TransArtists — a free artist residency directory worldwide

Every residency belongs to a whole system — programmes, mentors, open databases.
But it’s not always easy to see that system as a whole.
TransArtists has been bringing it together in one place since 1997.
As of this check, 16 September 2026, the database holds more than 1,400 residencies worldwide.
You can also get a free personal consultation from the platform’s staff.

The catalogue is open to everyone, no registration needed
You can search by region, country and discipline — from visual art to performance and literature.
There’s also a separate view for open calls only, without browsing the whole database.
Access to the catalogue and the open-calls section is free and requires no registration.
Applications go straight to the residency’s own website.
The final decision belongs to the organiser — the platform only helps you find the option.

Who actually pays for access
Neither the artist nor the residency pays a separate fee here.
At least, nothing of the kind is published on the site.
The catalogue runs on funding from the Dutch government and the European Union, through DutchCulture, an institute for international cultural cooperation.
Residencies add themselves to the database through a form on the site.
Submissions are then reviewed by hand, within one to two weeks.

Geography — not just Europe
Residencies in the database can be searched by country or by a wider region.
Beyond Europe, the site separately lists Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, and Asia.
There’s also the Caribbean, the Americas and Oceania.
That’s useful when what matters right now is the region rather than one specific country.
There’s a map too — residencies can be browsed geographically.

Where the platform came from
TransArtists launched in Amsterdam in 1997, alongside the database itself.
In 2013, the platform became part of DutchCulture.
It merged then with the former SICA and MEDIA Desk Netherlands.
Since then it hasn’t been a separate organisation, but a programme inside DutchCulture.
The platform’s own mission statement reads almost poetically — to make “the enormous worldwide residential art labyrinth” accessible to artists.

More than a catalogue
Staff at the platform give free 30-minute personal consultations.
That helps people get their bearings among the offers and work out where and how to apply.
There’s also a checklist for artists — covering motivation, searching, the application itself, and a funding check.
Questions specifically about moving to or from the Netherlands are a separate matter.
TransArtists redirects those to DutchCulture’s own Mobility Info Point.

It even helps you start a residency of your own
There’s a reverse checklist too, for anyone who wants to launch a residency themselves.
It comes in two parts.
First, about motivation and the role of the future institution, then about organising and financing it in practice.
There’s also a separate funding directory sorted by region.
It’s built specifically around grants that an individual artist, not an organisation, can apply for.

Who it’s especially good for
Good for you if: you need a genuinely wide reach — thousands of options worldwide in one place.
It’s especially useful if you tend to get lost among the offers.
A free consultation is often the easier way to work things out.
Might not suit you if: you need a ready-made shortlist for one specific discipline or country.
You’ll have to filter it yourself here.
It also won’t suit anyone looking for direct financial support from the platform itself.
TransArtists doesn’t hand out grants itself — it only gathers information about other people’s programmes.