Member’s Opportunity: Call for Proposals for the Hawthornvale Mentorship Programme
Members are invited to apply to our Hawthornvale mentorship programme with the opportunity to exhibit in our Hawthornvale Space in 2026.
Deadline: 5pm, Sunday 28 September 2025.
About the Hawthornvale Mentorship Programme:
The 3 selected artists will have a year of a close, supportive relationship with ESW including:
- Regular meetings with the ESW Programme and technical teams to develop their work, support additional fundraising and for application writing, proofreading, studio visits or connections to other artists + curators.
- Induction to ESW workshops by Technical staff, the chance to work through their project ideas with their advice + guidance.
- £500 bursary.
- Up to £450 production costs which can be allocated through discussion to materials, machine fees, studio space and apartment accommodation on site.
- £100 access and travel costs.
- Facilitated ways to learn from each other’s experiences and support each other as a small cohort of 3 artists at similar stage.
- Support to do a talk or in- conversation event about their work.
- Opportunity to exhibit in the Hawthornvale Space.
- Documentation of their work in progress or final work.
About the Hawthornvale Space:
Conceived as an ongoing programme of temporary public artworks, this programme reaches a broad audience, providing the members of the public with an unexpected encounter with contemporary art.
There are three presentation slots in 2026
March – June.
July – September.
October – January
ESW members are invited to make proposals to present ideas for either new solo or collaborative installations.
Membership and Eligibility:
Please note the person who makes the proposal must hold and active ESW Membership.
For more information about becoming a member click here
The scheme is aimed at emerging visual artists who have started to establish themselves post-college but need to move to the next level of their development. The call also recognises that artists have other reasons that they are can be classified as emerging, due to time taken for caring, illness or other life events and commitments.
The deadline for proposals is 5pm, Sunday, 28 September 2025.
When you make a proposal please bear in mind:
That any presentation is intended to be viewed from the street the audience cannot enter the space during the exhibition
The space is approx. 625cm (wide) x 284cm (deep) x 215cm (height)
The walls are made of plasterboard and the floor concrete
Equalities
We welcome applications from everyone. We positively encourage applications from minority backgrounds including:
- Black, Asian and People of colour
- Disabled people including people with mental health issues or long-term health conditions or chronic illness or learning disabled
- LGBTQIA+
- Unemployed/low waged
- People from lower socio-economic backgrounds
How to Apply
Proposal
Your proposal should be a single pdf , and should include:
- Project Title – this can be provisional
- Main Contact Info – noting email and telephone details
- Short Bio for each artist – 50 words
- Short Description – 250 words describing what you would like to work on during the Mentorship time including the idea for the Hawthornvale Space presentation.
- Supporting Images – please supply up to eight relevant images, with work details. You can include links to websites and other projects in the PDF.
- Timing: Please give an indication of your preferred time slot. We will try to accommodate your request but can’t guarantee you will get your preferred dates.
March – June.
July – September.
October – January
Deadline: 5pm, Sunday 28 September 2025.
Email: Daniel Brown dan@edinburghsculpture.org with proposals or if you have any questions before you submit your application.
Image Credits
Top: Love In The Ecotone, Megan Rudden, 2025, install shot.
Below: Tropicalism, Unconquered Natures, Camila Ospina Gaitán, 2025 install shot.
The 2026 programme is generously supported by The Fenton Arts Trust, Creative Scotland and The City of Edinburgh Council.
