Dates: 17. – 21. December 2025
Location: Kirkenes / Pasvik, Norway
Eligibility: artists based in Northern Norway, Northern Finland or Northern Sweden
Application deadline: October 24, 2025

Pikene på Broen invites two international artists and arts practitioners based in the northern regions of Norway, Sweden or Finland for a 5-day residency exploring the theme of darkness in the polar night through text workshops and a winter solstice event.

Background:
Metaphors of light and dark are often used in contemporary social and political landscapes. There are ‘dark times,’ ‘dark forces,’ and ‘dark sides.’ Darkness is constituted as something unknown, dangerous, and negative. Throughout ancient Greece, Medieval times, and the Enlightenment till today, darkness has been laden with these negative attributes. Along with it, the idea of light as unquestionably good has been imposed on space and knowledge production in the form of ‘shedding light’ or enlightening and illuminating something that is more meaningful.

The residency invites to explore:
What can living or dwelling in the polar night reveal when exploring these complexities?
 How can we reclaim the darkness in the darkest period of the year?

Programme:

I Darkness Negotiations
Date: 17.–19. December
Format: Collaborative, participatory, experimental, group up to 10 participants 
Location: Pasvik

II Darkness Experimental Writing Salon
Date: 19. December
Format: Public, focus on writing practice
Location: Terminal B Kunshall Kirkenes

III Vintervending – Dálvejorggáldat
Date: 20. –21. December 
Format: Celebratory, Public
Location: Kirkenes area

More about the residency:

In the first two days, participants are invited to stay in the remote area of Pasvik, to the entrance of the Upper Pasvik National Park and within an area certified as a Dark Sky Park, with minimal light pollution, to immerse themselves in the environmental darkness.

This part is meant to be more open to formats, collaborations, and experiments; it invites addressing questions of visibility/invisibility, presence/absence, and to co-produce not only knowledge but experiences of darkness. The accommodation will be in shared cabins, and the workshop programme will be led by social geographer Irina Shirobokova.

The second part continues the practice of exploring darkness through writing, which began in the Arctic in December 2021, in one of the darkest nights. Several women and non-binary people gathered together and wrote about darkness. This practice was repeated several more times in small groups during both the polar night and the polar day.

For the second part of the residency, we invite both participants and a wider public to continue co-creating meanings and practices of darkness. This part combines the traditions of écriture féminine and contact improvisation, focusing on the connection between the body and writing.

The third part is also open to the broader public and is intended to celebrate darkness. It is inspired by Vintervending  – Dálvejorggáldat, which originated centuries ago and was revived in a reimagined format in Tromsø in 2024, featuring a 12-hour celebration of darkness and a challenge to traditional Christian notions of light and dark. We invite you to celebrate together and share something that is unique and essential to the Circumpolar North.

We strive to ensure that the residency is accessible to all participants, regardless of functional abilities, and will accommodate individual needs through open and direct dialogue.

Eligibility:
Artists and art practitioners based in Northern Norway (Nordland, Troms, Finnmark), Northern Finland (Lappland, North Ostrobothnia, Kainuu) or Northern Sweden (Norbotten, Västerbotten), working in different media with a focus and interest in writing/text-based practice.

Applications:
– Fill in and submit this brief form

– Send a I) motivation letter (Up to 1 page), II) proposal for an experimental collaborative event (This is for the 1st part of the residency that we aim to make more participatory, including workshop, practice, etc. that explores the topic of darkness. Up to 1 page), and III) CV/Portfolio to post@pikene.no, marked “Darkness Residency Application” in the title field.

Deadline for submission: 24th October

Announcement of results: 30th October.

The residency covers:
Travel, accommodation, and food expenses

Dates:
17. – 21. December + digital meeting for all participants 4. December 18.00 – 19.30 (CET)

Language: English. However, Norwegian, Sami or other languages would always be an open option, and we will figure out a way to collaborate according to the situation.

Partners:
The writing residency is a collaboration between Pikene på Broen and Irina Shirobokova, a feminist geographer, PhD Candidate at the City University of New York, and CUNY Social Practice fellow, who combines in her work psychoanalytical theory, socially engaged art, and embodied writing. The public Vintervending  – Dálvejorggáldat event is a collaboration with partners and artists from Tromsø and local partners.

Supporters:
The residency programme is supported by Barentskult and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Questions about the residency can be directed to: 
Astrid Fadnes: astrid@pikene.no
Irina Ivanova: irina@pikene.no