Some artworks are created for galleries. Others become part of the places we inhabit. They enter the landscape, our everyday routes, and our collective memory. It is precisely these kinds of works that Trenčín 2026 – European Capital of Culture is seeking through two international open calls, both open until 30 June.
Artists, architects, and creative collectives from around the world are invited to take part. The selected projects will not remain temporary events but will become lasting elements of public space and the stories of local communities.
When Art Gives Voice Back to the Past
The first open call is set in Nové Mesto nad Váhom and grows out of a powerful historical context. During the communist regime, gravestones were removed from local cemeteries, and their fragments were repurposed as ordinary construction material. Today, these remnants are being given the opportunity to take on a new meaning.
The selected artist or collective will undertake an artistic residency and create a permanent installation for Dominik Štubňa-Zámostský Park. The resulting work should become a space for remembrance, reflection, and dialogue about history, freedom, and human dignity.
Landmarks That Change the Way We See the Landscape
What does a place look like when it encourages us to slow down? A place that becomes a point of encounter, rest, or contemplation?
These are among the questions explored by the second open call, LANDMARKS / Stopping Points in the Landscape. The project invites artists, architects, and creative collectives to design interventions that enrich the landscape of the Trenčín region with new points of orientation and places with a distinct atmosphere.
The aim is not to create dominant structures that overpower the landscape, but works that enter into dialogue with it—places that invite people to pause, look around, and experience the landscape through new eyes.
A Legacy Beyond 2026
For Trenčín 2026, culture is not a series of one-off events. The project’s ambition is to create works and experiences that remain meaningful long after the European Capital of Culture year has ended.
Both open calls are therefore an invitation to those who wish to work with public space, memory, and landscape—to people who believe that art can transform not only places, but also the way we perceive them.
Applications for both international open calls can be submitted until 30 June 2026.
More Information
International Open Call for an Artistic Residency and Permanent Installation
https://www.trencin2026.eu/medzinarodna-otvorena-vyzva-na-umelecku-rezidenciu-a-realizaciu-permanentnej-instalacie/
LANDMARKS / Stopping Points in the Landscape
https://www.trencin2026.eu/landmarks-zastavenia-v-krajine/
