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OPEN CALL :
INSTITUTO TROPICAL
ARTISTIC RESEARCH RESIDENCIES
TROPICALISING ARTISTIC PRACTICES
INSTITUTO TROPICAL
ARTISTIC RESEARCH RESIDENCIES
TROPICALISING ARTISTIC PRACTICES
About
Instituto Tropical tropicalizes art and discourse through Mestizo, First Nations, and Caribbean ontologies, contesting the monoculture of thought and practice that has brought about the current crisis.
Seeking to activate decolonial, multinatural perspectives within contemporary artistic practices and forms of institutionalization. Instituto Tropical is conceived as a third space for artistic research and practice, beyond the western models of white cube and black box. A porous site of gathering within the land, where compass points are understood as relational and situated.
Instituto Tropical enacts the model of the Tropical Institution, which draws associatively on the diversity of the tropics — from rainforests to deserts — their implication as heliotropic zones and areas of atmospheric circulation, and connects it with “trope” as a collective term for rhetorical figures. From this perspective being—or inhabiting—is understood not as an abstract condition but as a relational practice: An ongoing engagement of reciprocity with life, territory, and others. In this context, what 'western' traditions have defined as 'Art' can instead be understood as a practice of strengthening collective bonds for the purpose of blooming together, grounded in relationality, healing, restoration, and transformation.
“The West is not in the West. It is a project, not a place.”
— Édouard Glissant, Caribbean Discourse (1989)
The Residency Programme
Instituto Tropical invites artists from all disciplines to apply with an ongoing artistic research project for one of two residency periods in 2027.
The programme offers a space to tropicalize that research through situated processes engaging the land, local communities, and Ancestral Intelligence (AI). It offers time for exchange, experimentation, and collective inquiry — fostering encounters with ancient knowledge systems, local arts and craft techniques, scientific knowledge, and eco-social technologies of agriculture within already existing feeding systems.
The Program offers a space and time to decolonize the senses, and to explore different economies of perception and attention. It includes access to a fig farm and an organic feeding system, alongside a workshop lead by the curators and members of the board. The residency offers an ongoing guidance to tropicalize your artistic practice and encounter with tropical ontologies (to pick at least 2 across the residency period)
1. Ancestral practices — Traditional weather and water relational practices (tiemperos y buscadores de agua) ancestral healing practices ( Temazcal, Herbs, Curanderismo); and other body-based knowledge.
2. Local artistic practices / crafts — Natural dyeing (working with local plants and trees for plant-based color extraction); barro (clay work); telar de cintura, (waist loom weaving).
3. Soil practices / feeding systems — Relationships with endemic plants and species, exchange with local farmers; ancestral and emerging watering technologies, relationship practices with Popocatepetl volcano.
RESIDENCY COSTS
The residency costs 900€ - which includes 10 to 12 days accommodation, meals, transport and meetings with experts
Two or three meetings with experts (as mentioned above)
Transport to and from CDMX upon arrival/ departure of residency
The open call residency program for institutionally or state fund international artists helps to fund the work with indigenous knowledge practitioners and the artistic residencies of first nations artists.
Instituto Tropical invites artists from all disciplines to apply with an ongoing artistic research project for one of two residency periods in 2027.
The programme offers a space to tropicalize that research through situated processes engaging the land, local communities, and Ancestral Intelligence (AI). It offers time for exchange, experimentation, and collective inquiry — fostering encounters with ancient knowledge systems, local arts and craft techniques, scientific knowledge, and eco-social technologies of agriculture within already existing feeding systems.
The Program offers a space and time to decolonize the senses, and to explore different economies of perception and attention. It includes access to a fig farm and an organic feeding system, alongside a workshop lead by the curators and members of the board. The residency offers an ongoing guidance to tropicalize your artistic practice and encounter with tropical ontologies (to pick at least 2 across the residency period)
1. Ancestral practices — Traditional weather and water relational practices (tiemperos y buscadores de agua) ancestral healing practices ( Temazcal, Herbs, Curanderismo); and other body-based knowledge.
2. Local artistic practices / crafts — Natural dyeing (working with local plants and trees for plant-based color extraction); barro (clay work); telar de cintura, (waist loom weaving).
3. Soil practices / feeding systems — Relationships with endemic plants and species, exchange with local farmers; ancestral and emerging watering technologies, relationship practices with Popocatepetl volcano.
RESIDENCY COSTS
The residency costs 900€ - which includes 10 to 12 days accommodation, meals, transport and meetings with experts
Two or three meetings with experts (as mentioned above)
Transport to and from CDMX upon arrival/ departure of residency
The open call residency program for institutionally or state fund international artists helps to fund the work with indigenous knowledge practitioners and the artistic residencies of first nations artists.
The residency includes:
- Accommodation for two artists at the institute
- Workspaces for artistic and research-based practice
- Opportunities to exhibit in Mexico City and Vienna
- Encounter opportunities with local actors in arts, crafts, access to the agricultural lands of Instituto Tropical and organic agriculture, with a focus on Indigenous knowledge.
- Encounters to scholars in the fields of anthropology, ecology, and history.
