SNF-SART Cultural Entrepreneurship

SNF-SART Residency & Scholarship Program

Supported through the generosity of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, the SNF-SART Residency and Scholarship Program offers Greek students and artists the possibility to participate in programming at the Siena Art Institute.  Selection of SNF-SART Resident Artists is through a special nomination process, and students from Greek universities and art academies may directly apply for the SNF-SART Scholarship Program (see below for further details).

Thanks to the Stavros Niarchos Foundation's very generous support, we have been able to welcome the following participants in the SNF-SART Residency and Scholarship Program: 

Fall 2014 semester:

• Student, Giorgos Apostolopoulos
• Student, Antonis Tasoulis

Fall 2015 semester:

• Student, Michalis Fountedakis
• Student, Themis Istatiadis

• Resident Artist, Dimitris Xonoglou

Fall 2016 semester: 

• Student, Konstantinos Mouchtaridis
• Student, Vasilis Aloutsanidis
• Student, Athanasios Karabetsos

• Resident Artist, Alexandros Georgiou

Fall 2017 semester: 

• Student, Iris Bournazou
• Student, Dimitris Giannopoulos
• Student, Alkiviadis Avarkiotis
• Student, Tereza Panzieri- Stepanian
• Student, Kyriakos Papadopoulos
• Student, Ioannis – Alexandros Tovas

• Resident Artist, Maria Vlandi

Fall 2019 semester: 

• Student, Apostolis Tsamertzis
• Student, Spiridon Anemogiannis

Spring 2020 semester:

• Student, Antonios Douroudis
• Student, Angelos Sotiriou
• Student, Myrto Patramani
• Student, Rozalia Tegougianni

Fall 2020 semester:

• Student, Fivos Chalkiopoulos
• Student, Vasilina Papadimitropoulou

Spring 2021 semester: 

• Resident artist, Fotis Flevotomos 
• Resident artist, Vassiliki Spachou

Fall 2021 semester:

• Student, Alexia Rontionova
• Student, Charikleia Papounidou
• Student, Elli Kikidi

• Resident artist, Kostis Velonis
• Resident artist, Nina Papaconstantinou

Our previous Greek students are also participating in the Art Cloud Greece project, the 2021 SNF-SART Cultural Entrepreneurship Pilot Program.

The SNF-SART Scholarship Program is open to students of Greek University Art Programs, including but not limited to visual arts, design, and architecture. The program is a semester abroad dedicated to a large range of students' interests. Scholarships offered by the Siena Art Institute cover full tuition and accommodation in the historic city center of Siena as well as access to studio space. Students are responsible for the expenses of food, personal art supplies, and travel during their semester in Siena.  

Page contents:

1. Who is eligible?

2. The Program - Overview 

3. Method of Application for the SNF-SART Scholarship Program

4. Accommodation and additional expenses 

5. Current Covid-19 Prevention Policies

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1. Who is eligible?

Eligible students for the SNF-SART Scholarship Program are only those who are currently enrolled in an art program at a Greek university art program, faculty or art academy.

Fluency in English language and/or Italian is required for all participants.

Former recipients of the SNF-SART scholarship are not eligible to re-apply.

2. The program – Overview

The Fall 2021 semester at the Siena Art Institute runs Sept 13th-December 10th 2021.  

Coursework includes the opportunity to explore Sienese culture and collaborative community initiatives while also pursuing individual artistic work.

The Siena Art Institute welcomes artists from all disciplines (painting, photography, drawing, video, ceramics, silversmithing, creative writing and more) who are interested in the intersection of art and civic life, and who wish to explore how our artistic projects can lead to a deeper understanding of the cultures in which we find ourselves.  The specific coursework of the Fall 2021 semester will focus on ceramics, photography, silversmithing, as well as interdisciplinary projects. Students do not need previous experience in ceramics, photography, or silversmithing, but need to be interested to pursue coursework in one or more of these areas during the Fall 2021 semester.

Our program is intentionally small, allowing students to receive a great deal of individual attention from our faculty to assist in your ongoing creative development. 

3. Method of Application for the SNF-SART Scholarship Program

In order to apply you need to supply: 

• 1. A Request Form for the SNF-SART Scholarship Program, providing your name, school name, area of study, year of study, contact information - address, telephone number, e-mail. (download form via link at bottom of the page)

• 2. A Recommendation Letter from a faculty member in your school (maximum 1 page)
• 3. A Letter of Motivation in English (maximum 1 page) 

                Your Letter of Motivation should address the following questions:

                -Why do you wish to join the SNF-SART Scholarship Program? 

                -What benefits do you see for your education as an artist? 

