Bogliasco Foundation Fellowship 2027-2028: A Hosted Month-Long Residency in Italy for Artists and Humanities Scholars

Bogliasco Foundation Fellowship 2027-2028: A Hosted Month-Long Residency in Italy for Artists and Humanities Scholars

Current application cycle and deadlines

Applications are open for the Bogliasco Foundation’s 2027-2028 academic-year Fellowships. The Foundation’s Requirements page gives two final deadlines: December 1, 2026 for Fall 2027 residencies and March 11, 2027 for Spring 2028 residencies. Applicants should select the semester they can attend and submit by its corresponding date. The application must be complete by that deadline, including the two required references uploaded directly by the referees.

The metadata deadline above uses the first currently published final deadline, December 1, 2026. It is the Fall 2027 closing date; it does not replace the later Spring 2028 deadline. The Foundation says applications cannot be accepted after a deadline, so a missed semester deadline means waiting for another application period. Check the official Requirements page before submitting in case the Foundation posts a correction or additional instructions.

Bogliasco’s academic-year program runs in fall and spring, not through summer. The Foundation schedules fall residencies from mid-September into December and spring residencies from early January into May. Individual stays last 30 or 31 days. Applicants indicate their availability in the application and should plan around the Center’s assigned residency dates rather than assuming they can choose any month or defer an awarded stay.

What the fellowship provides

The Bogliasco Fellowship is a residential program for artists and scholars working in the arts and humanities. The Foundation awards approximately 60 fellowships, also described as residencies, each year. A selected Fellow spends 30 or 31 days at the Bogliasco Center in Bogliasco, Italy, with living quarters, a workspace, and full board. For the current 2027-2028 cycle, that hosted residency is the core award: time, room, meals, and a setting where a serious project can move forward without the usual daily demands.

This is not a conventional cash award. The Foundation says that its regular Fellowship does not provide a travel stipend or a general living stipend. Fellows remain responsible for transportation to and from the Center, project materials and equipment, and personal expenses, including medical expenses. A limited set of Special Fellowships may include travel support or a stipend, but those awards have their own discipline, nationality, or other requirements. A core Fellowship should therefore be understood as hosted room and board plus workspace, not as a grant deposited into the Fellow’s account.

The residential setting is also part of the program’s purpose. The Foundation describes an intimate, international, multilingual community of artists and scholars. Applications are assessed not only for the quality of the applicant’s work and proposed project, but also for signs that the applicant would participate productively in that community. There are no courses or training requirements attached to the core Fellowship. The Center is intended to give an established or emerging practitioner protected time to develop significant new work.

Eligible disciplines and applicants

The Foundation accepts creative and scholarly work in the following disciplines:

• Archaeology
• Architecture
• Classics
• Dance
• Film/Video
• History
• Landscape Architecture
• Literature
• Music
• Philosophy
• Public Humanities
• Theater
• Visual Arts

Applicants are expected to demonstrate significant achievement in their discipline, considered in relation to their age and experience. That standard is broader than a single career profile: the application should show what the applicant has accomplished and why the proposed project is a credible next step. A person does not need to fit one narrow professional label, but the project should have a clear relationship to one eligible discipline.

The Foundation accepts applications without regard to nationality, age, race, gender, or religion. Students who are enrolled in a degree-granting program at the time of application are not eligible. The student restriction matters for applicants whose work is otherwise a strong fit: the Fellowship is for independent artistic or scholarly work, not for a project being completed as part of current degree enrollment.

Applicants who work across several disciplines must choose one discipline for the application, selecting the category most closely related to the project they would pursue at the Center. The Foundation’s FAQ also distinguishes between creative production and scholarship within some fields. For example, new creative writing belongs under Literature, while the study of existing literary works belongs under Literature Scholarship. The same kind of distinction applies in visual work: making artwork is different from studying existing artwork. The application should make that choice deliberate rather than treating the discipline field as a formality.

What the application required

The online application has five pages and requires a focused set of materials. The Foundation’s current requirements are:

1. Two letters of reference, uploaded directly by the referees and received by the application deadline. A third letter is optional. Alumni do not have to submit references, although they may include new letters if those add meaningful context.
2. A short-form curriculum vitae of no more than three pages.
3. A one-page project description in English explaining the work the applicant would develop at the Bogliasco Center.
4. Three samples of work published, performed, exhibited, or otherwise publicly presented during the last five years. The Foundation accepts older samples when the applicant believes they support the application.
5. A two-tier application fee paid by credit card at the end of the online process: $30 up to one week before the deadline and $45 from that point through the final deadline.

