A residency, a guesthouse, a shared library & a Garden

 After five years of inspiring experiences and extensive collaborations with artists in forced migration, as well as partnerships with various associations and institutions, it became clear for us, members of the association CEU, that in addition to supporting artistic expression there was also a need to create a caring, nurturing haven for artists, queer activists and feminists at risk. 

The political climate for outspoken artists and activists, particularly those living in conflict zones or in migration, remains perilous, their safety often threatened by oppressive regimes and hostile environments. Many artists and activists are enduring an accumulation of psychological trauma in their countries and some have been forced to leave their homes and communities. They are having to deal with significant trauma from both before and after their displacement, often compounded by social isolation and racism. 

From this perspective, we envision MAR as a space that not only facilitates artistic expression, but also plays a crucial role in rebuilding confidence and restoring well-being. MAR space is set in impressive grounds spanning 500m² in Eresos on the Greek island of Lesbos and has been designed as a place for freedom of expression, creativity and recuperation. It serves as an art residency with a shared library and a welcoming garden hosting a variety of cultural events.

For our first residency  Programme Houle - fromJune to December 2025 - we will invite artists, intellectuals and feminist activists from Lebanon, Syria and Palestine. During this period, we will select 6 participants for the residency, from two weeks to two months.

Second call : September 2025

With an explicit focus on women, LGBTQIA+ and marginalized groups from the MENA region, the second call will be launched in September 2025 for the period of January – June 2026. 

Accommodation and Facilities

• Individual rooms: Each resident will have a private room with a desk and comfortable relaxation area, providing a balance between independence and community life.
• Common facilities: From June onwards, the residence will offer two bedrooms, a shared bathroom, a cozy library, and an outdoor kitchen.
• Future expansion: We will add three additional rooms, bringing the total to five. A fully equipped kitchen and a shared workshop will also be built.
• Accessibility: This expansion will ensure that the space will also be fully accessible to      individuals with reduced mobility.

Residence Objectives

• Research and collaboration: MAR encourages research and collaboration with local and international communities around new forms of artistic and  intellectual production.
• Open creative process: Residents are invited to explore unknown paths, and without aiming for a result: the results might emerge well after the end of the residency.

Selection Process

• International selection committee: Every three years, the members of CEU appoint an international selection committee composed of four artists, activists, and intellectuals.
• Individual review and collective deliberation: Applications are first reviewed individually and then discussed collaboratively for the final selection.
• Selection criteria: Applications are evaluated solely on the basis of the proposed project and/or the specific needs of the applicant.
• Advice to applicants: Making the best impression is not what counts; rather, it is being as concrete and sincere as possible about the project and needs.

Our first committee members are: 

Nermine El Ansari (Egypt, Iceland, France) 

Nermine El Ansari is a visual artist working across various mediums, including installation, video, drawing, photography, and performance. She is interested in dualities, inversions, and environmental and societal transformation, exploring social geography and the tensions between urban and rural spaces. Triggered by collective memory, her most recent projects examine how personal and incidental images can evoke acts of remembrance and challenge established narratives.

Rachele Borghi (Italie, France) 

Rachele is a performer, professor and researcher in social and cultural geography. She studies the relationship between space, gender and sexuality from an intersectional perspective using feminist epistemology. She is currently working on the relationship between research and activism.

Anna Lopez Luna (Spain /France)

Anna was born and raised in the city of Barcelona. She has worked between Paris and Barcelona since 2001. Her work has always challenged the body and acts of repression that play out. Currently, her video-films concentrate on the spoken word, memory, and how politics penetrate individuals. Her sketch work is composed of dreams and nightmares, family histories, genealogies of shapes, distortions of myths, and shifting accounts.

Geneviève Houssay (France)

Geneviève is a member of CEU since 2019. She lived in several places in France. She managed several movie theaters and accompanied a number of collectives, organizations and artists.

The island of Lesbos is remarkable in terms of its stunning natural beauty as well a rich cultural history in which migration has played a key role – complementing our CEU mission. Lesbos is also in a region where there is increasing pressure in terms of migration on both a national and European level. Since its inception, CEU has shed light on the issue of migration, bringing together diverse perspectives, collaborative events and various forms of solidarity. 

Working alongside actors in a range of different fields (environmental, agricultural, social, artistic, etc.) has always been our modus operandi and continues to allow us to reflect on our impact on art and society. 

By integrating environmentally conscious practices and sharing sustainable resource management, we have ensured that our residency will serve not only as a creative hub, but also work in harmony with nature. Our green approach is applied to a range of aspects of the residency including: reducing waste, resource conservation, and sustainable food choices supporting organic, local produce. We seek to build strong, meaningful relationships with local farmers who practice pesticide-free farming. 

We also aim to create links with the local community by organising events in the garden and other locations in direct collaboration with local groups and associations. 

Lesbos is also the island where Sappho “the Poetess”’ was born (7th century BC) and where she lived for most of her life, apart from her family's brief exile in Sicily. Called the Tenth Muse by Plato, Sappho was a prolific poet of ancient Greece. Sappho was as well musician, philosopher, educator and political activist. She will undoubtedly be a source of inspiration for many of our residents.