Image pour l'appel à projets du Chantier IA 3 de Sporobole. Sur un fond noir se trouve le logo bleu de Sporobole et les mots Chantier IA en vert fluo. Des motifs de fleurs blanches et de plantes noires apparaissent au bas de l'image.
Structuring project

Chantier IA 3 | Appel à projets

GENERAL STATEMENT

[…] les ensembles de données définissent les limites épistémiques qui régissent le fonctionnement de l’IA et, en ce sens, créent les limites de la façon dont l’IA peut « voir » le monde.

[…] datasets shape the epistemic boundaries governing how AI operates and, in that sense, create the limits of how AI can “see” the world.

Kate Crawford, Atlas of AI, 2021, p.98

After hosting 19 artists in residence, organizing three exhibitions and several outreach activities between 2023 and 2025, Sporobole is back in 2026 with a third call for projects as part of the AI Project!

Artificial intelligence (AI) does not seem to be disappearing from our lives anytime soon—for better or for worse. It is literally intertwined with our lives, whether in the form of Siri or Alexa assistants, through our Google searches complemented by Gemini and those we formulate on ChatGPT, or simply through our autocorrectors, predictive text editors, and other Spotify or Netflix algorithms.

More recently, we have also seen a proliferation of generative AI applications, for text and images as well as video and sound. Thanks to its ability to generate novelty from its neural network trained on vast data sets, particularly those accessible online, this highly versatile type of AI has the potential to quickly become an everyday ally. And its ubiquity is not unrelated to its accessibility via generative AI software, sometimes free, whether online or offline.

Furthermore, the commercial ambition of generative AI comes with constraints linked to the need to appeal to the widest possible audience, which leads to a certain standardization of aesthetics. The mismatch between the consensual aims of these commercial models and the objectives generally pursued by artists can thus become problematic in the context of artistic practice, leading to an impoverishment of visual language.

EXPLORING MACHINE LEARNING

In response to this challenge, but also because we want to broaden the horizons of experimentation in artificial intelligence, this new call for projects encourages artists to explore the personalization of AI models.

This approach can take two distinct forms in the context of the residency. The first is the training of small models—an approach that allows artists to work with systems that are less resource-intensive and can be integrated into the tangible world, for example in an interactive system. The second is the specialization of existing models (also known as fine-tuning), where an artist takes a general model and adapts it with a manageable dataset to give it a new artistic direction.

The goal of this call is to promote a perspective that speaks to the possibilities of the medium, an experimental approach focused on the process rather than the result, oriented toward the search for emerging behaviors. By stepping outside the logic of model users, this residency aims to provide a context where it is possible to work beyond the prompt. We therefore propose not limiting ourselves to generative AI models and opening up to strategies of reappropriation: modifying the behavior of existing models and developing new ones are among the possibilities offered. It is also a question of promoting a critical approach to AI.

This residency also provides an opportunity to explore ethical, artisanal, open-source, or community-based datasets, such as those derived from citizen science. More specifically, the proposed project must include a component involving AI model training or specialization. Whether this is an isolated aspect of a larger project or the very basis of the proposal, this machine learning dimension must be explicitly stated in the research proposal, along with the proposed approach to the type of data and its origin.

MOVING TOWARDS THE LIVING

In line with the extent to which AI is intertwined with our daily lives and the level of interrelation we have with it, this new call for projects also focuses on the concept of the living. Here, life should be understood in the broadest sense, not just in its biological sense. Examples include the issue of digital twins or the concepts of simulation, otherness, and ecosystems. The idea of synthetic versus natural could also be a fertile avenue for research, as could any project or project component that falls within the tradition of bio art. As our era is undergoing major environmental upheavals, we wish to welcome and support projects that reflect on current issues where living things are called into question, taken into consideration, and integrated into the algorithmic equation.

With this third AI Project, Sporobole is enthusiastic about stimulating artistic creation—both emerging and established—and offering essential support to artists for whom technology is a preferred tool. Through the guidance of our experts and specialists—programmers and developers—we also promote a commitment to co-constructing knowledge and sharing expertise. In this sense, projects that present a certain technological challenge are always welcome on our side of the interface.

