2026/27
General information
The Landis & Gyr Foundation awards artist residencies in Budapest, Bucharest, London and Sofia to Swiss artists and cultural professionals working in one of the following disciplines:
Literature/translation
Composition
Cultural criticism/curatorial work
Theatre (directing, dramaturgy)
Dance
Visual arts
The Zug residencies are awarded exclusively to writers and literary translators.
Because the Foundation itself has no rehearsal space for dancers, residencies in the discipline of dance are best suited to research. In Budapest and Sofia, external rehearsal space can be organised through the Foundation.
With exception of the residencies in Budapest and Sofia, the Landis & Gyr Foundation residency programme is unable to accommodate children/families, due to the structural limitations of the lodgings.
The locations are not all subject to the same requirements and conditions. Please read the precise descriptions for each individual location.
Who can apply
Applications are accepted from Swiss artists and cultural professionals, as well as from non-Swiss artists and cultural professionals who are officially resident in Switzerland at the time of application. The prerequisite for all applicants is outstanding work in one of the disciplines named above. Residencies are not designed to support artists at the start of their careers. There is no age restriction.
Past recipients of a Landis & Gyr grant (artist residency, travel grant or artist grant) must wait at least three years before submitting a new application. The date of reference is the date of their final report. Those who have applied for a fellowship three times without success must wait three years before applying again. The date of reference is the date of their most recent submission.
Evaluation criteria
- Level of artistic proficiency and record of artistic achievement
- Relevance and motivation: planned artistic activities, personal and artistic relationship to the residency location, as well as the added value the residency will have for future creative work
- Quality and development potential of the project
Applications for the following will not be considered
- Stays in other artist residencies, such as the Istituto Svizzero in Rome
- Funding for artist residencies not run by the Landis & Gyr Foundation
Application documents
Applications must be submitted online via the Landis & Gyr Foundation’s application platform. Any physical documents sent in will be neither considered nor returned. Applications may be written in German, French, Italian or English. Each application must contain the following three documents (in PDF format, max. 3 MB). Incomplete applications will not be considered.
- Letter of motivation/reason for application
- Documentation/portfolio (covering the last three to five years) of artistic career and activities, including a curriculum vitae (please also provide a list of any grants and awards received to date, as well as previous residencies. All links in the document must be formatted as hyperlinks. Applicants in the discipline of literature/translation should not submit sample texts)
- Project/planned activities during the residency
Please familiarize yourself with the online platform in advance, and call us if you have any technical queries. The applicant is responsible for any delay arising from technical issues.
Application modalities and deadlines
Interested persons may apply via the online platform for an artist residency, in one location only. The desired time period (first and second preference) should also be stated.
The application period for 2026/27 artist residencies opens on 1 December 2024. The application deadline is Friday, 31 January 2025.
The jury — made up of the Landis & Gyr Foundation board and independent experts in the individual disciplines — convenes in March 2025. The final decision will be communicated to successful applicants by the end of May 2025 at the latest. Applicants who are not shortlisted will be informed in writing by the beginning of April 2025. The information will be sent to the address provided in the application.
Our correspondence language is German. We regret that we are unable to give feedback on rejected applications.
Final report
After taking up a residency, artists must submit a final report (in PDF format, max. 3 MB) to the Foundation board no later than two months after the conclusion of their stay.
Social insurance contributions
The Landis & Gyr Foundation takes an active role in ensuring the social security of cultural professionals. Mandatory social insurance contributions are deducted for all artist residencies, travel grants and artist grants of CHF 10,000 or more. The grant money is disbursed only after the grant recipient has provided the Foundation. [Further information]
The Landis & Gyr Foundation maintains five small two-room houses, a spacious studio for visual artists, and a soundproof workspace for composers at its Smithy Street premises in Whitechapel/Stepney (East London). It awards residencies of three or six months to individuals or artistic duos. Please note that space in these small houses is limited.
The following dates are available in 2026/2027
- August to January 2026 (6 months)
- August to October 2026 (3 months)
- November 2026 to January 2027 (3 months)
- February to July 2027 (6 months)
- February to April 2027 (3 months)
- Mai to July 2027 (3 months)
A London artist residency includes use of one of the Foundation’s houses free of charge. In addition, grant recipients receive a monthly stipend of CHF 3,300 to cover living expenses. Grant recipients are responsible for organizing and paying for their own travel to London.
Contact for queries about the London residency
Stephanie Heller
stephanie.heller@lg-stiftung.ch
041 725 23 50 (Monday, Tuesday and Thursday)
For 2026, the Landis & Gyr Foundation is awarding artist residencies of between one and four months in Budapest to individuals or artistic duos. The Foundation maintains a two-storey apartment in the Raoul Wallenberg guesthouse, in Budapest’s historic castle district in the city centre.