The application is accepted only through the Foundation’s online system. First register an account, then log in to complete the form; work can be saved and resumed. Materials sent by mail or email are not accepted as a substitute. Because reference letters must be uploaded by the referees, enter accurate referee contact information and follow up to make sure both letters arrive by the applicable deadline. Starting early gives time to resolve account or file questions and lets referees prepare their letters. The application fee is payable by credit card at the end of the process: $30 through the week before a deadline and $45 during the final week through that deadline.

How to prepare a strong application

An effective application connects three things: a record of serious work, a project that fits a month-long residency, and a credible reason the Bogliasco Center would help the applicant complete or materially advance it.

Begin with the project description. The Foundation asked for one page in English, so the proposal needed a clear center of gravity rather than a long biography or a broad statement of ambition. Explain what you would do at the Center, what part of the work would benefit from uninterrupted time, and what tangible progress would be possible during a 30- or 31-day stay. A writer might identify a defined section of a book; a composer might describe the score or movement to be developed; a scholar might name the interpretive or archival work to be completed; an artist might describe a bounded body of new work. The goal is not to promise a finished career-defining masterpiece in one month. It is to show that the time has a practical purpose.

Select work samples that represent the quality and direction of the current practice. The Foundation’s requirements refer to work publicly presented during the last five years, while allowing older work when the applicant considers it useful. That means the sample set can have a reasoned exception, but it should not look like a random historical portfolio. Use the three slots to show range only when the range helps reviewers understand the proposed project. Otherwise, choose the samples that make the strongest case for the discipline and stage of work described in the rest of the application.

Choose referees who know the work well and can assess both achievement and working habits. The Foundation’s FAQ says that referees may work in any field, but should know the applicant personally and be able to provide a critical appraisal of the artistic or scholarly work. It also values evidence that the applicant can participate constructively in an intimate, international, multilingual community. A senior name who barely knows the project is less useful than a person who can give specific, credible examples.

Keep the CV short and selective. Three pages is enough to establish the arc of the practice, the most relevant publications or exhibitions, major performances or projects, awards, and other evidence of achievement. Do not use the CV to repeat the project description. Instead, let it provide the record that makes the proposed month of work believable.

Finally, plan for the costs the Fellowship does not cover. Transportation, materials, equipment, personal expenses, and medical expenses remain the Fellow’s responsibility. If a spouse or partner accompanies the Fellow, the Foundation says that this must be requested in the application and that the accompanying person is charged $35 per day toward meals and housing. The Center cannot accommodate children, and overnight visits by friends, colleagues, or other family members are not possible. These are practical eligibility and planning issues, not details to discover after accepting an offer.

Living at the Center

The Foundation describes the Fellowship as full room and board with a dedicated workspace. Fellows work in an environment shared by people from different disciplines and countries, with English typically serving as the common language. At minimum, Fellows need conversational English to take part in that community.

The Center can accommodate vegetarian, pescatarian, and gluten-free diets, but the published requirements warn that it cannot accommodate more restrictive needs, including kosher, vegan, or celiac diets. Applicants with specific accessibility or dietary questions should contact the Foundation before applying or accepting a residency. The Foundation also states that its buildings are accessible and that one fully ADA-compliant bedroom with a private bathroom is available, with advance notice needed for special arrangements.

Collaborative Fellowships are possible for no more than two people, but each applicant must submit a separate, complete application. Collaborators may need to share a bedroom and workspace. A spouse or partner who wants to be designated as a Fellow must also submit a separate application rather than simply accompanying the primary applicant.

Application steps for 2027-2028

Use the Foundation’s online application portal and first create an applicant account. Read the live Requirements page before filling in the form, then choose one discipline and the fall or spring semester that fits your project and availability. Complete the five-page application, supply the short CV, one-page English project description, and three work samples, and enter two referees’ current contact details. Submit the application and pay the fee online. The referees receive a link to upload their letters; requesting a letter is not enough, since both must reach the system by the chosen semester’s deadline. Applicants and referees receive email confirmation when a letter is received, so check the status and follow up promptly.

The Foundation may accept certain application materials and letters in Italian, French, or Spanish, but it encourages English submissions and translations into English of excerpts from written work. Follow any document-specific instructions inside the portal, since the live form controls formats and upload details. Alumni may apply again, though previous Fellows must wait five years before reapplying; alumni are not required to provide references, but may include new ones if they add useful context. A previously unsuccessful application does not itself prevent a new submission.

The official Requirements page publishes both current deadlines and required materials. The Foundation’s Apply page explains access to the application system, while its FAQ covers discipline selection, referees, residency arrangements, and common questions. Applicants should rely on these pages and the portal’s instructions for any updates as the 2027-2028 cycle proceeds.