Call for Applications: Diefenbunker 2026 Artist-in-Residence Program

Diefenbunker: Canada’s Cold War Museum, Ottawa, Ontario

Art installation in the Bank of Canada Vault at the Diefenbunker, by 2020 Artist-in-Residence Greta Grip. Image courtesy of the Diefenbunker: Canada’s Cold War Museum.

Your art, 75 feet underground: Apply to be the Diefenbunker’s 2026 Artist-in-Residence

Submission Deadline: March 6, 2026, at 11:59pm ET

The Diefenbunker is seeking artists working in all media to apply to be the Diefenbunker’s 2026 Artist-in-Residence. Bring new perspectives and stories to Canada’s Cold War Museum, an impressive four-storey underground facility that operated as the country’s central communications headquarters during the Cold War. Today, the Diefenbunker is a one-of-a-kind museum and national historic site.

Since 2014, the Diefenbunker’s Artist-in-Residence Program has fostered connections between the museum, local artists, and the wider Ottawa-Gatineau community. The program offers a unique and meaningful public platform for emerging and established artists.

Photos from past Diefenbunker Artist-in-Residence exhibitions (left to right): 2023 Artist-in-Residence Wind Up Radio; 2025 Artists-in-Residence Olivia Johnston and Neeko Paluzzi; 2024 Artist-in-Residence Don Kwan. Courtesy of the Diefenbunker: Canada’s Cold War Museum.

Project Requirements

The successful applicant will create original works inspired by the Diefenbunker, the Cold War, or related themes, for presentation in an exhibition at the museum. The Diefenbunker welcomes one artist for a period of nine to eleven months. Artists are given full access to the museum, its library, collections, and archives for research. On-site artwork creation can be discussed.

Eligibility

The program is open to artists of all ages, working in all media, and living within 100 km of Ottawa. The residency is not a live-in opportunity, and artists must have their own means of transportation (there is no public transportation to the Diefenbunker).

Compensation

The artist will receive a CARFAC project fee, divided into two payments contingent upon completion of project milestones.

Selection Process

Receipt of applications will be acknowledged by email. Applications are reviewed by a selection committee. The successful applicant will be notified by March 17, 2026.

Photos from past Diefenbunker Artist-in-Residence exhibitions (left to right): 2021 Artist-in-Residence Mairi Brascoupé; 2022 Artist-in-Residence Christos Pantieras; 2025 Artists-in-Residence Olivia Johnston and Neeko Paluzzi.

Submission Requirements

Applications must include a CV, artist statement, proposed project description, and examples of recent work. Detailed requirements can be found at diefenbunker.ca/artist-in-residence.

How to Submit

Applications are to be submitted via email to s.campbell@diefenbunker.ca. More information can be found at diefenbunker.ca/artist-in-residence.

Submission Deadline: March 6, 2026, at 11:59pm ET

For additional information or questions, please contact:
Sean Campbell, Curator
s.campbell@diefenbunker.ca

Diefenbunker: Canada’s Cold War Museum
3929 Carp Road, Ottawa, Ontario K0A 1L0
diefenbunker.ca
reservations@diefenbunker.ca
613-839-0007

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Accessibility:
The Diefenbunker: Canada’s Cold War Museum is partially accessible. For more information, visit the Diefenbunker’s accessibility webpage.

Image Descriptions:
1. Rows of black and white knitted square patterns displayed on the wall of the Bank of Canada Vault at the Diefenbunker.
2. Collage depicting three art installations: silhouettes of people standing in the Bank of Canada Vault at the Diefenbunker surrounded by multi-coloured lights; a wall of stacked cardboard boxes with glowing lights and flowers inside; two people looking at a large woven paper mural of black and white photographs.
3. Collage depicting three art installations: painted map of the Ottawa region on a canvas with colourful beadwork outlining rivers, roads, and place names; multiple small red, green, and yellow numbered identification tags hanging side-by-side in rows; a person stands in front of a collaged mural of grayscale and sepia protest imagery from the Cold War.
4. Black and red logo for the Diefenbunker: Canada’s Cold War Museum.