- All the help and advice we can give you to make the most out of your time with us.
Accommodation:
Accommodation is a single room with double bed, and own bathroom, linen, towels and laundry are provided.
Food / nourishment:
All meals are provided, an introduction to local food culture is carefully crafted for your eating preferences.
Studio / workspace:
We have many areas of work and a large studio (7m x 10m) which is shared between the artists. Not all artists require a studio and we have plenty of quiet spaces and places in which to work.
Application information:
To apply send us your CV, short biography, examples of your work and most importantly a statement no longer than one A4 page about why you want to come to Instituto Tropical and what you hope to achieve from your time here.
Selection process:
We try to be prompt with replying – and sometimes more dialogue is required before we can accept your application. The process is personal, it takes time but we try to accept within the month.
You will be required to pay a non-refundable deposit in advance of your stay.
Instituto Tropical is located in Morelos, near the base
of the Popocatepetl volcano
opencall.institutotropical@gmail.com
Previous Residencies & Events
Carolina Cifras at Instituto Tropical, May, 10-20. 2026
Residencia de investigación de diez días de Carolina Cifras y Amanda Piña para la creación de la performance SALAR se centró en explorar las relaciones entre los instrumentos de viento andinos y el cuerpo en movimiento para desarrollar una coreo- poética desde el imaginario de el Salar. El proyecto forma parte de un proceso de investigación artística que examina cómo la extracción de litio de los salares de Chile, Bolivia y Argentina (triangulo del litio) profundiza las lógicas extractivas del neoliberalismo neocolonial. El proyecto se presentará en Tanz Quartier Vienna en Enero del 2027.
Carolina Cifras’s and Amanda Pina's ten-day research residency for the creation of the new performance piece SALAR focused on exploring the relationships between Andean wind instruments and the moving body in order to develop Choreopoetics drawn from the imagery of the salt flat. The project forms part of an artistic research process that examines how lithium extraction from the salt flats of Chile, Bolivia and Argentina (the so-called lithium triangle) reinforces the extractive logic of neocolonial neoliberalism. The project will be presented at Tanz Quartier Vienna in January 2027.
Carolina Cifras’s and Amanda Pina's ten-day research residency for the creation of the new performance piece SALAR focused on exploring the relationships between Andean wind instruments and the moving body in order to develop Choreopoetics drawn from the imagery of the salt flat. The project forms part of an artistic research process that examines how lithium extraction from the salt flats of Chile, Bolivia and Argentina (the so-called lithium triangle) reinforces the extractive logic of neocolonial neoliberalism. The project will be presented at Tanz Quartier Vienna in January 2027.
Michel Jimenez, Luisa Martinez de Zarate and Mafalda Rakoš presenting Instituto TRopical at UNAM
13.03.2026
Presentación de Instituto Tropical en la Universidad Autónoma de México, UNAM en el marco del encuentro ONDA por invitación de Geoliane Arab
Presentation of Instituto Tropical at the Autonomous University of México, UNAM in the frame of ONDA upon Geoliane Arab's invitation.
Michel Jimenez, Luisa Martinez de Zarate and Mafalda Rakoš, presented the residency program and the artists works.
Presentación de Instituto Tropical en la Universidad Autónoma de México, UNAM en el marco del encuentro ONDA por invitación de Geoliane Arab
Presentation of Instituto Tropical at the Autonomous University of México, UNAM in the frame of ONDA upon Geoliane Arab's invitation.
Michel Jimenez, Luisa Martinez de Zarate and Mafalda Rakoš, presented the residency program and the artists works.
It is necessary to choose a visual aid that is appropriate for the topic and audience.
23.02-05.03.2026
Residencia de investigación de diez días de Mafalda Rakoš se centró en explorar las relaciones humano-vegetales a partir del contexto del cultivo de higos, en colaboración con agricultores del Instituto Tropical. El proyecto forma parte de un proceso de investigación artística que examina cómo las estrategias artísticas pueden dialogar con los sistemas de producción alimentaria.
Research residency of Mafalda Rakoš. In this ten days residency the artists started a work on human-vegetal relations in collaboration with the fig farmers at Instituto Tropical, applying artistic strategies to transform feeding systems. In the first stages of her artistic research, she applied multi natural perspectivism to human-plant relations within the context of fig farming; In her work photography is applied as a strategy to promote forms of listening to the plants, in order to enable new forms of relating with the vegetal world.
Residencia de investigación de diez días de Mafalda Rakoš se centró en explorar las relaciones humano-vegetales a partir del contexto del cultivo de higos, en colaboración con agricultores del Instituto Tropical. El proyecto forma parte de un proceso de investigación artística que examina cómo las estrategias artísticas pueden dialogar con los sistemas de producción alimentaria.
Research residency of Mafalda Rakoš. In this ten days residency the artists started a work on human-vegetal relations in collaboration with the fig farmers at Instituto Tropical, applying artistic strategies to transform feeding systems. In the first stages of her artistic research, she applied multi natural perspectivism to human-plant relations within the context of fig farming; In her work photography is applied as a strategy to promote forms of listening to the plants, in order to enable new forms of relating with the vegetal world.
