Are you an aspiring or established photo/lens artist? We have an interesting work assignment for you! The Embassy of Switzerland and the Swiss Co-operation office in India are interested in receiving your application. As a selected artist you would take pictures at different locations in one region – the aim being to best grasp the impact of Swiss cooperation projects. There are various locations in the North, East, West and South of India to be engaged with photographically. Interested candidates are encouraged to apply along with their portfolio, CV and a short motivation letter to the Cultural Section of the Embassy. The assignment comes with an appropriate remuneration covering work and expenses.
Eight Different Regions
There are 20 locations of Swiss cooperation projects in India clustered into eight areas as illustrated below. You can indicate up to 3 regions where you would be interested to travel and work.
We invite you to refer to the regions listed here:
Laddakh, Sikkim (Teesta Valley), Siliguri, North Eastern states of Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur, Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Bhuj in Gujarat, Jaipur, Udaipur in Rajasthan, Lucknow, Kanpur in UP, Bundelkhand (border of UP and MP), Pune, Coimbatore, Chennai.
Background
The impact of climate change, land degradation, shrinking glaciers and natural habitats, deforestation, pollution has become ever more palpable on a global scale. The direct impact has increased and is visible in weather volatility disrupting farming and destructing farm products, health impacts due to degradation of air, water and food quality, as well as displacement of tribal communities, and increased instances of wild animals straying into human habitats. In several parts of the globe one has seen forest fires raging and destructing eco habitats as well as increased instances of flash floods, avalanches, glacier and iceberg bursts.
As there are numerous voices speaking about making this planet sustainable and combat impact of climate change, the Swiss Co-operation office takes pride in engaging in many projects in various regions of India, in an effort to partner with Indian organizations and mitigate climate change effects, work towards food security, increase hygiene sanitation, increase climate resilience, reduce air pollution as well as offer pre-warning systems for climatic disasters. These projects have been bringing a new ray of hope to local population in several mainstream and remote regions in India.
The Embassy of Switzerland to Indian and Bhutan as well as the Swiss Co-operation office in India recognize the need to increase citizen awareness, citizen participation and dialogues to ensure larger impact in favor of climate friendly and sustainable lifestyles. In this framework we plan a photo exhibition narrating stories from these regions about the past and current conditions of human habitat and nature, documenting the engagement and impact of Swiss cooperation activities.
Aim of the exhibition
- To document the existing work of the Swiss co-operation office in India and present it in an exhibition format
- To present the work on the background of other climate-impacted stories (land degradation, floods, deforestation, questions around tribal communities and wildlife etc.)
- To encourage citizen awareness, participation and dialogue on climate friendly lifestyles contributing to making our environment sustainable
Who are you
- You are a passionate aspiring or established photo/lens artist
- You have a marked interest in climate related topics and telling stories with your lens about not only effects of climate change but also success stories created by human intervention
- You are curious to explore the symbiotic interfaces between human and nature
- You are looking forward to interacting with local population and our local partners in different regions to cover and document the interesting projects of the Swiss Co-operation office in India
Then we definitely have an exciting work assignment for you and are interested in receiving your application along with
- Your succinct CV and photo, mentioning your favorite regions / place of current residence
- Portfolio not exceeding 20MB (preferably in a PDF Document)
- A short motivation letter
Please write directly to the Embassy of Switzerland to India and Bhutan newdelhi.events@eda.admin.ch.
Selected artists would be expected to work on the allocated assignments between November and December 2021. Besides being part of this exhibition, which will also be shown in Switzerland, you will receive appropriate remuneration for your work which also covers your travel and lodging expenses.
Application deadline: 10th November 2021, midnight
All applications will be screened by a team at the Embassy as well as by a panel of select experts. The result of the screening will be announced by 20th November 2021. In case you are selected, the Embassy will contact you for further procedure.
Upon selection and finalizing all administrative processes you will be requested to
- Work in close collaboration with a curator in charge of the artistic side of the project.
- Produce and submit at least 20 photographs digitally per assigned project site
- All photographs to be submitted for a final exhibition selection by 15th January 2021
- Suggest a title for each of your selected photographs
- Suggest the min and max size of the photograph, color scheme and paper quality, in case the Embassy decides to open the exhibition in a prominent physical space
The Embassy of Switzerland to India and Bhutan reserves the right to select your submitted photographs with consultation of the Swiss co-operation office in India as well as the curator mandated by the Embassy.
