INTERSECTA

INTERSECTA: Body, Memory & Media Residency

2025 Edition

New and innovative. INTERSECTA is a pilot residency at Espronceda bridging performing arts, immersive media (AR/XR), and cultural research to explore how migration, identity, and digital transformation are reshaping artistic practice in Europe.

2025 edition: 3 residents will be selected — 1 cultural researcher working on diaspora and identity, and 2 AR/XR artists — to co‑create prototypes and methodologies that connect body, memory, and media with local communities and international collaborators.

Vision and approach

INTERSECTA focuses on process over product. It operates as a prototyping lab where ideas are tested, findings shared, and real synergies built between a cultural researcher and two XR artists. The goal is to generate replicable models that weave embodied practices, digital tools, and cultural reflection with social impact.

Fields: Performing arts, interdisciplinary arts, AR/XR, cultural research.
City: Barcelona (Catalonia). Venue: Espronceda Institute of Art & Culture.
Outputs: prototypes, immersive demos, living research archive, work‑in‑progress presentations.

Why it is new and innovative

Embodied + Digital: integrates body knowledge and immersive technologies in a single workflow.
Directed synergies: cultural researcher + XR artists co‑design reusable formats for institutions.
Sustainability & inclusion: low footprint, shared resources, dialogue with migrant communities.
Transferability: open methodologies and a living archive ready for education and museums.

What we offer (per resident, 3 months)

Support per resident: €8,000 (reference budget for 3 months) covering accommodation, living expenses, local transport, XR production & materials, documentation, public WIP/showcase, and proportionate program/staff support.
Access to XR spaces and tools: prototyping, device testing, WIP sessions, peer mentoring.
Connections: meetings with local agents and international collaborators (hybrid).
Visibility: showcases, living archive, and digital‑first communication.

Eligibility & format: the residency is fully on‑site (no hybrid/virtual residencies), in line with PICE rules.

Intensive program · 3 months (12 weeks)

Weeks 1–2 – Arrival & alignment. Practices mapping, embodied mapping lab, framework on migration–identity–memory–XR.
Weeks 3–4 – Design thinking & diagnosis. Co‑define audiences/challenges; opportunity matrix (performance · XR · community); benchmark of replicable cultural formats.
Weeks 5–6 – Concept & field listening. Guided ideation, first body–device sketches; micro‑ethnography with migrant and local communities; situated sensory tests; concept refinement.
Weeks 7–8 – Prototyping V1. Integrate movement + XR into short modules; documentation pipeline; internal WIP with guest mentors.
Weeks 9–10 – Tech clinics & iteration. Tracking/capture/interaction/spatial sound; accessibility & mediation; iteration toward V2; controlled open lab.
Weeks 11–12 – V2, showcase & next steps. Prototype V2, technical rehearsal; public WIP showcase with structured feedback; roadmap (alliances, festivals, education/museums).

Sustainability and efficiency

Hybrid collaborations (reduced travel footprint), use of existing infrastructure and recycled materials, digital‑first communication, shared resources and high social return activities.

Inclusion and equity

Multilingual access (EN/ES; Tagalog when relevant), open programming for migrant communities, gender balance and transparent resource distribution, safe and non‑discriminatory environments.

Who can apply

1 cultural research profile focusing on diaspora/identity.
2 AR/XR creation profiles interested in performance and prototyping.
Strong interest in participatory work, documentation, and transferability.

How to apply (2025)

Apply via AC/E – PICE Residencias 2025 portal: register an account and submit three applications (one per resident) under Residencias nacionales. Application window: May 1 – Sept 7, 2025. Eligible start dates: Oct 15, 2025 – Feb 14, 2026. Provisional/definitive listings published Oct 3–14, 2025.

Budget per resident · reference (3 months, €8,000)

Impact and continuity

INTERSECTA outputs are designed for reuse in museums, educational contexts, and partner institutions.
The living research archive, prototypes, and methodologies allow scaling and replication in Catalonia and beyond.