OPEN WORLD PARTICIPANT SELECTION

There is no open call for applications for this program. Participants are identified through professional nominations and selected in a competitive review process.

The program is intended for early to mid-career arts professionals, preferably, with no prior travel to the United States. Participants must be citizens of Russia.

Nomination process:
For each residency, the nomination process starts several months prior to the visit and includes the following steps:

• CEC ArtsLink staff work closely with the partner host organization to determine the profile of an ideal participant, a description of an artist or arts manager who would, on the one hand, benefit most from the proposed program and, on the other hand, be able to contribute most
• CEC ArtsLink staff identify a group of 4-10 Russian experts in the field who could serve as nominators, i.e. have deep knowledge of the field and represent different trends as well as different geographic regions
• Nominators receive complete information about the upcoming residency, including the profile of the ideal participant
• Nominators submit their suggestions to CEC ArtsLink staff who approach all candidates and collect application forms and work samples

Review criteria:

• Artistic or professional excellence of the applicant's work
• Potential for mutually-beneficial exchange with the hosting organization
• Applicant's plans for sharing the benefits of the exchange with artists and institutions in Russia
• Applicant's ability to meet cross-cultural challenges successfully

Review process:

• First, representatives of the U.S. host organization review work samples and application forms
• The final review takes place at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow with participation of the representatives of Open World Leadership Center and the Embassy’s Cultural Affairs Section