Applicants must have good English-language skills and a strong interest in the region. External rehearsal space and artist studios can be organized via the Foundation at Art Quarter Budapest. Applicants who require external studio space should specify this in their grant application. The Foundation will endeavour to accommodate their wishes.
The Budapest artist residency includes the use of the apartment in the Raoul Wallenberg guesthouse free of charge. In addition, grant recipients receive a monthly stipend of CHF 3,300 to cover living expenses. Grant recipients are responsible for organizing and paying for their own travel to Budapest.
The Budapest lodgings are suitable for grant recipients to stay with children, or as a small family. In order to promote a healthy work-family balance, the Foundation offers parents the opportunity to apply for financial aid of up to CHF 1,000 per month to help cover the cost of childcare and/or travel expenses for children. If a family stipend is desired, this must be stated in the application documents and family expenses specified in a breakdown of costs. In such cases, applicants are advised to contact the Foundation before submitting their application. Grant recipients are responsible for organizing childcare themselves: neither the Landis & Gyr Foundation nor the local residency coordinators assume any responsibility in this regard.
Contact for queries about the Budapest residency
Anna Wälli
anna.waelli@lg-stiftung.ch
041 725 23 50 (Monday to Thursday)
For 2026, the Landis & Gyr Foundation is awarding artist residencies of between one and four months in Bucharest to individuals or artistic duos. Unlike the independently run studios in London, Budapest and Zug, the studio accommodation in Bucharest is affiliated with the New Europe College Bucharest (NEC Bucharest). The Foundation maintains an apartment at the NEC’s premises on Strada Plantelor in the city centre. The building houses the New Europe College (NEC), and NEC international fellows also reside there.
Applicants must have good English-language skills and a strong interest in the region. If desired, grant recipients have the opportunity to take part in NEC activities, and to engage in weekly seminars with international fellows from the arts and social sciences. Further information about the NEC and its activities.
The Bucharest artist residency includes use of the Foundation’s apartment free of charge. In addition, grant recipients receive a monthly stipend of CHF 3,300 to cover living expenses. Grant recipients are responsible for organizing and paying for their own travel to Bucharest.
Contact for queries about the Bucharest residency
Anna Wälli
anna.waelli@lg-stiftung.ch
041 725 23 50 (Monday to Thursday)
For 2026, the Landis & Gyr Foundation is awarding artist residencies of between one and four months in Sofia to individuals or artistic duos. Unlike the independently run studios in London, Budapest and Zug, the studio accommodation in Sofia is affiliated with the Institute for Advanced Study (Center for Advanced Study CAS Sofia).
Applicants must have good English-language skills and a strong interest in the region. If desired, grant recipients have the opportunity to take part in CAS activities and to engage in discussion at weekly seminars with international CAS fellows from the arts and social sciences. Further information about CAS and its activities.
The Foundation is able to contact and organize external rehearsal spaces or artist studios in Sofia. Applicants who require external studio space should specify this in their grant application. The Foundation will endeavour to accommodate their wishes.
The Sofia artist residency includes the use of an apartment free of charge. In addition, grant recipients receive a monthly stipend of CHF 3,300 to cover living expenses. Grant recipients are responsible for organizing and paying for their own travel to Sofia.
The lodgings in Sofia are suitable for grant recipients to stay with children or family. In order to promote a healthy work-family balance, the Foundation offers parents the opportunity to apply for financial aid of up to CHF 1,000 per month to help cover the cost of childcare and/or travel expenses for children. If a family stipend is desired, this must be stated in the application documents and family expenses specified in a breakdown of costs. In such cases, applicants are advised to contact the Foundation before submitting their application. Grant recipients are responsible for organizing childcare themselves: neither the Landis & Gyr Foundation nor the local residency coordinators assume any responsibility in this regard.
Contact for queries about the Sofia residency
Anna Wälli
anna.waelli@lg-stiftung.ch
041 725 23 50 (Monday to Thursday)
The Landis & Gyr Foundation maintains a residence with three apartments and one smaller studio apartment in the annex of the former Maria Opferung convent in Zug. The three larger apartments are reserved for writers and translators from East-Central and Southeast Europe who have been personally invited by the Foundation.
Artist residencies in Zug of one, two or three months can be applied for annually. These are awarded exclusively to Swiss writers and literary translators, who are accommodated in the studio apartment.
Good German- or English-language skills are required, and it is desirable that applicants should be interested in engaging with the residents from East-Central and Southeast Europe. The accommodation in Zug offers a quiet space to live and work.
The Zug artist residency includes use of the Foundation’s lodgings free of charge. In addition, grant recipients receive a monthly stipend of CHF 3,300 to cover living expenses. Grant recipients are responsible for organizing and paying for their own travel to Zug.
