Call for Applications: Research Scholarship in Ascona 2026  

The Archivio Luigi Pericle in Ascona (Switzerland) and the Dahlem Humanities Center (DHC) at Freie Universität Berlin (Germany) are pleased to announce a new research fellowship for postdoctoral researchers and senior scholars in the humanities employed at Freie Universität Berlin. The successful applicant will have the opportunity to spend up to 6 weeks at the Archivio Luigi Pericle to pursue research and writing projects related to the Ascona region in a broad sense. Research projects, spanning the early modern period to the twentieth century, might address the following themes:

• Monte Verità
•  life reform movements, utopian communities
• Luigi Pericle and other regional art/artists
• philosophy
• theosophy
• dance
• art and spirituality
• art and anthroposophy
• the literary scene in Ascona during the Second World War and in the post-war years
• emigration of artists, artist communities

The fellow will be in residence at the Archivio Pericle/Hotel Ascona for a period of up to 6 weeks beginning on 1 March, 2026. The fellow will receive room and board as well as a stipend of 600 CHF. Travel expenses cannot be paid. However, postdocs employed at Freie Universität Berlin are eligible to apply for financial assistance of up to 500 Euro max. to help cover travel costs. These funds are made available by the Ernst-Reuter-Gesellschaft der Freunde, Förderer und Ehemaligen der Freien Universität Berlin, e.V.. Fellows are responsible for arranging their own health insurance.

How to apply:

• Eligible to apply are postdoctoral and senior scholars (professors) in the humanities who are employed at the Department of Philosophy and Humanities, the Department of History and Cultural Studies, or one of the central institutes (LAI, JFKI, OEI) at Freie Universität Berlin.
• Please submit a cover letter indicating the preferred dates of the fellowship (start date 1 March, 2026, maximum stay 6 weeks), a CV, and a research proposal (around 1,500 words, not including bibliography), specifying goals, and if possible, materials and documents to be consulted during the fellowship, as one PDF file to geschaeftsfuehrung@dhc.fu-berlin.de.
• Application deadline: 2 November, 2025
• Applicants will be notified of the outcome of the selection process in December 2025.
• A formal report of min. 10 pages must be submitted within three months after completion of the fellowship according to the disclosure policy. The title of the report must include “Luigi Pericle.

Members of the selection committee:

• Andrea and Greta Biasca-Caroni (Archivio Luigi Pericle)
• Karin Gludovatz, (Art History, DHC, Freie Universität Berlin)
• Beatrice Gründler (Arabic Studies, DHC, Freie Universität Berlin)
• Anita Traninger (Romance Literatures, DHC, Freie Universität Berlin)
• Matthias Warstat (Theatre Studies, DHC, Freie Universität Berlin)

Contact:
Dr. Anne Schenderlein
Managing Director and Academic Coordinator
Dahlem Humanities Center (DHC)
Freie Universität Berlin
Habelschwerdter Allee 45
14195 Berlin
Email: geschaeftsfuehrung@dhc.fu-berlin.de, Phone: +49 30 838 67097

Prof. Dr. Karin Gludovatz
Director
Dahlem Humanities Center (DHC)
Freie Universität Berlin
Habelschwerdter Allee 45
14195 Berlin
Email: karin.gludovatz@fu-berlin.de, Phone: +49 30 838 53824