The Jan van Eyck is not a training institute. The Jan van Eyck does not award diplomas. There are no students nor teachers at the Jan van Eyck. Advising researchers and researchers work at the Jan van Eyck. Both researchers and advising researchers, formulate research projects and realise productions. In that sense they do ‘the same thing’ at the Jan van Eyck. Both can make use of the facilities of the institute for this purpose. The difference between the two is in their curriculum – a difference which could also be translated to the descriptions ‘junior’ and ‘senior’ researcher.

 

Researchers

Artists, designers and theoreticians who submitted a project proposal and were there upon selected become researchers. Researchers develop research projects and set up productions. They can organise lectures and symposia, or attend lectures and symposia elsewhere.

In order to realise their projects researchers have their own studios, receive a grant and can make use of the facilities: the library, the documentation centre, various workshops (wood and other materials; graphic techniques; photography; digital text and image processing and editing; time-based media) and the production bureau (assistance with print work, editing and all other productions). They can also appeal to the institute for pr assistance relating to their projects or for the distribution of their productions. The Jan van Eyck acts as a producer and distributor of the productions of the researcher. These responsibilities have been written down in an agreement between the academy and the researcher. In addition to technical and practical advise relating to their research projects and productions, the researchers can call upon the support of artistic advisors: the advising researchers.

In return, researchers are expected to be engaged in the projects of other researchers, on the assumption that the research and the productions of one researcher form the formal or content-based context of the research and productions of the other researchers. All researchers are required to have attained a level equivalent to a master’s degree, and preferably to have some years’ professional experience. Since the languages of communication in the academy are English and Dutch, researchers must have sufficient knowledge, at least, of English.

There are eight research positions per department available per year.

 

Advising researchers

Providing artistic advice is the principal task of the advising researcher. It involves querying objectives, methodologies and completed research projects; creating conditions for the optimal development of individual research projects, with due attention paid to the collective horizon; participating in research groups (as participant or as a catalyst); giving advice on setting up production plans (content, budget and time) for the Editorial Board.

The advising researchers are available to all researchers. Their lectures, seminars, presentations and other productions are open to all (advising) researchers. The meetings between the researcher and the advising researcher (studio visits) are included in the weekly programme. The advising researchers do ‘the same thing’ as the researchers. They also carry out their own research and set up projects at the academy. To enable them to complete their projects, the facilities of the academy are at their disposal. In addition to the researcher, the advising researchers bear institutional and departmental responsibilities. These include the following tasks: the selection of researchers and research projects; the coordination of the programme and the finances; participation in the institutional policy-making of the academy (in the Policy Board) and discussing the production proposals (in the Editorial Board).

Each department has two to four advising researchers. With a view to pro-active projects more advising researchers can be recruited.