NB! Would you like to apply for this residency? Go back to Residency (international) for the terms and conditions, assessment and checklist for your application.
Nesse is Terneuzen’s cultural breeding ground for the production, development and presentation of contemporary art and design. Located in the former Philips factory, Nesse offers workspaces and an international residency program for artists and designers.
Nesse envisions a shared world—a space where artists, designers, communities, businesses, and various government agencies collaborate on the challenges that now require acceleration. Nesse emphasizes connection with the immediate environment, history and context.
In addition to the workspaces and residencies, Nesse organises exhibitions and presentation projects in public places in Terneuzen, as well as in the canteen and gardens of Nesse. The public is introduced to the work of artists and designers through conversations, workshops, performances and surprising presentations.
More information
The name Nesse is based on an old name for Terneuzen and literally means “headland”—an excellent piece of land on the water, one of the reasons why Terneuzen has become the city it is today. With Nesse we highlight how Terneuzen functions as a crossroads of exchange, as a headland: Ter Nesse. Emerging from the geological, ecological, economic and cultural processes within the region, Nesse stands as a metaphor for circulation, development and flow. Nesse, like Terneuzen, engages with the region, as well as to the town and to the international context.
With the artistic program Being In the World (2024-27), Nesse responds to the social and ecological challenges and transitions of the harbour area and Zeeland. With the program components Food and Industry, Sources of Energy and Learning from the Stream, Nesse offers a platform for artists and designers to investigate global issues. Artists are asked to reflect on how global trends come together within the unique context of Terneuzen and Zeeuws-Vlaanderen. For more information about the program components, please visit the website.
The Nesse residency program offers artists the opportunity to temporarily settle in Terneuzen and become familiar with the tasks and specificities of this border region. This is about a development process in which you are not asked to produce anything. However, you are asked to organise two sharing moments in which working practice and the specific research are shared.
Nesse offers the resident a large workspace of 46 m2, shared workshops (wood workshop and acoustic space) and gardens that can be used to create large objects or grow living matter. Artistic coordinator Adriënne van der Werf is also available to guide the residents and provide information about the region.
The results of the work periods are integrated into the current program in consultation with Nesse. Together with the participants, we look for a suitable sharing moment, such as an open studio, workshop or lecture.
For whom
The working periods are intended for artists who engage with the thematic framework that has been outlined and want to broaden their artistic practice by conducting research in Zeeland, Zeeuws-Vlaanderen and the border region.
Preference is given to project proposals that make clear why the research process should be carried out specifically at Nesse. It is important to explain how and why local residents, visitors, local associations, the landscape, gardens, public space, archives and/or local history are involved in the research.
For this residency it is not possible to apply as a duo.
Work period
There is 1 work period available for 3 months:
- March 1, 2026 to June 1, 2026
One artist can be accommodated per period.
How much?
The Mondriaan Fund makes a subsidy of €2,165 per month available for travel, material and accommodation costs. This amount is intended for one person. In addition, the selected resident is expected to pay a 10% personal contribution. The Mondriaan Fund automatically takes this into account in their ultimate subsidy, you do not need to do anything.
The contribution to artists based in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom can be increased to meet any higher travel costs. This is looked at per situation.
Application
The deadline for submitting an application for a work period in 2026 is Thursday 11 September 2025 before 16.00 (Dutch time zone) / 11.00 (Caribbean time zone).
Before submitting an application, please see the Residency page for the terms and conditions, application procedure and assessment procedure.
Selection
The selection is made by an advisory committee. Based on the submitted documents, the advisory committee nominates candidates to Nesse. They make the final decision on the participants for the residency. An interview may be part of their selection process.*
When you apply for two different residencies within the same call then the quality and development of your oeuvre/(professional) practice and the quality of your cultural entrepreneurship as the artist, curator or viewer is only assessed once. This assessment is therefore valid for both applications.
*Please note! Be aware that the processing time for this selection procedure may exceed three months.
Other grants for residencies in the Netherlands and other countries
Because only 1 or 2 residents can be selected for any given residency during each application round, it is inevitable that many will be disappointed. For this reason, we point out that it is also possible to apply for an Artist Project at a different residency location. The specific Artist Project residency applied for may not be one of those already being offered in the Mondriaan Fund application rounds.