FAQs

Please note the residency is completely non-smoking. Please do not smoke even out of a window. 

Do I need a visa?

If you have an EU citizenship, no. Otherwise you need to have a valid Schengen visa. When you apply, let me stress that you are coming on an academic exchange. Don't say you will work: if the authorities here think you are going to have a salary, you will have problems obtaining a visa.

Confirming your place on the residency: it is possible to book flights before having obtained a visa (visas are only required for traveling with) and so long as you meet all of the requirements there should be no reason for your visa application not to be successful. With this in mind and in order to keep the booking process simple there are no exceptions made for residents applying for a visa. If you would like to confirm your place then you must go ahead and book your flight. For those who would like extra piece of mind many airlines offer flexible tickets, enabling dates to be changed and in some cases full refunds. 

What are the twenty images I have to bring?

We ask that you bring two sets of images.

The first is a set with 10 examples of your work. This doesn't have to be the most recent or the best, simply the ones that are most relevant to you at the time of coming and that you are interested in discussing. If you are not a visual artist, we'll talk about another way for you to share a selection of your work.

The second is a set of 10 images of things that inspire your work but are not your work. This may be work by other artists or not be artworks at all. It might be music, writings, family or holiday snapshots, a set of memories. They may be the inspiration for past works or things that are one your mind and that you want to integrate somehow or other into future work or they may be about a passion or interest that you don't yet relate to your work at all. Having to select just 10 and deciding which are the more important is a really interesting exercise as an artist. These images are discussed in an informal setting with other residents when you arrive in Nyon.

Please have these 20 images already downloaded in two folders on your laptop before arriving. 

Is there anything I should bring?

It's hard to anticipate what you will need but worth thinking about bringing some art materials. There are a few art supply shops in Geneva and Lausanne but they will be expensive and not as well stocked as, say, Atlantis in London. So if there are specialised things you need, bring them.

If you like to listen to music while working, please bring headphones.

What adaptors do I need for electrical equipment?

Swiss power plugs are different to other european ones, european converter plugs don't fit into swiss sockets. We strongly recommend you buy a swiss adaptor before you arrive.

Do I need to bring towels?

Bath towels are supplied but remember to bring a bathrobe and slippers to go between your room and the shower which is through a public staircase and down in the basement. There is a washing machine and a dryer in the residency.

Can I invite guests?

While it is natural that if you stay for several months, partners, friends and family may want to visit you, we cannot accommodate them. Encourage those who want to visit you for a lengthy stay to apply as an artist in their own right. And if they come as tourists, there local hotels and B&Bs. We very much have an open door policy when it comes to showing people around the studio, inviting them in for a coffee but we do ask visitors to stick the hours 10am to 5pm and in any case to be very mindful of the other artists in the space. Bring them in, show them the studio, encourage them to interact with the other artists  in the space but then taking the social part of your visit to a nearby cafe.

Will I be able to sell my work in Nyon?

The emphasis at the Trelex Esp'Asse Residency is as a place of production, artistic development and research. Though some artists have sold work at shows we have organised for open studio evenings, this is very rare even for well-attended shows advertised long in advance. Artists should not for a moment contemplate funding their stay from potential sales. Switzerland is an expensive place but such a strategy could leave you uncomfortably out of pocket. So do not budget around selling work in Switzerland.

About the cost of living 

While the residency is free, the cost of living in Switzerland is substantially higher than in the rest of Europe. The ' Big Mac Index' states that by January 2012 exchange rates, one of these wonderful burgers will set you back almost twice as much in Switzerland as in the UK. Shopping in a supermarket does feel about 20-30% more expensive than in London. 

Children at the Trelex Esp'Asse Residency

The residency has a room with bunkbeds for a parent and child to share. Please let us know if you want to attend with your child and we'll make sure that anyone else who overlaps with you knows about it before they book their flights or perhaps co-ordinate things so that other residents who overlap with you are also parents or relaxed about having children around. We will do everything we can to support artist-parents.