OPEN CALL Upė Foundation Curatorial Fellowships at Camden Art Centre and Sapieha Palace
Upė Foundation is launching its fall 2026 Curatorial Fellowship programme, in partnership with Camden Art Centre, London, UK, and Sapieha Palace, a branch of the CAC, Vilnius, Lithuania.
Upė Foundation is a London-based not-for-profit, established in 2025, with a core aim to develop new frameworks for discursive dialogue and professional exchange between the Baltic region and global contemporary art communities. Upė’s inaugural programme is devised together with major institutions internationally to support the next generation of curators, carving out space for new conversations, perspectives, and lesser-researched subjects and approaches in contemporary art.
Launching today, the fall 2026 Curatorial Fellowship open call invites early-career curators to apply for one of two 18-month, full-time curatorial roles: one at Sapieha Palace, Vilnius, and one at Camden Art Centre, London. Fellows will work as members of the curatorial teams while developing their own practices. They will contribute to exhibition-making, public programming, and research, receiving institutional support and mentorship throughout the fellowship.
The opportunity provides a framework for developing skills, gaining experience at internationally acclaimed institutions, and building professional networks. This year, the Upė Foundation Curatorial Fellowship Programme focuses on supporting emerging Baltic curators to bring their knowledge of Baltic art into international contexts, while enabling UK-based curators to work within Baltic institutions, opening up new perspectives within the Baltic region.
Upė Foundation Curatorial Fellowship, Sapieha Palace
Sapieha Palace opened its doors to the public in April 2024. Housed within a recently restored Baroque palace, it is run by the Contemporary Art Centre, the largest contemporary art institution in the Baltic States. Its programme aims to create a critical dialogue between contemporary art, history, and tangible heritage, while reflecting the social and cultural processes relevant to the region through contemporary art exhibitions, an annual symposium, and educational and public engagement activities.
The Upė Foundation Curatorial Fellow embedded within the Art Programme Department of Sapieha Palace will have an opportunity to co-develop, implement, and coordinate a section of its programme alongside the institution’s curatorial team and external curators.
Upė Foundation Curatorial Fellowship, Camden Art Centre
Since 1965 Camden Art Centre has been a place for art and the people that make it. Our world-renowned exhibitions programme supports artists at every stage of their careers, enabling them to make and show work that is relevant for today: brave, challenging, engaging and vital. Originally built, in 1890, as a public library, the building now combines historic architecture with open, modern spaces with free entry for all. Camden Art Centre has always led the way supporting artists and audiences to create and engage with the most vital and inspiring contemporary art and culture today.
The fellowship provides a framework for the successful candidate to bring their specialist knowledge and research into the sphere of Camden Art Centre’s curatorial work. As part of the exhibitions team and working within a fast-paced institutional culture it will provide a supportive environment for growth, learning and first-hand experience at one of the UK’s most renowned spaces for contemporary visual art.
Application deadline: 12pm GMT on Monday July 13, 2026.
Further information on how to submit an application for the Upė Foundation Curatorial Fellowship at Camden Art Centre and the Upė Foundation Curatorial Fellowship at Sapieha Palace is available on the Foundation’s website here.
Selection process:
Applications will be reviewed together by Upė Foundation and the respective partnering institutions. Following an initial assessment within the partner institution, a short-list will be invited to a first-round interview with Upė and the partner organisation (Camden Art Centre or Sapieha Palace, respectively). A final interview round with a small number of candidates will take place in person.
The selection panel includes representatives from Upė Foundation and the partner institution, and all decisions are made by consensus, with agreement required from the full panel at each stage.
About Upė Foundation
Upė Foundation is a London-based platform that draws currents between global and Baltic (Lithuanian, Latvian, Estonian) art communities, setting new artistic, curatorial and research possibilities in motion. Upė focuses on horizontal, long-term exchange through a range of partnerships, fellowships and initiatives, amplifying new ideas, risk-taking work and underexplored perspectives. Upė is drawn to a field that is living, cross-disciplinary and imaginative, open to encounters between practices, contexts and communities.
