Degree awarded: Master of Arts HES-SO in Fine Arts, major in Arts in Public Spheres + Sound

MAPS + S – Master of Arts in Public Spheres + Sound – is geared to artists, who wish to explore the relationship between art and environmental, political, cultural and media-related dimensions of the public sphere. The multi-sited two-year program is part of the HES-SO University of Applied Arts and Sciences and foregrounds travelling and displacing as part of its experimental, sound-based approach to artistic research.

The program is composed of eight stations per year, each consisting of 7-10 days, in which the student’s work becomes a starting point for continuous reflections and artistic exchange. These fluid node points with their various forms of (un-)learning, include research activities, seminars and workshops, screenings, performances, exhibition-making, collective discussions and face-to-face discussions. Stations are conceived by visiting lecturers, students and tutors and foster highly concentrated and convivial moments during which the participants interrogate the public spheres by intervening artistically and with the means of sound, investigating environmentally and socially engaged art practices, considering writing and publishing as an artistic practice, and adopting alternative approaches to pedagogy. Sound and listening practices build a research focus at EDHEA, which also offers a Bachelor in Visual Arts specializing in sound. MAPS + S students can exchange ideas and discuss projects with professors from this field and benefit from the high-quality infrastructure in the area of sound.

In between the stations, the artists continue their research individually or within self-organized Study Groups, a process that is supported by tutors. Due to the program’s pluri-national context, collective exchange usually take place in English. However, French, German, Italian and Spanish are frequently spoken languages among tutors and students and navigating in-between linguistic spaces has become a common practice.

The MAPS + S home base is located in the alpine town of Sierre in the canton of Valais. Surrounded by an idyllic landscape, the valley is also witness to (post-)industrial development and has become an international laboratory for studying the effects of climate change. Situated at the crossroads between several language borders, Sierre is well connected to various regions of Switzerland as well as to Italy and thus offers access to a broad view on cultural practices. From here we operate and provide fundamental infrastructure.

Some of the stations take place in Valais, and others outside and in exchange with national and international institutions as well as independent art spaces or initiatives with which MAPS + S has established a sustainable network. Recent partners and hosts include, among others, the Istituto Svizzero di Roma (IT), the Vilnius Academy of the Arts and the Nida Art Colony (LT), the Ferme-Asile (Sion), the Fondazione Pistoletto (Biella, IT), Walking Encounters in Psarades (Florina School of the Arts, Greece), the far° Festival (Nyon), the Arsenic - Centre d'art scénique contemporain (Lausanne), CAN - Centre d’art Neuchâtel and VOLUMES – Independent Art Publishing Fair (Zurich).

Collaborations with art residency programs such as the Villa Ruffieux (Sierre) or La Becque (La Tour-de-Peilz), offer a fluid transition between the program and the ensuing artistic career. The program’s sustainability is also founded on the regular contributions of alumni. MAPS + S graduates have contributed to numerous exhibitions such as the Biennale d'Arte di Venezia or the Berlin Biennale. They have founded publishing houses or initiated independent art projects and interdisciplinary initiatives.

Modules

Dean of the Fine Arts

Vittorio Parisi (from March 2025)

Head of the MAPS + S – Master of Arts in Public Spheres + Sound

Petra Koehle and Nicolas Vermot-Petit-Outhenin

Guests 2024/25

Mohamed Abdelkarim, Noor Abuarafeh, Marco Baravalle, Pauline Boudry & Renate Lorenz, Emanuele Braga, Toni Hildebrandt, Mikhail Karikis, Dominique Koch, Nicole L’Huillier, Anne Le Troter, Laurence Schmidlin, Aria Spinelli, The School of Mutants (Astarti Athanasiadou and Stéphane Verlet-Bottéro)

More Information

Admission

Admission is competitive.

Entry requirements
The admission requirements for the HES-SO Master’s degree in Visual Arts are: BA degree or equivalent academic qualifications/experience.

Registration fee
In order to guarantee the validation of their registration, candidates have to pay the registration fee of CHF 150.– when they apply.

Application
Your application must include:

• a cover letter outlining your artistic experience and previous training, your educational goals and your artistic and theoretical interests in the public sphere (max. 2 pages);
• a full CV;
• a project proposal for your Master’s degree that details your research questions and references in the field (max. 3 pages);
• a portfolio of your recent work and projects (max. 25 pages);
• a reference letter;
• a completed application form;
• a copy or a scan of your diplomas/certificates;
• a or a scan copy of your ID document (passport or ID card).

Application
The applications have to be submitted online by March 25 2025. Only completed and validated online forms will be considered.

Interview
A committee selects the candidates and invites them to an individual interview based on their application and research proposal. Admission interviews will take place on Mai 7 and 8 2025. The selected candidates will be informed by email about the date and time of their interview.
Skype interviews can be arranged for candidates who live outside of Switzerland. Candidates are assessed based on their application, interview and research proposal. They will be informed individually by mail about the outcome of the interview.

Costs
Tuition fee: CHF 700.- per semester (CHF 1400.– per academic year) for students of Swiss nationality or tax residents in Switzerland. CHF 1050.- per semester (CHF 2100.– per academic year) for international students.
Contribution to education costs and other services: CHF 350.- per semester (CHF 700.– per academic year))

Information sessions

• Open day: January 25, 2025
• Online information session: January 31, 2025, 7pm (Link)
• Online information session: February 28, 2025, 7pm (Link)

Information
For any information, please contact Petra Koehle or Nicolas Vermot-Petit-Outhenin, Head of the MAPS + S.