Across the Water
A PLATFORM 2020 x No! Wahala Media
online residency exploring interconnectedness across
Africa, SWANA & the diaspora
Open Call: 24 July - 7 August 2026
Residency: 17 August - 21 November 2026
For: 8-10 photographers and visual storytellers from Africa, SWANA and the diaspora
Cost: Free for selected artists
Application form below
PLATFORM 2020 and No! Wahala Media are pleased to announce Across the Water, a new online residency for photographers and visual storytellers developing work around the theme of interconnectedness.
Across the Water brings together 8-10 artists from Africa, SWANA and the diaspora to make, think, exchange and develop work over a three-month period.
The residency asks what connects us across distance: through geography, migration, memory, language, inheritance, friendship, fracture, return, political history, land, sea and image-making itself.
This is not a conventional open call or portfolio showcase. It is a space for artists to enter into dialogue with one another, to develop new or evolving work and to consider how images can move between people, places, histories and lived experience.
At the heart of the residency is a simple question: What does it mean to make images across distance without collapsing difference?
Across the Water considers water not only as separation, but as passage, memory, route, inheritance and relation. Between Africa, SWANA and the diaspora, the residency invites artists to think through connection not as something easy or sentimental, but as something layered, complex and alive.
How to apply
Applications should be submitted through the PLATFORM 2020 website. Please prepare the following:
5-8 images from an existing project, work-in-progress or visual direction connected to the themeA short artist bioA short project proposal outlining what you would like to explore or develop during the residencyA brief statement on your connection to Africa, SWANA or the diasporaOne question you would like to carry into the residency
Enter a space of exchange, reflection and visual possibility. Across the Water invites artists to make work in relation: across distance, memory and place
Who this is for
This residency is for photographers and visual storytellers from Africa, SWANA and the diaspora who are developing a project, visual sequence or body of work connected to the theme of interconnectedness.
We are especially interested in artists working with photography, moving image, archive, text, sound, family history, memory, place, migration, belonging, land, water, inheritance, community, resistance or return.
You do not need to have a fully resolved project. We are looking for artists with a clear visual direction, a strong question and a willingness to engage deeply with others over time.
This opportunity is best suited to advanced beginner and intermediate practitioners who are ready to develop their work in a supported, critical and collaborative environment.
The residency will be conducted in English, but we welcome artists working across languages, geographies and forms of expression.
What the residency includes
Across the Water will run online from 17 August - 21 November 2026. Artists will be placed in small constellations, allowing the residency structure itself to reflect the theme of interconnectedness. Participants will be invited to exchange images, questions, texts, fragments, sounds, references or prompts with one another as part of the making process.
The residency will be facilitated by Laura El-Tantawy, founder of PLATFORM 2020, and Anne Nwakalor, founder of No! Wahala Media. Over the course of the residency, selected artists will take part in:
Daily artistic exchanges via SlackMonthly visual mapping sessionsPaired artist exchanges responding to the theme of interconnectednessTwo group critique sessions each monthOne guest presentation each monthAn editorial and publication sessionA final online public showcase
What artists will develop
Each selected artist will work towards a short visual body of work or sequence developed during the residency. The final work does not need to be “finished” in a conventional sense. We are interested in process, risk, visual thinking and the ways artists arrive at form through exchange. By the end of the programme, each artist will be invited to submit:
6-10 images or a short visual sequenceA brief written reflectionA short biographyOne question carried through the residencyAudio, voice note, archive fragment or correspondence excerptOutcomes
This residency is designed to offer artists more than visibility. It’s a space for development, dialogue, publication, community and long-term connection. Selected artists will receive:
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Selected work will be published in the December 2026 issue of No! Wahala Magazine, responding to the theme of interconnectedness.
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Artists will be featured in a dedicated online showcase on PLATFORM 2020.
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Artists will take part in a final public online presentation, sharing the work and questions developed during the residency.
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Artists will receive free access to No! Wahala Media’s monthly workshops during August, September and October, including sessions on portfolio development, freelancing as a documentary photographer, and photobook-making and publishing pathways.
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Artists will take part in a dedicated session led by PLATFORM 2020 founder and creative director Laura El-Tantawy on visual language, authorship, editing, ethics and sustaining a long-term photographic practice.
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Artists will remain connected to the PLATFORM 2020 community through future talks, gatherings, open calls, critiques and artist-development opportunities.
Key dates
Open call launches: 24 July 2026
Application deadline: 7 August 2026
Selection period: 8-10 August 2026
Selected artists contacted: 11-16 August 2026
Residency begins: 17 August 2026
Residency ends: 21 November 2026
Online showcase: Late November / early December 2026
No! Wahala Magazine publication: December 2026
Participation fee
Across the Water is free for selected artists.
There is no participation fee to take part in the residency. This reflects PLATFORM 2020 and No! Wahala Media’s shared commitment to creating accessible spaces for artists to develop work, enter into meaningful exchange and connect with wider creative communities across Africa, SWANA and the diaspora.
How to apply
Applications should be submitted through the PLATFORM 2020 website using the form below.
Please prepare the following before applying:
5-8 images from an existing project, work-in-progress or visual direction connected to the theme
A short project proposal outlining what you would like to explore or develop during the residency
A short artist bio
A brief statement on your connection to Africa, SWANA or the diaspora
One question you would like to carry into the residency
Application Form
Thank you for your interest in Across the Water, a PLATFORM 2020 x No! Wahala Media online residency exploring visual connection across Africa, SWANA and the diaspora through the theme of interconnectedness.
This application is intended to help us understand your practice, your relationship to the residency theme and what you would like to develop over the three-month programme.
You do not need to have a fully resolved project. We are interested in artists with a clear visual instinct, a meaningful question and a willingness to enter into exchange.
Applications close 7 August 2026 at 23:59 UK. Late applications will not be considered.
About PLATFORM 2020PLATFORM 2020 is a documentary photography education and community platform rooted in Africa and SWANA. Founded by Laura El-Tantawy, it creates spaces for learning, dialogue, authorship and visual storytelling beyond the easy frame.
About No! Wahala MediaNo! Wahala Media is a magazine and media platform dedicated to championing African photographers and visual storytellers through publishing, education, workshops, artist development and community.
Questions?
For any questions about the residency or application process, please get in touch.