their earlier stay ended in October 2024 or earlier.
  • The programme states no nationality requirement and no age limit.

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    Germany

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Application process

  1. 1
    Choose one city and one discipline track, and check the dates of that residency slot.
  2. 2
    Complete the online application form, which is in German, and fill in the separate English application form that is passed to the partner institution.
  3. 3
    Upload a project description of no more than five pages and an artistic CV or portfolio of no more than ten pages as a PDF of up to 10 MB.
  4. 4
    Upload identity documents, proof of the registered Berlin address and, where applicable, the residence permit showing permission for self-employed work.
  5. 5
    Submit everything online by September 15, 2026 at 2:00 PM CET; applications arriving after that time cannot be processed and incomplete files are not reviewed.

Program timeline

  1. Applications open

    August 3, 2026

  2. Application deadline

    September 15, 2026, 2:00 PM CET

  3. Expert juries make the pre-selection

    November–December 2026

  4. Applicants are informed of the pre-selection result

    January 2027

  5. Partner institutions confirm the final selection

    February 2027

  6. First Paris residency begins

    April 2027

  7. Last residency slot (Istanbul) takes place

    March–May 2028

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