FELLOWSHIPS 2025
The jury meetings for the 2025 fellowships will take place in the 3rd week of January 2025. We will then get back to you promptly and publish the results on our website. Until then: Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
The chosen fellows will be contacted personally. Please refrain from individual enquiries.
The Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg (“Artists’ House”) was founded in 1986. Its funding, from the state of Schleswig-Holstein, enables it to grant fellowships in the fields of contemporary visual arts, literature and composition. It offers talented emerging artists from all over the world the opportunity to complete new projects in an undisturbed working environment and to present them to an interested public. Artists of any age, nationality or place of residence may apply.
International Artists in Residence
Every year, Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg regularly announces 3 residency fellowships in the fields of composition, literature and visual arts and awards one fellowship in the field of visual arts by invitation to an artist or group. Artists can apply for the 3 residency fellowships without restriction of age or residence.
National Work Fellowship with child(ren)
Since 2022, Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg has also been awarding a work fellowship without residency requirement to applicants with children who have their permanent residence in Germany. Artists can apply for the work fellowship every year, alternating in the fields of composition, literature and visual arts, without restriction of age. The first order was decided by lot: 2023 Composition (Lin Yang), 2024 Fine Arts (Clara Lena Langenbach), 2025 Literature.
Curated group exhibition with a selection of works by the grant applicants in the Stadtgalerie Künstlerhaus Lauenburg
The Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg would like to give more visibility and participation to a larger number of artists, writers and composers, as well as appreciate the effort they put into the application process.
The number of applicants for the 4 fellowship places grow every year, but Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg is currently unable to offer more fellowships. That’s why we introduced a new format in 2024: a group presentation with selected works by applicants under changing curatorial direction.
In addition, the group presentation can reflect the impressive range of diversity of the applications, which reflects the diverse composition of our society in terms of geographical, ethnic or cultural origin, age, gender, sexual identity, world view, inclusion of people with disabilities or family situations.
All participating artists (approx. 10) will receive an exhibition fee.
At the end of the application form, you must indicate whether or not you wish to participate in the group exhibition.
The group exhibition (in the spring of the fellowship year) shows a selection of artworks/contributions from all admitted applications of all three fellowship categories (residency and work fellowship).
The selection is made according to curatorial decisions and is not justified. Participation in the exhibition does not constitute an entitlement to funding; the fellowship holders are selected and exhibited independently of this. Participants in the exhibition who have not received a fellowship may reapply.
The Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg
The Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg is characterised by its individual support and the networking of the fellowship holders among each other. It also promotes the networking of the fellows with the cultural scene of the Hamburg metropolitan region and Schleswig-Holstein.
The Künstler:innenhaus is located directly on the banks of the Elbe, in the middle of the historic old town. Lauenburg is the southernmost town in Schleswig-Holstein, has around 12,000 inhabitants and is about 50 km from Hamburg, Lübeck, Schwerin and 25 km from Lüneburg. The town lies in the four-country corner of Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg, Lower Saxony and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania with a railway connection on the Lübeck-Lüneburg line. The house was built in the middle of the last century, listed as a historical monument in 1982 and, after extensive restoration work, handed over to its new purpose as an artists’ house in 1986. Since then, 200 scholarship holders have lived and worked here.
Rooms and facilities
The ground floor houses the Stadtgalerie Künstlerhaus Lauenburg (gallery), a multifunctional event room and a large south-facing terrace directly on the Elbe. Cultural events such as cinema, readings and concerts regularly take place in the interior rooms and on the terrace.
The two upper floors contain large artists’ studios and flats. All studios are fully furnished and have their own shower room and kitchen, as well as a telephone and Wi-Fi connection. There are also printing press, a piano and a small fellowship library. In the adjoining building of the Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg is the Stadtgalerie Künstlerhaus Lauenburg. The exhibition rooms, which were modernised in 2021, are connected across the buildings.
The Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg receives financial support from the state of Schleswig-Holstein, the Duchy of Lauenburg County, the city of Lauenburg and the Förderverein Künstlerhaus Lauenburg/Elbe e.V., which has been running the house under its own auspices since 2009.
Objectives of the Künstler:innenhaus
The Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg is dedicated to supporting artists in the fields of contemporary visual arts, literature and composition, who show the potential to have a career in the art world. Within the framework of its regular fellowship programme, it offers a stimulating working environment in which artists, authors and composers can pursue their artistic work far away from the (art) market. Furthermore, with its fellowship and event programme, the Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg pursues the goal of securing and expanding its important supraregional role as a meeting place for artists, professionals, and those interested in art and culture.
Call for applications 2025
The Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg announces four fellowships for the state of Schleswig-Holstein in the following possible areas:
- One international fellowship in the field of visual arts
- One international fellowship in the field of literature
- One international fellowship in the field of composition
- One national work fellowship for applicants with child in the fields of literature (changing annually)
The period of stay for the residency fellowship holders at the Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg is 4 months from mid-May to mid-September.
The period for the work fellowship is also 4 months from mid-May to mid-September.
The fellowships are awarded by a jury of experts.
Scope of the funding
Within the framework of the sponsorship, the fellowship holder receives a monthly grant of 1000 EUR net for the duration of the fellowship (valid for residency fellowships, the fellowship by invitation”, and the work fellowship).
The residence fellowship includes free use of the flat and studio. Electricity supply for flat and studio, internet as well as telephony in the German Festnetz are also free of charge.
Additional funds for material expenses and project-related publications can be raised with the professional support of the Künstlerhaus, but there is no guarantee of success.
Expectations of the fellows
We assume that the majority of the residency fellowship will be spent in Lauenburg, that means a minimum of 50 %.
During their stay at the Künstler:innenhaus, the fellows are expected to participate in and create various events (exhibition, reading, premiere…). Please refer to the form sections for fine arts, literature and composition for the specifications according to the areas and details. For the final presentations, we pay an exhibition fee.
We are pleased about an artistic work gift for the collection of the Stadtgalerie Künstlerhaus Lauenburg (responsible body Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg). However, this is a voluntary decision.
But a DIN A4 report on the fellowship at Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg for the state of Schleswig-Holstein is obligatory.
The exclusivity of the exhibitions and productions at the Künstler:innenhaus is assumed. The Künstler:innenhaus welcomes the participation of the fellowship holders in projects to promote art and culture as an educational mission in cooperation with the Open Studio of the Künstler:innenhaus.
Further exhibitions, events, discussions – also at other locations in Lauenburg and Schleswig-Holstein – will be supported by the association Künstlerhaus Lauenburg/Elbe e.V. as far as possible.
Application and selection procedure
Professional German and international artists, authors (publication in German language) and composers can apply for admission to the Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg.
Artists who are still studying at the time of starting the fellowship, who receive another fellowship, or who have already received a fellowship from the state of Schleswig-Holstein in the past three years, are not eligible to apply.
The Künstler:innenhaus Lauenburg charges an application fee of 10,00 €. (reasons see FAQ)
Please transfer the application fee to the following recipient when submitting your application:
Künstlerhaus Lauenburg e.V.
Raiffeisenbank Lauenburg
IBAN DE12 2306 3129 0000 2818 67
BIC GENODEF1RLB
We welcome sociable people who actively seek exchange of ideas in their particular areas of artistic competence.
We only accept applications via the form on our website.
Incomplete applications or applications that do not comply with the specifications will not be considered. Applications without payment of the processing fee of 10.00 € are also excluded.
The jury meetings for awarding the fellowships will take place at the beginning of the grant year. Information on the awarding of the fellowships will be published on the website www.kuenstlerhaus-lauenburg.de shortly after the jury meeting. The chosen fellows will be contacted personally. Please refrain from individual enquiries.
The fellowships are financed by funds from the Ministry for General and Vocational Education, Science, Research and Culture of the State of Schleswig-Holstein.
