Ludic Rooms is a socially engaged arts and tech non-profit from Coventry, UK. We create postdigital artworks, experiences and events that empower communities, offering creative opportunities to engage with technologies through experimentation and play.

We’re offering a 5-day paid R&D commission for an artist to experiment with the NAIAD platform and explore its potential through your creative lens. These are among the first opportunities for artists outside Ludic Rooms to work with this new tool.

Job Description

This residency is aimed at artists with a background in:

• Writing
• Site-responsive work
• Storytelling
• Performance or dramaturgy

You'll develop a prototype walking tour or performative walk supported by multimedia content delivered through audience smartphones. We imagine a single performer leading the group, with NAIAD enabling moments of sound, text, or media along the journey.

This could take the form of:

• Heritage-inspired storytelling
• Poetry or site-specific prose
• Horror or mystery walking adventures
• Puzzle or escape-style tours
• Environmentally themed work

We're especially keen to hear from artists exploring place, site-responsiveness, built environments, hidden histories, or audience agency in movement-based formats.

Key Dates

• Applications Open: Monday 4 August 2025
• Online Info Session / Webinar: Wednesday 20 August 2025, 4pm (email bally@ludicrooms.com to register)
• Application Deadline: Monday 15 September 2025, 5pm
• Interviews: Monday 22 September 2025
• Sharing Event: Friday 28 November 2025 at The Nest / Daimler Powerhouse, Coventry

Commission includes:

• 5 paid artist days (£1,250)
• A small production budget
• Access to creative/rehearsal spaces in and around Coventry Canal
• Creative, technical, and curatorial support from Ludic Rooms team members

The commissions will culminate in a sharing event where artists will present a work-in-progress and offer insights into their creative exploration.

Who Should Apply?

We actively encourage applications from artists from communities and backgrounds that are underrepresented in the arts and creative technology sectors. This includes but is not limited to:

• Global majority artists
• D/deaf and disabled artists
• Neurodivergent artists
• LGBTQIA+ artists
• Artists from working-class backgrounds
• Artists with lived experience of mental health challenges or chronic illness

If you're not sure whether your experience fits the brief, we'd still love to hear from you.

Job Responsibilities

What is NAIAD?

NAIAD is a creative tool that enables multimedia content-photos, sound, video, colours, animations, and text-to be streamed in real-time to audiences on their own smartphones. Audiences can be grouped to receive different content simultaneously, and NAIAD can also be used to deliver closed captions or audio description in live settings.

There's no need to download an app or join a specific network. Originally developed to support Ludic Rooms' own work, NAIAD has been supported by InnovateUK and is now in further development with Arts Council England funding, to explore its creative potential in wider contexts.

Funders & Partners

This project is supported by Arts Council England and InnovateUK, with additional backing from Coventry University's Centre for Creative Economies and the British Academy.