Volt-Age launches $50K research-creation fellowship for Concordia Fine Arts graduates | News

Creative approaches to the energy transition

Funded through the Canada First Research Excellence Fund, Volt-Age is a national research initiative focused on accelerating Canada’s transition toward decarbonized and energy-resilient communities.

The Spark Fellowship extends that mandate into contemporary art and research-creation by inviting emerging artists to engage critically with questions surrounding electrification and climate futures. The Fellowship is not about illustrating scientific research; instead, artists are invited to explore the energy transition through their own evolving practices.  Recipients will be registered as postdoctoral fellows at Concordia and supported in developing both new research-creation work and professional pathways beyond graduation.

The initiative has no specific medium requirements. Graduates with a practice-based visual arts component in art, installation, sculpture, drawing, fibres, painting, photography, print media, ceramics, design and interdisciplinary approaches are all welcome to apply — provided their work explores topics related to electrification and the energy transition.

Alongside their studio practice, fellows will have the opportunity to collaborate with researchers, students and community partners across the Volt-Age network, contributing to Volt Age’s Impact Projects and Living Labs.

A critical role for art

The Spark Fellowship marks a broader shift at Concordia toward interdisciplinary research models that bring together art, science and technology in addressing climate challenges, says Annie Gérin, dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts.

“Art has a critical role to play in how we understand and imagine major societal transitions like electrification,” she says.

“The Spark Fellowship recognizes that artistic research is not secondary to scientific inquiry — it actively shapes how questions are asked, how systems are seen and how futures are envisioned.”

Applications for the 2026–2027 cohort are open until June 15, 2026.

Discover the Volt-Age Spark Fellowship.