Recommendations for submitting an application to the “Interdisciplinary Explorations” and “Arts and sciences: Indisciplined Knowledge” programs
1. The research project must have a content relevant to the intention of spending a research stay in an institute for advanced study based in Marseille.
2. The research project must have a content relevant to the thematic lines of the “Interdisciplinary Explorations” and “Arts and sciences: Indisciplined Knowledge” programs.
Application and Residency Conditions 2025-26
The Research & Creation Chair: Cancerology and Immunology aims to foster innovative and interdisciplinary artistic and scientific research on the issues outlined below, highlighting the synergies between scientific research in the field of cancer and immunology and research-creation. This initiative seeks to provide significant national and international visibility to this research at the crossroads of disciplines and knowledge systems, thus contributing to the outreach of cancer and immunology research through art-science collaborations and research-creation in this domain.
Integration into the local ecosystem and interactions with the chair holder’s contacts, as well as a broader audience if relevant to the selected project, can be achieved through various formats such as:
- Monthly meetings with the entire ICI institute board (mandatory)
- Cycles of conferences or participation in workshops intersecting the “Arts & Sciences: Indisciplined Knowledge” and “Interdisciplinary Explorations” programs
- Transversal working groups across various scientific programs of Iméra
- Activities and events specifically targeted at a broad audience, including students (master’s and doctoral)
This chair will also promote long-term collaborations with researchers from Aix-Marseille University (AMU).
Rejecting an instrumental approach to art, this chair is based on the premise that art produces knowledge. Focusing on creation, transmission, and impact, the chair’s residents are expected to develop their research around 1 or more of these 3 fundamental axes:
- Reflection on the therapeutic use of artistic practices by clinicians in managing cancer and its therapies (primarily immunotherapy). Since patient access is not guaranteed, this chair cannot host art therapy projects as such
- Reflection on social representations of cancer and its therapy for producing illustrated books, films, etc.
- Reflection on the relationships between artistic practices and clinical and/or scientific practices from a more epistemological perspective
Regarding researchers working on art as a subject of study and with art as creators or academic researchers engaged in alternative writing practices, they can come from all humanities and social sciences, including art theory, art history, sociology, anthropology, philosophy, geography, etc. Additionally, this chair is also open to exact and life sciences, provided the research project has a close link with art and/or artists.
Regarding artists, the chair can accommodate multiple phases of their project, provided these phases require sustained dialogue with researchers from academic disciplines during the conception of a work, thought, or writing (whether theoretical, poetic, or otherwise), early in the process or later in the development phase but before production.
Iméra does not offer production facilities but provides a shared, unequipped studio, possibly shared with other artists (on average, two artists share this space), allowing for a variety of knowledge configurations that can also be spatialized and materialized in different formats. This can include semi-public or private exhibitions to share research moments and preliminary outcomes. The development phase is understood as a phase of constructive back-and-forth between “formal” experiments (written, visual, sound, montage, etc.) and theoretical research, informed by artistic practice, the experience of this practice, and the sensory, as practice-based research
Application deadline: Monday, October 21, 2024, at 1:00 PM (French Time)
Residency duration: 10 months
Residency period: from September 1, 2025, to July 3, 2026
Eligible candidates, whether junior or senior, must meet the following conditions:
- For scientists:
- Not have resided in France for more than 12 months in the 3 years preceding the call for applications.Hold a doctorate or Ph.D.
- Have an employment contract (permanent or not) with a foreign university or research institution during the residency.
- For artists:
- Not have resided in France for more than 12 months in the 3years preceding the call for applications.
- No employment contract or degree requirements.
Remuneration for Scientists:
- Juniors: monthly allowance of 2000 euros.
- Seniors: monthly allowance of 2500 euros.Juniors are defined as scientists with between 2 and 9 years of full-time post-doctoral research experience at the application deadline.
Seniors are defined as high-level scientists with at least 10 years of full-time post-doctoral research experience at the application deadline, including university professors.
Remuneration for Artists:
Artists receive a salary or allowance, depending on their status, of 2000 euros per month.
Accomodation
Residents also benefit from travel expense coverage and free accommodation at the Iméra site.
Evaluation criteria, non-exhaustively, include:
- The candidate’s background.
- The artistic research project: based on its originality and rigor, risk-taking and experimental potential, the emphasis on collaboration, and the maximum use of opportunities within the Iméra intellectual community (residents and scientific team) and with the ICI institute’s partner laboratories (CRCM, CIML, IBDM, INP, TAGC, C2VN, and LAI).
- The interdisciplinary approach: based on proven practice and a project where it is feasible
- The alignment of the project with the research lines of the “Arts & Sciences: Indisciplined Knowledge” and “Interdisciplinary Explorations” programs.
- A willingness to engage with a broad audience, especially students (master’s and doctoral)
The online application package must include the following:
- A completed application form (mandatory fields)
- A curriculum vitae including a list of publications and/or exhibitions, artistic achievements
- A presentation of the research project, clearly structured and feasible, to be conducted during the residency (maximum 5 pages) followed by a selective bibliography (mandatory for scientists) or a list of artistic and scientific references (mandatory for artists).
- Optional: a letter of support from a researcher or teacher-researcher from the Aix-Marseille site and/or a letter of recommendation from a recognized university researcher or artist in their field, related to the project’s domain.
The Aix-Marseille University Institute, the Institute for Cancer and Immunology (ICI), brings together research teams, hospitals, and industries in Marseille working in cancer and immunology research. The institute aims to strengthen bridges between research and teaching teams from the faculties of sciences, medical and paramedical sciences, and pharmacy to establish an integrated international program for training, research, and valorization of research results.