Contact for queries about the Zug residency
Anna Wälli
anna.waelli@lg-stiftung.ch
041 725 23 50 (Monday to Thursday)
East-Central and Southeast Europe 2026
General information
In contrast to the fixed artist residencies in Switzerland and abroad, the travel grants are awarded to Swiss cultural professionals whose main focus is cultural exchange with the countries and regions of East-Central and Southeast Europe. Individuals and artistic duos from the following disciplines are invited to apply:
Literature/translation
Composition
Cultural criticism/curatorial work
Theatre (directing, dramaturgy, playwriting)
Dance
Visual arts
Travel grants provide the opportunity to establish new networks, conduct research for current or future projects, implement specific projects and develop or refine ideas for new projects. Grant recipients have the freedom to choose when they will travel, within a maximum period of one year, and can schedule this according to their professional and family responsibilities. The travel grants are designed to foster creative processes and serve as an inspiration for exploring the regions in question.
The Landis & Gyr Foundation does not fund travel in countries of East-Central and Southeast Europe that are on the list of countries the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) explicitly advises against visiting. Please consult the FDFA’s general travel advice before applying.
Travel and research must be conducted with due care and consideration of ethical aspects and cultural differences. The exact areas and times of travel can be freely organized within the one-year period.
Travel grants are also suitable for stays accompanied by children. In order to promote a healthy work-family balance, the Foundation offers parents the opportunity to apply for financial aid of up to CHF 1,000 per month to help cover the cost of childcare and/or travel expenses for children. If a family stipend is desired, this must be stated in the application documents and family expenses specified in the budget. In such cases, applicants are advised to contact the Foundation before submitting their application. Grant recipients are responsible for organizing childcare themselves: the Landis & Gyr Foundation does not assume any responsibility in this regard.
Who can apply
Applications are accepted from Swiss cultural professionals, as well as from non-Swiss cultural professionals who are officially resident in Switzerland at the time of application. Applicants must have a proven professional track record in the arts, curatorial work or art/cultural promotion, and they must present a project that specifically relates to the geographical region of East-Central and Southeast Europe.
The Foundation welcomes projects with a transdisciplinary approach. Travel grants are not designed to support students or cultural professionals at the start of their careers. There is no age restriction.
Past recipients of a Landis & Gyr grant (artist residency, travel grant or artist grant) must wait at least three years before submitting a new application. The date of reference is the date of their final report. Those who have applied for a fellowship three times without success must wait three years before applying again. The date of reference is the date of their most recent submission.
Evaluation criteria
Level of artistic proficiency and artistic record of achievement
Relevance and motivation: personal and artistic connection to the region as well as the added value of the travel grant for future creative work
- Quality and development potential of the project
Application documents
Applications must be submitted online via the Landis & Gyr Foundation’s application platform. Any physical documents sent in will be neither considered nor returned. Applications may be written in German, French, Italian or English. Each application must contain the following three documents (in PDF format, max. 3 MB). Incomplete applications will not be considered.
- Motivation letter/reason for application
- Documentation/portfolio (covering the last three to five years) of artistic career and activities, including a curriculum vitae. Please also provide a list of any grants and awards received to date, as well as previous residencies. All links in the document must be formatted as hyperlinks. Applicants in the discipline of literature/translation should not submit sample texts
- Project/description of planned activities and budget (expenses relating to the project itself, travel expenses and living expenses on location)
Please familiarize yourself with the online platform in advance, and call us if you have any technical queries. The applicant is responsible for any delay arising from technical issues.
Application modalities and deadlines
Depending on the individual project and the planned activities, grant recipients receive the stipend either as a single payment or in several instalments over the course of the grant year. Each year, the Foundation generally awards several travel grants of CHF 5,000 to CHF 10,000 (for shorter trips and stays), up to CHF 30,000 (for longer projects).
The application period for the 2026 travel grants begins on 1 December 2024. The application deadline is Friday, 31 January 2025.
The jury — made up of the Landis & Gyr Foundation Board and independent experts in the individual disciplines — convenes in March 2025. The final decision will be communicated to successful applicants by the end of May 2025 at the latest. Applicants who are not shortlisted will be informed in writing by the beginning of April 2025. The information will be sent to the address provided in the application.
Our correspondence language is German. We regret that we are unable to give feedback on rejected applications.
Final report
Travel grant recipients must submit a final report (in PDF format, max. 3 MB) to the Foundation board no later than two months after the conclusion of their travels.
Social insurance contributions
The Landis & Gyr Foundation takes an active role in ensuring the social security of cultural professionals. Mandatory social insurance contributions are deducted for all artist residencies, travel grants and artist grants of CHF 10,000 or more. The grant money is disbursed only after the grant recipient has provided the Foundation with the necessary bank account details. [Further information]
Contact
Applicants are advised to contact the office of the Landis & Gyr Foundation before submitting an application.
