Toronto Nuit Blanche 2026 EU-OCAD Open Call for Projection Artists

Introduction

We are pleased to invite artists residing in Canada and the European Union to develop a site-specific, original projection artwork for the Canada Malting Silos, located on Toronto's waterfront, to be presented at Nuit Blanche Toronto on 3 October 2026.

Deadline for applications: 11 May 2026

Info session on the call for submissions: 1 May 2026

Register here to register to the May 1, 2026 info-session and gain access to the Nuit Blanche Toronto 2026 projection models and site photos. The information session will provide an overview of the opportunity and address questions about the application process and submission requirements. Participants will receive an email containing the connection details in advance of the session.

About the Canada Malting Silos

The Canada Malting Silos are part of a heritage industrial building that has been recently restored and repurposed for arts, culture, and community programming. Building on previous activations, the site continues to evolve as a place for community gathering, artistic and cultural expression, and dialogue on climate action and collective futures.

Nuit Blanche is Toronto's annual all-night celebration of contemporary art, transforming public spaces into artistic landscapes. The festival, featuring local, national, and international artists, draws over 1 million visitors from across the GTA each year.

Theme: What We Carry Forward

Memory, responsibility, and the futures we sustain

Framed by Nuit Blanche's 2026 theme, Tomorrow's Memories, this project positions the Canada Malting Silos, measuring approximately 350 ft by 200 ft, as a vessel of memory and projection, a site where past, present, and future converge.

What do we carry forward, and what do we choose to leave behind?

Artists are invited to reflect on how we remember the past through stories, landscapes, ecosystems, and collective experience, and how these acts of remembering shape the world we inhabit today. This call embraces a sense of togetherness and shared journey, recognizing that the futures we imagine and build are not individual, but collective.

Proposals may explore themes of care, connection, resilience, and shared responsibility within interconnected social and ecological systems. Artists are encouraged to consider how we move forward together across communities, geographies, and generations toward more just and sustainable futures.

This call invites poetic, interpretive, and visually ambitious works that move beyond critique. Projects may consider repair, regeneration, and the possibilities of collective renewal. In alignment with shared EU and Canada priorities, artists may also reflect on environmental stewardship, climate responsibility, and the ecosystems that sustain life and community.

Through projection at monumental scale, the silos become a canvas for reflection and imagination, connecting how we remember, what we carry forward, and the futures we are collectively shaping.

Selection Details
Final selections will include:

• 2 Artist Presentations (each artist's presentation is 4-5 minutes in length each)
  

  EU Delegation to Canada

  
  
  

Eligibility

We are seeking artist proposals that meet the following criteria:

• Artists currently residing in Canada or the European Union
• Canadian Applicants: Must hold a valid Canadian passport, Canadian visa or residence permit
• European Applicants: must hold a valid EU passport, a valid EU visa or residence permit, and must have either a valid visa to enter Canada or the right to apply for Electronic Travel Authorization
• Artists with technical knowledge of projection mapping software (e.g. Resolume, TouchDesigner)
• Proposals that respond to the theme What We Carry Forward
• Artist Selection: Availability to travel to Toronto for Nuit Blanche (3 October 2026)

Artwork Specifications

• Two artist presentations (4-5 minutes each), designed to loop over the course of the night
• Original digital, animation, multimedia, experimental film, mixed-media, and/or interactive artworks designed for large-scale projection
• Optional interactive elements (e.g. generative systems, data-driven work, mobile/web-based interaction) may be considered
• Works suitable for public audiences of all ages
• Sound is optional and will be localized to the viewing area on Spadina Pier

Artist Fees & Support

• Artists (2 selected):
  • Artist fees: $6,000 CAD (per artwork)
  • The selected artists will be required to travel to Toronto to support the presentation of their work (travel dates are October 2-4). One round trip to Toronto per artist (subject to EU rules) and per diem will be covered.
  • Participation in an artist panel during an art opening reception preceding Nuit Blanche public viewing is expected
• All production costs (technical equipment, crew, installation) will be covered by OCAD University and the EU Delegation to Canada

Technical Specifications

When registering to the May 01 info-session, the following resources will be provided:

• Building specifications of the venue
• A nighttime photo of the venue that can be used to submit project previews.
• Artist Template file including after Effects Template and 3D Model in FBX format.

Collaboration Framework

Selected artists will participate in:

• Collaborative Process: Ongoing development with teams from the EU, OCAD U, and technical partners, including monthly and bi-weekly check-ins
• Storytelling: Participation in communications and promotional storytelling
• Recognition: Integration of partner acknowledgment within or alongside the work
• Public Engagement: Optional participation in a panel or public conversation

Application

All applications must be submitted via email in one (1) PDF document

• Name and address
• Links (website, social media)
• Project title
• Project proposal (max 500 words)
• Artist statement (max 300 words)
• Collaboration approach (max 200 words)
• CV (max 3 pages)
• 1 visual image
• Storyboard
• 30-second sample video
• Up to 10 minutes of past work with accompanying list

Deadline: 11 May 2026 @ 11:59 PM EST

Please submit your application by email to [email protected] . If you require assistance or accommodations with the application, please contact us at [email protected].

Evaluation Criteria

Applications will be reviewed by a panel of artists, cultural workers, and scholars.

• Thematic alignment and originality (30%)
• Artistic quality (30%)
• Impact (20%)
• Technical feasibility (20%)

Timeline

About Global Centre for Climate Action, OCAD University

Affiliated with OCAD University, Canada's largest and oldest art and design university, the Global Centre for Climate Action is a research-creation centre at Canada's Malting Silos that brings together artists, designers and researchers from around the world to host public events, exhibitions and programs that engage people in creative action and dialogue towards a renewed climate future.

About the EU Delegation to Canada

Established in 1976 in Ottawa, the Delegation of the European Union in Canada is the EU's diplomatic mission with a mandate to strengthen EU-Canada ties, covering all bilateral policy areas. The EU is at the forefront of global efforts to combat climate change, implementing ambitious policies and legally binding targets aimed at achieving climate neutrality by 2050.The EU also promotes cultural diplomacy and effective multilateralism, fostering cooperation and understanding between Canadians and Europeans.