La familia del artista y Mara'akame Wixarika al rededor del fuego durante la ceremonia y rogativa por la continuidad del maiz.
19-28.02.2026
Residencia de diez días de la familia de Juan José Ramirez Katira. Los Artistas Wixarika (Huichol), Clemente Uweni Temae Ramirez y Josefina Tuwima Ramirez, together with Jaime Werikate Carrillo Lopez Y Lucila Yukaima Ramirez trabajaron en obra de chaquira en su residencia de 10 dias en el instituto. Se realizaron pláticas sobre conocimientos Wixarika en relación a la siembra del maiz y en relación al agua y los ciclos temporales rituales. La residencia de una semana de duración incluyó una ceremonia final en la que se hicieron rogativas y ofrendas por la continuidad del maiz.
Ten days Residency of the Juan José Ramírez Katira Family at Instituto Tropical
During their ten days residency at Instituto Tropical, Wixarika artists Clemente Uweni Temae Ramírez and Josefina Tuwima Ramírez, together with Jaime Werikate Carrillo López and Lucila Yukaima Ramírez, developed beadwork (chaquira) pieces while in residence.
The program included conversations and knowledge-sharing sessions focused on Wixarika understandings of maize cultivation, water, and ritual temporal cycles. The residency concluded with a ceremonial gathering in which prayers and offerings were made for the continuity of maize.
Residencia de diez días de la familia de Juan José Ramirez Katira. Los Artistas Wixarika (Huichol), Clemente Uweni Temae Ramirez y Josefina Tuwima Ramirez, together with Jaime Werikate Carrillo Lopez Y Lucila Yukaima Ramirez trabajaron en obra de chaquira en su residencia de 10 dias en el instituto. Se realizaron pláticas sobre conocimientos Wixarika en relación a la siembra del maiz y en relación al agua y los ciclos temporales rituales. La residencia de una semana de duración incluyó una ceremonia final en la que se hicieron rogativas y ofrendas por la continuidad del maiz.
Ten days Residency of the Juan José Ramírez Katira Family at Instituto Tropical
During their ten days residency at Instituto Tropical, Wixarika artists Clemente Uweni Temae Ramírez and Josefina Tuwima Ramírez, together with Jaime Werikate Carrillo López and Lucila Yukaima Ramírez, developed beadwork (chaquira) pieces while in residence.
The program included conversations and knowledge-sharing sessions focused on Wixarika understandings of maize cultivation, water, and ritual temporal cycles. The residency concluded with a ceremonial gathering in which prayers and offerings were made for the continuity of maize.
It is necessary to choose a visual aid that is appropriate for the topic and audience.
02-15.02.2026
Residencia del artista Federico Protto apoyada por el Bureu de la Jeunesse Wallonie-Bruxelles y ARTICHOK en la que trabajó en obras de pequeño formato sobre materiales naturales variados encontrados en el predio. tambié confeccionó un nuevo vestuario para su performance 'Aprender Ser Ese Ser' que presentó en ymuseum en la ciudad de México.
Residency of the artist Federico Protto
Residency supported by the Bureau de la Jeunesse Wallonie-Bruxelles and ARTICHOK, during which Federico Protto developed a series of small-format works using diverse natural materials found on site.
He also created a new costume for his performance Aprender Ser Ese Ser, which he presented at Ymuseum in Mexico City.
Residencia del artista Federico Protto apoyada por el Bureu de la Jeunesse Wallonie-Bruxelles y ARTICHOK en la que trabajó en obras de pequeño formato sobre materiales naturales variados encontrados en el predio. tambié confeccionó un nuevo vestuario para su performance 'Aprender Ser Ese Ser' que presentó en ymuseum en la ciudad de México.
Residency of the artist Federico Protto
Residency supported by the Bureau de la Jeunesse Wallonie-Bruxelles and ARTICHOK, during which Federico Protto developed a series of small-format works using diverse natural materials found on site.
He also created a new costume for his performance Aprender Ser Ese Ser, which he presented at Ymuseum in Mexico City.
En el taller de don Clemente aprendiendo tecnicas tradicionales de hacer barro
Residencia de los artistas Jozef Wouters y Lila John en la que realizaron talleres sobre conocimientos ancestrales de la zona. Jozef trabajó en el taller de Don Clemente Barreto aprendiendo el proceso tradicional de producción de barro y sus aspecto corporal. Lila investigó y aprendió sobre técnicas de teñido natural textil junto a la agrupación de mujeres tejedoras indígenas de Hueyapan SOAME.
Residency of the artists Jozef Wouters and Lila John
During their residency, the artist family Jozef Wouters and Lila John conducted workshops focused on ancestral knowledge from the region.
Jozef worked in the workshop of Don Clemente Barreto, where he learned the traditional process of clay production and explored its physical and embodied dimensions.
Lila researched and studied natural textile dyeing techniques alongside the Indigenous women weavers’ collective SOAME in Hueyapan.
This blog will be actualized on a monthly basis. Documenting the work at INSTITUTO TROPICAL in Mexico and Austria.