In conclusion: we can’t wait to discover your proposals and projects!

3 appels IA 25 26 1

Terms and conditions of residencies

We offer two residency options for projects (artists must select one on the application form):

  • individual residency;
  • residency based around the Km3 forest laboratory at the Bang center in Saguenay.

Specifics of the options:

Two individual residencies with the following terms:
  • a duration of eight (8) weeks divided into three blocks;
  • a residency fee, including a daily allowance (per diem), of $950 per week for a total of $7,600;
  • reimbursement of provincial transportation costs for the equivalent of three (3) round trips at the cost of the bus (for applications outside Quebec, a total budget of $750 may be considered).
A residency in collaboration with the Bang Center in Saguenay, under the following terms:
  • carried out as part of the JN Km3 project (based on the idea of a digital twin and focusing on the Km3 forest or elements thereof);
  • a duration of eight (8) weeks, divided into three or four blocks, some of which will take place at Km3;
  • a residency fee, including a daily allowance (per diem), of $950 per week for a total of $7,600;
  • reimbursement of provincial transportation costs up to a maximum of $850 (including for applications outside Quebec);
  • support in the Km3 forest laboratory by the Bang Center team and networking with the project’s regular artists and partners.
Terms for all residencies:
  • accommodation in Sporobole residences;
  • costs related to technological tools and infrastructure covered by Sporobole (up to a certain limit);
  • support from Sporobole’s technology team throughout the residency (minimum of 25 hours per week).

Submit your application using this form: Chantier IA 3 – Vers le vivant – appel à projets de résidences

APPLICATION DEADLINE: 20 novembre 2025

Any questions? Contact us at: [email protected]

About the Km3 forest laboratory and the digital twin project

Km3 :
Kilomètre cube (Km3) is the laboratory territory of the Bang contemporary art center. A 1,700-acre research and creation forest in the heart of Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean. A place where nature, art, science, health, and education intersect in a context of reflection and experimentation on the challenges of life.

JN Km3 :
A digital twin is a virtual representation of a real-world object, system, or environment, enabling real-time modeling, simulation, and management, used in various fields such as industry, engineering, and research. The limitations of the digital twin concept become apparent when applied to living environments such as forests or natural areas, which are complex, constantly evolving ecosystems characterized by unpredictable interactions between various factors. This utopian aspect of creating a digital representation of such a complex system represents a fertile, critical, and stimulating area for exploration and artistic invention.

About Sporobole

Sporobole is an organization that explores the challenges posed by digital technologies for artistic creation and the ecosystem that supports it. By placing independent artistic creation at the heart of its actions, the center opens up spaces for reflection, experimentation, production and dissemination that give agency to the people who make up the heart of the artistic ecosystem. Sporobole’s actions are as much about artistic research and exploration as they are about technological support and empowerment for artists and cultural organizations. 

The Sporobole Studio is the organization’s main space for artistic experimentation, production and reflection. Its team has over 30 years’ experience in research and development in the artistic, technological, academic and interactive media worlds. It welcomes artists for research-creation residencies lasting from a few weeks to several months, and accompanies them through all phases of the project: reflection, experimentation, prototyping, production and distribution. 

Throughout the 24-26 cycle, Sporobole will be producing a series of exhibitions around AI and the ways in which it impacts our societies. Various perspectives will be explored, and the artistic potential of these tools will be brought to the fore. The cycle will conclude with the release of a publication – including essays, interviews and a look back at the residencies – currently in production. Chantier IA is part of the ArtIA laboratory, which brings together Sporobole, SAT (Société des arts technologiques), Projet Collectif and LLio (Laboratoire en innovation ouverte) in a program of reflection and research-action on the challenges of AI for the artistic milieu.

Chantier IA team :
Renaud Gervais
Guillaume Lévesque
Nathalie Bachand
Éric Desmarais
Yan St-Onge

Exhibitions :
2023 – I########### A###########
2024 – Sous la surface : une étude Solaristique
2025 – Cartes blanches & mémos pour le futur