Scarlet Oak
12×12 inches
Monotype collage
©2018 Lucinda Howe

An art residency is a time to step away from daily life and focus on your art. Residencies are sponsored by arts organizations, commercial entities, or individuals. There are many variations in location, cost, length of time, and requirements of the artist. I’ve done several one-week residencies and felt that my art improved each time. (There are links to stories about those experiences at the bottom of this post.)

Last fall, I applied for a month-long residency in October that gave the use of a studio with the possibility of an exhibit at the end. I was excited about doing it although it would be a commitment of time and money. I filled out the paperwork, updated my resume, wrote an artist statement, and outlined a project that I wanted to do. Unfortunately, I was not accepted for the residency. Disappointing, but not unexpected.

So I decided I would do my residency at home. After all, I have a studio with all my supplies near by and the ability to set my own schedule. What was stopping me from my project? I decided to work on my project as if I were away from home. I minimized or postponed other commitments for the month, and set some goals about how many paintings I wanted to complete and how much time I wanted to spend in the studio. My project focused on learning new techniques for monoprinting with the Gelli plate and making collages of the prints.

Monotype collages
in progress
©2018 Lucinda Howe

At the end of the month, I did a “lessons learned” exercise. I didn’t meet all my goals for time in the studio and number of pieces produced, but I accomplished more than I would have during the month without the goals. I came up with a list of advantages and disadvantages to doing my residency at home.

Advantages

• No travel time or cost
• No packing and shipping of supplies or completed work
• All of my tools and supplies were available
• Was able to prepare and eat my usual diet
• I enjoyed working close to my own garden

Disadvantages

• No stimulation of new location
• No interaction with other artists
• Much too easy to become distracted
• No exhibit at the end
• No accountability

Overall, it wasn’t the residency that I originally applied for, but it was a useful learning experience. Completing the application forced me to update my resume and artist statement and to define a project. I’ll have more information for evaluating the next opportunity.

Ferns
12×12 inches
Monotype collage
©2018 Lucinda Howe

Read about my past residencies at South Carolina State Parks.

Oconee State Park http://lucindahowe.com/2014/01/artist-residencies/

Barnwell State Park http://lucindahowe.com/2016/10/barnwell-state-park/

Have you done an artist’s residency? What was your experience like? Please leave a comment below.