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Imagine this; you typically spend extended hours in your studio creating art, almost every day. Your studio also doubles as your home. It is safe to say that you spend a lot of time at home, either sleeping or creating new art. An opportunity arises that gives you room to spend 3 to 6 months in a new workspace, this workspace is located in a new city. You get paid a pretty decent monthly stipend with an accompanied accommodation. Every now and then, you get to interact with other artists like you who have come into town for this opportunity. You wine and dine with your peers as well as members of the studio’s collecting community every now and then. You feel deeply inspired by this new experience and it shows in the type of art you have been creating since your time here.
This picture we just painted aptly describes artist residencies.
Artist residency is pivotal in shaping or molding an artist. It is so important that the right residency serves as a doorway to life altering opportunities for an artist. Artist residencies exist all over the world and artists can take advantage of any such programs that align with their vision. These programs are designed to inspire participating artists to research, reflect, and produce works outside their regular studio or workstations. This dedicated studio time voids distraction that they may typically have to endure in regular life. One can liken artist residency to an exchange program enjoyed by an undergraduate student that is geared towards providing guidance to young artists so as to have a long-lasting positive influence in their careers.
The right residency provides studio spaces, lodging, and sometimes stipends for the artist. Residencies are a great resume builder for artists; they are designed to spark their creativity and grow their networth within the studio’s collecting community as they foster relationships with curators, critics, and collectors.
Let us deep dive into statistics.
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According to a survey conducted by the Australian consul for the arts, 62% of artists said their motivation for participating in artists residency is the time and space it awards them to practice their art.
FINDING THE RIGHT RESIDENCY FOR YOU
If artists see the value residencies bring to their career, you must be wondering why it may seem that we have limited residency opportunities for African artists. How can African artists find and get into a good residency program?
1. RESEARCH: Those seeking shall find. To find the right residency, you would need to carry out research. ResArtis.org is the wikipedia or google for art opportunities. It houses residency programs by continents and one can drill down to country specific programs to find out criteria and requirements.
2. VISION ALIGNMENT: 1% vision, 99% alignment. Good things take time and as such, it is advisable to find a program that as an artist you truly believe will help you achieve your career goals. It must align with the vision you have mapped out on how you anticipate your journey to flow. It must adhere to your needs and build you up in your quest to become a world renowned artist.
3. ARTISTS OUTREACH: Artists who have undergone or currently undergoing such residencies are in the best place to give you an honest review of the program. They will be able to tell you how effective their participation in the residency program has had / is having on their career. For those artists you are unable to reach, a simple google search will show you how they have fared since their participation. All of these will help you in making the right decision.
In summary, collectors love to collect artists who invest in and put themselves out there. Artist residency is one of such ways an artist can show such commitment to self. What’s more, participation opens up international opportunities, foster healthy relationships with artists and stakeholders in the larger collecting community, and access to galleries seeking representation for artists.
