Artist-in-Residence Program

The Artist-In-Residence Program at the Museum of Northern Arizona (MNA) offers professional writers, composers, and visual and performing artists the opportunity to pursue their artistic discipline, while immersed in the inspiring landscape of northern Arizona and the Colorado Plateau. Artists stay in a historic home on the grounds of the Museum and have access to studio facilities. The three-week residency, which typically takes place during September or October, also offers artists access to the Museum’s library and collections for research.* Artwork created as a result of the residency will characterize the Colorado Plateau for present and future generations and offer Museum visitors an opportunity to see MNA’s heritage through the creations of participating artists. Artists’ work will be exhibited or presented through performance at the Museum within two years of the completion of their residency.

*The Museum will consider (but cannot guarantee) hosting artist residents during other months of the year.

Goals of the Artist-In-Residence Program

  • To develop new insights and understandings of the Colorado Plateau region
    through the artistic process

  • To enhance the role of the Museum of Northern Arizona as a center of artistic and cultural investigation and education

  • To initiate internal and public discourse about the relationships between the arts, science, culture, and topics related to multidisciplinary and multicultural activities

  • To elucidate, by example, the role that artists can play in modern society

  • To integrate visiting artists with the Museum’s educational programs, including outreach to regional schools

Program Requirements
The Artist-In-Residence Program supports MNA’s mission to share with the public the natural beauty, heritage and stories of the Colorado Plateau region. Work created in the course of a residency will be presented in a public exhibit, performance, or reading within two years of its completion.

Artists must provide their own personal supplies and equipment. Additionally, as a part of this residency program, artists will present two 45-minute public programs during their stay—one specifically targeting a student audience. Programs can be tailored to an individual’s medium, interest, and experience and can be a demonstration, talk, exploratory walk, performance, or other program format. Artists are requested to give a public presentation in their own community about their residency experience and are encouraged to disseminate information about MNA to interested parties in their community and in other communities they frequent or visit.

Participating artists are asked to donate to MNA, in consultation with Museum staff, an original work of art, representative of their residency at the Museum. Performing artists and writers are asked to develop and organize (with assistance from Museum staff) a public program or performance.

Selection Process
A committee that includes MNA’s director, curator of the Museum, and curator of fine arts will choose up to three finalists and two alternates for the upcoming residency. Selections are made solely on the basis of submitted material. Committee members reserve the right to not fill the residency at their discretion.

How to Apply
Applications for the program are accepted beginning December 1, 2009, and must be received by February 30, 2010 for consideration for the following residency season. Notification will be made by March 30, 2010. Application materials will not be returned.

Please submit an application packet that includes:
1. Application form
2. Resume
3. One-page statement stating what you hope to accomplish during a residency at the Museum of Northern Arizona
4. Names and contact information of two professional references who know your artwork
5. An appropriate sample of your recent work (i.e., 10 slides, or 10 images of different works on a CD from visual artists; a brief manuscript excerpt, short story, article, poetry, etc., maximum of six pages, from writers and poets; one 1/2" VHS videotape or DVD from dancers and other performing artists
 
For additional information or to mail your application, please contact:
Alan Petersen, Curator of Fine Arts
Museum of Northern Arizona
3101 N. Fort Valley Road
Flagstaff, AZ 86001
928/226-4322


 Frequently Asked Questions
How many artists are selected each year?
Between one and three artists, and up to two alternates, are selected each year.

Must I reapply for the program each year?
Yes.

What resources are available to me during a residency?
In addition to housing, artists have access to the Museum’s collections and library.

What are the housing arrangements?
Artists are housed in a historic furnished cabin on the Museum campus. Accommodations include a full kitchen outfitted with pots, pans, dishes, and silverware. Occupants are responsible for cleaning prior to departure. Pets and smoking are not allowed.

Can I bring my family or pet?
Family members may join the artist for the residency, as long as the number of occupants does not exceed the occupancy limits of the cabin. Pets are not permitted.

Can I ship supplies or equipment to the Museum prior to my visit?
Yes. The artist is responsible for shipping costs to and from the Museum.

Credits

Top: "Low Light" by Eva van Rijn
Lower:  "Dead Horse Point" by Eva van Rijn

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