Open call for International Symposium of Sculptors Forma viva 2025

Galerija Božidar Jakac – Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Kostanjevica na Krki is calling for artists to apply to take part at and create an original art work for International Symposium of Sculptors Forma viva taking place in July 2025 at the working site in Kostanjevica na Krki, Slovenia.

International Symposium of Sculptors Forma viva in Kostanjevica na Krki includes conception and execution of an art work made out of wood, which will be permanently placed in the Forma viva sculpture park. These could be sculptural works, spatial installations or any other art works that are made out of oak wood.

Applicants are invited to submit proposals to create an art work which will be executed on the location and will be placed in the Forma viva sculpture park. The final location of the public art work in the sculpture park will be determined after the consultation between organisers and an artist.

BASIC INFORMATION

Organiser: Galerija Božidar Jakac – Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Kostanjevica na Krki, Slovenia

Participants: three sculptors, selected on the basis of submitted applications or the direct organiser’s invitation

Date: 1-31 July 2025

Material: mostly oak wood

Location: sculpture park in the immediate proximity of Galerija Božidar Jakac and in the town of Kostanjevica na Krki; exact location and placement of the sculpture will be chosen by the organiser, based on expert consultation with selected artist.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Organiser:

• provides basic tools (chain saws, smaller tools and machines for the transport of materials) and expert help for difficult physical tasks, electricity and electrical connection, the base for the sculpture, setting up the sculpture, and protective impregnation for the sculpture;
• covers costs of accommodation and meals for the duration of symposium (full

board) in the proximity of the symposium and provides non-alcoholic beverages at the site;

• ensures the promotion of the symposium, press coverage, public presentation at the end of symposium and the presentation in the catalogue of the Forma viva International Symposium of Sculptors;
• ensures the royalties in the sum of €2,000 (net income) which is to be transferred to participants’ bank account after the conclusion of the symposium. In addition to covering the accommodation costs, the organiser also covers the payment of all related taxes (income tax, social funds).

The applicants for participation are expected to:

• have experience in wood processing and/or sculpturing;
• work independently in open space;
• ensure independent settlement of health and accident insurance;
• acquaint themselves with the regulations of the symposium;
• inform the organiser about any special needs, requirements and preferences, which may significantly affect the course of symposium or organisers’ expectations;
• cover their travel costs (the organiser can help with search for funding);
• send their certificate of social insurance coverage (A1 form for EU citizens or a document that is equivalent of A1 form for residents of non-EU countries) prior to their arrival to Kostanjevica na Krki.

The application shall consist of:

• completed application form;
• proposal for the sculpture (concept);
• technical description of the proposed sculpture;
• sketches or photographs of a model;
• biography and contact information;

The applications must be submitted until 13 January 2025 via email info@galerija-bj.si or sent to the address Galerija Božidar Jakac, Grajska cesta 45, 8311 Kostanjevica na Krki, Slovenia

The selected applicants will be contacted for more detailed information and notified about participation presumably around 10 February 2025.

For more information about the call you may contact:

Kristina Simončič, kristina.simoncic@galerija-bj.si, +386 7 49 88 149

About the Forma Viva International Symposium of Sculptors

International Symposium of Sculptors Forma viva was established in 1961 on the initiative of sculptors Jakob Savinšek and Janez Lenassi. It first took place in Kostanjevica na Krki and in Seča while it later expanded to four locations: Kostanjevica na Krki (from 1961), Seča (from 1961), Ravne na Koroškem (1964-2014), Maribor (1967-1986). Each of these locations is focused on the material that is characteristic for the region: in Kostanjevica na Krki the sculptural material is oak wood, in Seča stone, in Ravne na Koroškem metal and Maribor concrete.

Kostanjevica na Krki has a long tradition of using oak wood from the nearby Krakovski gozd. The symposium in Kostanjevica na Krki was organised annually in the period 1961-1966, and was later transformed into biennale (1968-1988). In 1988, after significant socio-political changes the symposium cease to operate for a decade but was revived in 1998; since then, three international artists are selected every other year to create art works made out of wood in the public space in Kostanjevica na Krki. The Forma Viva International Symposium of Sculptors is considered to be one of the largest visual art manifestations in Slovenia and to be the oldest still ongoing symposium of sculptures in the world.

More than 100 sculptures that were created in frames of the symposium nowadays surround Galerija Božidar Jakac and the town of Kostanjevica na Krki. There are works of artists such as Eisaku Tanaka, Dušan Džamonja, Ksenija Kantoci, Vjenčeslav Richter, Dragica Čadež, Peter Startup, Bogosav Živković, Tone Kralj, Miroslav Šutej, Kosuke Kimura, Dušan Tršar, Louis Mwaniki, Bata Marianov, Villi Bossi, Ratko Petrić, Michael Pennie, Karl J. Ciesluk, Molly Mason, Petar Barišić, Roman Makše, Nigel Ross, Gao Meng, Peter Galhidy, Alem Korkut, Tomaž Furlan and many more.

More information about International Symposium of Sculptors Forma viva you can find on the web page of Galerija Božidar Jakac – Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Kostanjevica na Krki: www.galerija-bj.si, on our Facebook page: Galerija Božidar Jakac or on Instagram: @galerijabj.

Open Call

Application Form