MILL'S BEAUTY REALITY SALON (open call)
— Needcompany’s artist-in-residence grant

“One day, in Brussels, I thought I saw ‘REALITY SALON’ emblazoned on the façade of a beauty salon. It was as though it had been decided that the era of beauty was over; and that from now on, as a statement, reality must become the subject of artistic research. The salon sign became an image that could trick perception. When that one word is confused with the other, ‘BEAUTY’ and ‘REALITY’ are neither opposites nor the same. It is about the impossibility of defining them clearly, and of telling them apart.” – Maarten Seghers

OPEN CALL FOR NOISELESS TIME

In theory, there is no difference between Michelangelo, Louise Bourgeois, Martha Graham and Kara Walker: all take that empty moment – the blank canvas – as their starting point, and decide themselves when the work is ready to share with the wider world. The time that Michelangelo spent before he started chiselling the Pietà out of the marble: that is silent time. With MILL'S BEAUTY REALITY SALON, we want to mark that moment of silent time, defying the logic that systematically equates art with merchandise.

The MILL’S BEAUTY REALITY SALON (MBRS) fellowship is an annual open call specifically designed to support artists in that timeless thinking, in the generation of artistic visions, and in creation free from the pressure of results. Needcompany seeks to support the artistic process by providing an environment and the necessary resources. The winner is chosen by Needcompany’s core artistic team, in consultation with an external jury member.

WHAT IS MILL'S BEAUTY REALITY SALON?

MILL'S BEAUTY REALITY SALON was conceived in 2020 in response to a desire to continue the multidisciplinary artistic voyage of discovery - which Needcompany began almost 40 years ago - in dialogue with a new generation of artists. As a subsidised, independent arts organisation in Flanders, Needcompany shares its resources, and thus raises awareness of the sensitive and precarious nature of those who keep the arts alive.

MILL'S BEAUTY REALITY SALON is inextricably linked to MILL - Needcompany’s artistic house in the heart of Sint-Jans-Molenbeek. Since March 2017, this has been a place where thought, experimentation, creation, production, connection and exchange take centre stage.

MILL'S BEAUTY REALITY SALON is explicitly aimed at encouraging artists in timeless thinking and is not a production-oriented programme. The sum of a maximum of €10,000* and a 14-day residency at MILL will be awarded to the person/persons selected. This prize is intended to support artists by affording them the opportunity to think, develop and create in a timeless environment, free from the pressure of results. In addition to financial support, Needcompany facilitates the artists in a variety of ways. These include a residency in the studio, access to the MILL workspace, and a dramaturgical dialogue with Needcompany’s artists and team.