Anna Wälli
anna.waelli@lg-stiftung.ch
041 725 23 50 (Monday to Thursday).
2025
General information
Every year, the Landis & Gyr Foundation awards ten artist grants of CHF 30,000 to Swiss artists and cultural professionals in the following disciplines:
Literature
Composition
Dance
Theatre
Dance
Visual arts
Artist grants are awarded exclusively to individuals or established artistic duos with an outstanding track record who are either currently working on a project or have concrete plans for a new one. Recipients of an artist grant are free to choose where and when, within the grant year, they will work on their project.
Who can apply
Applications are accepted from Swiss artists and cultural professionals, as well as from non-Swiss artists and cultural professionals who are officially resident in Switzerland at the time of application. The prerequisite for all applicants is outstanding work in one of the disciplines named above. Artist grants are not designed to support students or cultural professionals at the start of their careers. There is no age restriction.
Past recipients of a Landis & Gyr grant (artist residency, travel grant or artist grant) must wait at least three years before submitting a new application. The date of reference is the date of their final report. Those who have applied for a fellowship three times without success must wait three years before applying again. The date of reference is the date of their most recent submission.
Evaluation criteria
- Level of artistic proficiency: artistic record of achievement and development potential
- Relevance and motivation: planned artistic activity in 2025, as well as the added value of the artist grant for future creative work
Applications for the following will not be considered
- Requests for education, training, further education or production grants
- Grant requests for completing a doctoral thesis
Application documents
Applications must be submitted online via the Landis & Gyr Foundation’s application platform. Any physical documents sent in will be neither considered nor returned. Applications may be written in German, French, Italian or English. Each application must contain the following three documents (in PDF format, max. 3 MB). Incomplete applications will not be considered.
- Motivation letter/reason for application
- Documentation/portfolio (covering the last three to five years) of artistic career and activities, including a curriculum vitae. Please also provide a list of any grants and awards received to date, as well as any previous residencies. All links in the document must be formatted as hyperlinks. Applicants in the discipline of literature/translation should not submit sample texts
- Project/description of planned activities during the grant year
Please familiarize yourself with the online platform in advance, and call us if you have any technical queries. The applicant is responsible for any delay arising from technical issues.
Application modalities and deadlines
The application period for the 2026 artist grants begins on 1 December 2024. The application deadline is Friday, 31 January 2025.
The jury — made up of the Landis & Gyr Foundation Board and independent experts in the individual disciplines — convenes in March 2025. The final decision will be communicated to successful applicants by the end of May 2025 at the latest. Applicants who are not shortlisted will be informed in writing by the beginning of April 2025. The information will be sent to the address provided in the application.
Our correspondence language is German. We regret that we are unable to give feedback on rejected applications.
Final report
Artist grant recipients must submit a final report (in PDF format, max. 3 MB) to the Foundation board no later than two months after the conclusion of their grant year.
Social insurance contributions
The Landis & Gyr Foundation takes an active role in ensuring the social security of cultural professionals. Mandatory social insurance contributions are deducted for all artist residencies, travel grants and artist grants of CHF 10,000 or more. The grant money is disbursed only after the grant recipient has provided the Foundation with the necessary bank account details. [Further information]
These are individuals at least half of whose income is derived from artistic activities, who spend at least half of normal working hours on their artistic activities, or who are recognized within their artistic milieu as professionals (e.g. by cultural event organizers, cultural professionals in their respective discipline, critics/magazines, juries, educational establishments). People enrolled on a first degree course at art school do not qualify as cultural professionals.
Applicants qualify as Swiss if they have Swiss citizenship or are officially resident in Switzerland at the time of applying, and maintain a regular artistic presence at relevant events in Switzerland.
No. Applicants are asked to specify in their application their reasons for requesting a residency in a particular location.
In this case, applicants may upload the same document three times. Please note, however, that the online platform requires a total of three documents to be uploaded under the heading ’Attachments’.
Applicants are free to structure their application as they wish. However, the Foundation recommends that applications should not be too long, in order to keep the jury’s workload within a reasonable limit. Two A4 pages are sufficient for the project description, for example.
No. The motivation letter should explain why you are making the application. The project description should contain a more detailed description of the project itself.
No, the last three to five years are sufficient.
The artist grants enable established cultural professionals to concentrate on a specific project within the period of the grant year. This type of grant is not intended as a contribution towards the production of a particular work; rather, it is in recognition of an individual’s previous and prospective artistic work. The jury would welcome the grant money being used for experimental and innovative exploration within the individual’s artistic practice.
No, a budget must only be submitted with applications for a travel grant.
The grants are for travel to the geographical region of East-Central and Southeast Europe, i.e. Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine. Projects involving travel to Turkey and Greece are also eligible, as these are considered important adjacent cultural regions.