DAR launches its third and fourth edition as a cultural accelerator in Castilla-La Mancha thanks to European Next Generation funds.
These simultaneous editions are aimed at the provinces of Northern Cuenca + Guadalajara and Southern Cuenca + Albacete, although applications from other provinces are also welcome.
The DAR Project (Dones Artistes Rurals / Rural Women Artists) is an initiative that works with women visual artists in rural areas to support their personal and professional development through professional training, promotion of their artistic practice, the creation of collaborative projects, and the encouragement of forming artist collectives.
DAR began its activity in Castilla-La Mancha in 2024 as a cultural accelerator thanks to European Next Generation funds. In both its first edition, DAR CUENCA, and its second, DAR CUENCA + Tajuña (GU) + Júcar (AB), 9 artists were selected respectively. From then on, they became part of the DAR platform and participated for approximately four months in training sessions focused on understanding the art market, how to manage and promote their work, learn about cultural resources, and develop collaborative projects with other women artists.
In July 2025, the project will continue its mission with the artists selected through the third and fourth open calls. From June 2 to July 10, 2025, DAR opens its third and fourth calls, aimed at women artists from Northern Cuenca + Guadalajara and Southern Cuenca + Albacete. However, artists from the provinces of Ciudad Real and Toledo are also welcome to apply, and their participation will be considered.
The call is open to women working in the field of contemporary art through various disciplines such as drawing, painting, ceramics, printmaking, screen printing, sculpture, photography, video art, street art, graffiti, performance, etc. Applicants may be working full-time or part-time—or aiming to do so. One of the requirements is to reside in one of the localities in the mentioned areas (preferably with fewer than 15,000 inhabitants).
DAR was founded in 2020 in the Valencian Community, supported by the Consorci de Museus de la Comunitat Valenciana in collaboration with the Centre del Carme Cultura Contemporània. This pioneering project began its journey in 2021 and each edition focuses on a different territory. To date, five editions have taken place in the Valencian Community, and in 2023 it expanded into Catalonia with two editions, thanks to European Next Generation funds and the Diputació de Tarragona.
In 2024, DAR began working with artists from its first edition in Castilla-La Mancha, specifically in the province of Cuenca. In 2025, a second open call was launched, also including the provinces of Guadalajara and Albacete—specifically the Tajuña River Valley and the Júcar River Basin. Two further editions will take place in the second half of the year: one for Northern Cuenca + Guadalajara, and another for Southern Cuenca + Albacete.
The DAR project has received several recognitions, including Best Project in 2022 by AVVAC (Visual Artists of València, Alacant and Castelló), and it has been included in the list of best rural culture projects by La Fábrica’s Observatory of Culture in 2022, 2023, and 2024. The initiative is also featured in the best practices cartographies of Culture and Ruralities by the Spanish Ministry of Culture and the National Rural Network of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
For more information about the areas covered by DAR’s third and fourth editions in the provinces of Northern Cuenca + Guadalajara and Southern Cuenca + Albacete, and to submit your application between June 2 and July 10: www.proyectodar.es