                -Why is a study abroad experience important to you?

                -Do you have previous experience in collaborative projects and/or community initiatives?

• 4. Portfolio of 10 works of your choice that best represent your artistic research (photograph, painting, drawing, sculpture, installation, video, audio) in formats JPG, Quick Time,  MP3, through any file sharing website (example: wetransfer.com  www.4shared.com). The total should not exceed 50Mb. 

Please send application materials as email attachments to: 

Lisa Nonken (Academic Director) info@sienaart.org 

For any additional information feel free to contact us. 

4. Accommodation and additional expenses 

Your tuition & fees are covered by the SNF-SART Scholarship Program, as well as transport to Greece and back at the beginning and end of our semester, and shared accommodation in the historic city center of Siena.  This includes extra-curricular events, medical visits assistance as needed, official transcript issuing and shipping, and final dinner.

Some coursework may include additional fee for special materials and optional fieldtrips. 

Please note: students are responsible for other costs including food, and personal art supplies.  The scholarship includes initial sets of materials used for projects, but students are responsible for the cost of additional art supplies for independent work and final projects.   

Standard housing which is covered by the scholarship is a shared room in a shared apartment. This means that you will be sharing a room with another student (of your same gender) in an apartment or student residence. This includes a shared kitchen (with basic pots and pans, etc), a shared bathroom, and bed linens provided.  

You are responsible for your own groceries and laundry. In terms of groceries, we recommend budgeting approximately €100-150 per month, if you are eating simple home-cooked meals.

Are there other housing options available?

Yes. Other housing options are available for a higher fee, such as a private room, or staying in a home-stay with a local Italian family.   You can contact us for more information.

Students are responsible for ensuring that their coursework in Siena can transfer back to their home university in Greece.  Be sure to be in touch with your home faculty before the beginning of your studies in Siena, to make sure that your work in Siena meets requirements for your degree program back home.  If your faculty advisors require further details about our coursework, we are happy to provide any further information you may require. 

For any additional information feel free to contact us. 


5. Current Covid-19 Prevention Policies

The Siena Art Institute requires incoming students to abide by all travel and testing guidelines which apply to their country of origin and we will help our students to monitor the evolving border restrictions of the Italian government. Students must pledge to be vigilant in following the virus-prevention measures outlined by the WHO as well as specific policies for social distancing imposed by the Region of Tuscany, the city of Siena, and our school, which currently including but are not limited:

• wearing masks at all times when not eating/drinking

• social distancing inside and outside the classrooms (maintaining a distance of at least 1 meter from other people at all times)

• carefully washing hands frequently

• keeping windows open whenever possible 

These rules are important to protect from the possibility of virus contagion not only the individual student, but also their classmates, faculty, and the larger community. Unless permission is requested from our program director, students are also instructed to not travel outside of Italy during SART's programs and to continue to carefully follow covid-19 precautions during any travel within Italy (such as independent weekend activities), both for their own safety as well as the safety of our community.

Hygiene products such as hand sanitizer, extra masks, and disinfectant sprays are provided to students at the Siena Art Institute, but students are expected to have their own masks (available at local pharmacies for 50 cents)

Covid-19 testing is available locally at pharmacies (appx €20 for a rapid antigen test) and the Centro Diagnostico Senese (Real-Time PCR molecular swab tests can be booked for €75) https://www.centrodiagnosticosenese.it/ 

Students are asked to utilize the Immuni app on their smartphones, which is the official contact-tracing app designed by the Italian Ministry of Health without compromising the privacy of users. https://www.immuni.italia.it/ 

No quarantine is currently required for EU visitors in Italy who pass the needed pre- and/or post-flight covid tests required.  Be sure to check with your airline for more specifics about their current requirements.

Current restrictions can be seen designated by nationality using this portal of the Italian Health Ministry https://infocovid.viaggiaresicuri.it/returningtoitaly.html.

Further details regarding current travel restrictions in Italy can be found here.  Updates on the current covid-19 response can be found on the website of the Italian Ministry of Health.  Italy has enstated a “Green Pass” decree requiring proof of vaccination or proof of a negative covid test within 48 hours to enter public spaces such as indoor restaurants, museums, gyms, etc. We highly recommend that all students receive full vaccinations before travelling to Italy, to avoid the necessity of quarantine upon arrival, frequent covid tests or the risk of not being able to enter a variety of locations.  A vaccination card from another EU country meets Italy’s “Green Pass” requirement (listing the type of vaccine you received and the date of your vaccination with a scannable QR code). We know the rules can seem confusing so please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions.

For more information, please contact us at info@sienaart.org