Since 1994 renowned artists have passed through the Villa Iris Visual Arts Workshops, spending a coupe of weeks closely working with young artists from all over the world who come to Santander for this activity.

Juan Uslé, Gabriel Orozco, Juliâo Sarmento, Miroslaw Balka, Antoni Muntadas, Jannis Kounellis, Mona Hatoum, Paul Graham and Lothar Baumgarten are just some of the artists-directors that have worked with the Botín Foundation.

July 2013 - TACITA DEAN WORKSHOP. CLOSED

The workshop will be led by Tacita Dean, from 1 to 12 July 2013, from 10:00 to 08:00 p.m.

Increasingly artists are invited to visit places they know nothing about, and then, in a very short period of time, are asked to make work in relation to that place. This is because art funding is usually connected to civic commissions, biennales and art events, and artists, being resourceful, have to comply. This has replaced the more historial studio-based practice and become the plight of the contemporary artist: the artisst as vagabond. It is one of the hardest things to pull off: to wander around a place where one is a total stranger and try and derive some thread of inspiration to set one on one´s path.

We will all be arriving in Santander as strangers for two weeks and will use our resourcefulness and our adaptability to find a modus operandi or a means to make something from where we are. Please arrive unencumbered by previous work. Cameras, specially analogue cameras if you have them, are welcome and laptops if you must.

Tacita Dean

Applications: they may be submitted online.

The deadline for applications will close on 10 May 2013.

-Workshop requirements (pdf) 

-Online instructions (pdf)

 Email for information: becas@fundacionbotin.org