Open Call: zero material
Programme identity designed by Can Yang
Application is now closed.
All applicants shall hear from Kakilang on Wednesday 12th August.
If you have any question regarding the programme, please email
Liang-Jung Chen liang@kakilang.org.uk and Erika Au erika@kakilang.org.uk
Are you an artist specialising in conceptual or visual arts based practice? We will be selecting one artist to create a new body of work, with the opportunity to present it to a public audience in Spring 2027.
We are looking for an artist whose practice engages with materials, systems, or processes — someone curious about working with what already exists, and interested in how diasporic experience shapes the way things are made.
You might be early in your career or further along — what matters is a genuine engagement with the questions the programme is asking.
zero material manifesto
In an age of scarcity and excess, what forms of art making remain relevant?
zero material recognises that each material, whether tangible or intangible, carries its own agency that awaits to be exercised creatively — informed by diasporic experience, it proposes unorthodox approaches like hacking, smuggling and piggybacking as artistic practice.
The artwork may take the form of a gesture, a situation, an infrastructure, a digital trace, a collective action or even an administrative process — the materiality that already penetrates and accumulates in our everyday lives.
The selected artist will receive
Eligibility
2026
An artist fee of £2,500 and a production budget of £800
A supported public presentation in spring 2027
Artist development support including tailored workshops, one-to-one mentoring, and institutional visits
A hot-desking space at Kakilang's central London office between August 2026 – June 2027 up to 3 days per week, if required
UK-based artists of ESEA heritage
An arts practice in conceptual or visual arts of at least two years
Right to live and work in the UK between August 2026 – June 2027
Availability in March 2027 for public presentation
If applying as a duo or collective, please nominate one leading artist as the representative for the application
Open call & programme timeline
Deadline to apply and complete the anonymous equality monitoring form:
Monday 10 August
Shortlist announcement:
Wednesday 12 August
Shortlisted artist interviews (online):
The shortlisted artists will be required to prepare a presentation based their practice and what zero material means to them. This will take place on Tuesday 18 August 2pm - 5pm.
Selected Artist Announcement:
Tuesday 01 September
Project Development:
September – December 2026
Concept Consolidation:
January – February 2027
Public Presentation:
March 2027
The selection panel will consist of:
Rhine Bernardino, Independent Artist and Curator
Liang-Jung Chen, Associate Artistic Director, Kakilang
Ruth Holdsworth, Co-CEO, Kakilang
Howl Yuan, Artistic Director & Co-CEO, Kakilang
Application Form
If this format is not accessible for you, please email zero material programme lead Liang-Jung Chen at liang@kakilang.org.uk and Erika Au at erika@kakilang.org.uk or call 0207 287 1052 before Wednesday 22 July. If you have any questions, we aim to offer as much access support as possible and welcome a conversation about your needs before you apply.