NSISIM

NSISIM Studio is a slow burn practice of ecological embodiment


Vol. 1: Courses


Open Call



@nsisim.studio
Substack
nsisimstudio[at]gmail



Manifesto



NSISIM... (nuh-sih-sim) means ‘spirit’ in Bulu: a language spoken in the Southeastern region of Cameroon. 

this space is for:

  • 🌀 the curious who wants to bridge the gap between their values and embodying them


  • 🐚 the researcher interested in land, nature, memory, patterns, images, time, poetry, liberation


  • 🫀 the empathetic critic who observes, questions, re-envisions, and puts back together


  • 💌 the compassionate collaborator who respects, adds to, and co-imagines solutions & visions


  • 👽 the visionary worldbuilder who dreams, plans, visualizes, organizes, and.or strategizes


  • 🌿 the creative &/or thinker who makes, draws, weaves, tells, dances, plays, plans, studies, works, moves, connects, sings, paints, writes, builds, imagines who values her/their/his community/ies.


You



** a project by Ingrid Raphaël. 乁༼☯‿☯✿༽ㄏ

NSISIM Studio wants to personally thank the planet for all that it is, Sasha Kelley for the consultation of distribution strategies of course offerings– endlessly grateful for your piscean dreamer and capricorn rootedness and Iris E. Fernández Valdés who is our creative practice and emotional excavation life coach who has been accompanying us through parks, emotional underworld, creative laboratory, and inner child to unearth dormant corporal and poetic connections presented as NSISIM.\

Open Call: NSISIM touring exhibits

due Nov. 12 11:59p est - Submit Proposal (read in-full first)




*Open for participants who enrolled in the courses
TIME, WEB, WEAVING, NATURE and RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES


In 2026-2027, NSISIM Studio will dive into the immersive worldbuilding curating of multi-city exhibition experiences that embody the ecological poetic connections dived into each 2025 course.


Open Call Criteria


  • Must be a current/previous participant of one (or more) of the NSISIM Courses
  • A proposal of an artwork or performance in line with curatorial direction (more below)
  • Proposed art may have already been created, or will be made specifically for show
  • Understanding that artwork selections will vary across group shows in different cities to accomodate submissions 
  • International (outside of U.S.) submissions’ artworks must be a reasonable dimension due to increasing tariffs on shipments/postage

Curatorial Direction


NSISIM Studio is a slow burn practice of ecological embodiment: drawing on the connections between technology, art, nature, and the self/community.

For these exhibitions, artworks/performances/workshops will address/interpret ONE or MORE topic: TIME, WEB, WEAVING, NATURE and RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES through a poetic understanding that weaves/questions/critiques/uplifts/highlights technology/art/nature/self/community -- with any medium of your choosing .

Examples:
  • a 2x3 ft wool and felting as embodiments of African braiding technologies
  • a video essay on the uses of internet within a cultural archival context
  • a song performance along with video projections of nature as symbols of healing lyrics
  • a series of paintings honoring indigenous technologies
  • a folklore project of oral stories from communities exploring non-linear storytelling
  • etc... 


Proposals Must Include: Submit


  • Name/Pronouns/Artist Name
  • Location
  • Which topics artwork speaks to
  • How the artwork relates to topics
  • Medium
  • Artwork Description Dimensions
  • Materials/Supplies Needed
  • Up for Sale?* (see payments)
  • Intellectual Property Details

*** in case of proposal misalignment

In the case that your proposal is not selected for one exhibition, trust this may have to do with various factors: funding, location, shipment costs, production costs, of thematic misalignment. NSISIM Studio is a supporter of the intellect and artistic endeavor each participant has contributed to the courses. If a proposal is misaligned, artists will be provided an opportunity to make adjustments (to their consent) or place their proposal for future curatorial opportunities.  

*** 



Timeline


This is a proposal intake form in which, once selected, you agree to include your name, artwork proposal and other needed information for the use of exhibition proposals crafted by NSISIM Studio with curators, galleries, museums, and community spaces.

  • Every submission will be acknowledged and followed up when considered for an exhibition!
  • The timeline to hear back on your selection will vary based on public Open Call deadlines and as opportunities to display artwork come up within a 2-year time frame. We ask that you are patient as it takes time, resources, and oftentimes rejection, to curate and organize quality exhibits. 
  • For any artworks that has yet to be created, artists will receive ample time ahead of exhibition date to prep.
  • Exhibitions are set to occur between Fall 2026-Fall 2028.


Payment : Fees , Shipping, Materials


It is the intention of NSISIM Studio to pay each artist for their participation & cover the shipment of artworks: exact fees will depend on funding with partner galleries & sponsors.

  • The payments will vary between exhibit show & based off funding.
  • The payment will become clearer once exhibit proposals are confirmed from partners & artists will be informed of their payments.
  • Materials support for artworks yet to be created may or may not be available. This is due to the nature of fluctuating funding: this will be communicated once exhibition spaces/funding is secured. 
  • International tarrifs will be considered for international artworks in proposed budgets. 

NSISIM Studio is NOT a gallery, therefore will not handle the sale of artworks. Should artists request this, this will be taken in charge with collaborating galleries and exhibition spaces.


Politics and Values


NSISIM Studio will aim to collaborate with curators, galleries, and/or physical spaces that are aligned with the MANIFESTO.


Ready? Submit a Proposal!



If you know of spaces or curators/ programmers/ funding in your city that align with this, let’s connect!