Open Call for a Curatorial Exhibition Concept

What haven't we thought of yet?

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Memphis opens up its programme

Since 2014, the programme of Kunstraum Memphis has been developed internally and in collaboration with invited contributors. With MEMPHIS CALLING, we are opening it to external curatorial perspectives through an international open call for the first time. With MEMPHIS CALLING, we are looking for a curatorial concept for an exhibition bringing together several artistic positions, to be realised in early 2027 (exhibition period: mid-January to the end of February). Rather than a close continuation of our existing programme, we are looking for an independent perspective that complements, shifts or challenges it.
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What we are interested in

Memphis understands contemporary art as a space where artistic, social, political, economic and technological questions intersect. Transdisciplinary approaches and critical engagement with the conditions of the present are central to our work. Our current programme engages, among other things, with digital infrastructures and their effects on perception and coexistence, memory and forgetting, repair and resistance, community and exile, and other forms of knowing, producing and sharing. These themes provide context, but they are not a requirement. We welcome concepts that speak from the present – engaging with social, political, ecological, economic or technological developments and conflicts, as well as with questions we have not yet named. We do not understand exhibitions as being tied to a particular format. The curatorial question may take spatial, performative, discursive, participatory or other forms. Experimental and transdisciplinary approaches are explicitly welcome.
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Format & collaboration

The exhibition will be present at Kunstraum Memphis for four to five weeks. Artists and specific works or contributions may already be confirmed at the time of application, but this is not required. The Memphis Light Box can be incorporated as an additional artistic presentation space: a 1 × 6 metre light box on the exterior façade that has so far been used primarily for text-based works. The call is open to curators, artists and other cultural practitioners working curatorially. Applications may be submitted by individuals, duos or collectives. We are not looking for proposals primarily centred on the applicants' own artistic work. The selected concept will be further developed and realised in exchange with the Memphis team. An optional working stay of up to ten days in Linz can be used for this purpose; Memphis provides accommodation free of charge.
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Budget

Depending on the selected proposal, up to €7,500 is available for conception and realisation. This covers the curatorial fee, fees for participating artists, and necessary travel, transport, production, material and project-specific technical costs. Within the available means, fees are guided by the Fair Pay recommendations of the Austrian Cultural Council (Kulturrat Österreich). The final budget will be set according to the actual requirements of the selected proposal.

What Memphis provides in addition

In addition to the budget, Memphis provides:

– the exhibition spaces and existing infrastructure

– free accommodation during the agreed working stay

– organisational and technical support

– design and production of regular printed and communication materials

– press and public relations through the website, newsletter, social media and the Memphis network

– organisation and support of the opening and events

– documentation for the website and social media

Additional documentation, publications or project-specific communication formats are not included and, if required, must be covered by the budget or organised independently.
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Application

Applications can only be submitted online via the following link.

– title and short description of the proposal, max. 750 characters including spaces

– curatorial proposal, max. 2 pages, PDF, max. 10 MB

– proposed artists and works or contributions, if already known

– a representative image for the proposal, JPG or PNG, max. 5 MB

– short biography and CV of the applicant(s); CV max. 2 pages, PDF, max. 5 MB

– up to three references to previous curatorial, artistic or comparable work, with links where possible

– optional: website, portfolio or other relevant links

– an indication of whether an optional working stay in Linz is desired

– estimated total cost and a preliminary budget, PDF, max. 10 MB

– optional: existing supporting material with further information or images, PDF, max. 10 MB

Language: German or English

Deadline: 25 October 2026, 23:59 CET

Please do not produce extensive materials specifically for the application.
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Selection

The selection will be made by the Memphis team together with an external expert. The curatorial quality and coherence of the proposal and its feasibility within the spatial, temporal and financial conditions will be considered.

The decision will be announced by 15 November 2026.
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Downloads

→ Memphis floor plan