Prairie Center of the Arts

For those who have yet to have a residency, I’ve compiled a short list of resources that may be helpful, but be sure to do your own research. It takes planning and a bit of schedule coordination to fit in a residency especially if you are balancing a career, family, or other activities. If you are in a period of unemployment or are in between jobs and can spare some cash, I recommend taking an artist residency.

This was the website that I used to research residencies: Mesart. It breaks the list of residencies down into states, which is helpful if you have a continental area or specific state you wish to travel to. I knew I wanted to stay in the Midwest and found the Prairie Center of the Arts on this website. Many programs require you to apply a year or more in advanced, so plan accordingly. I recommend leaving the state or finding a residency that is far enough away that you are not tempted to head home for a weekend.

I also recommend reading Artist Communities: A Directory of Residencies That Offer Time and Space for Creativity, by the Alliance of Artists Communities. It’s a good resource for beginning to research places for residencies both national and international. The main aspect of the book is residency profiles. The book goes in depth with a bunch of residencies providing the reader with important information: location, available equipment, eligibility for acceptance, hosing and meals services, accessibility, application info, artist responsibilities and organization responsibilities. The index in the back are also helpful with easy to read charts for the information presented in the book. Here’s a link to the Artist Communities website as well!

Looking for a Minnesota Residency? Try some of these. Here is a list of a variety of residencies in Minnesota, some are media specific:

Articulture

Anderson Center

Lanesboro Arts

Franconia

Loft

MCBA

Northern Clay Center

My residency at Prairie Center of the Arts was my first residency and was a great learning experience. Below is a list I compiled before, during and after my residency that residency-first-timers may find helpful!

When you arrive, head to a visitor center to get maps and guides of the local area. Research places to go to while you are there before you get to your residency and create a schedule for yourself

• What does your residency provide you with food, housing, a stipend? Who pays for the travel costs, material costs, equipment fees, residency fees? Make sure that you know what you need to bring to make your art and what is provided for you.
• Make sure you are educated on the expectations of your residency. Many expect artist to participate in public exhibitions, lectures, slide talks, art work donation, studio tours and more.
• Bring more supplies than you think you may need – prevents frequent trips to stores which eats up studio time, saves gas, and may save money depending on the cost of materials in the town or city you are in. I brought a gallon of white paint, and was completely out after the first four weeks!

• Ladies- consider how much beauty supplies you need to bring, residencies mean working hard in the studio and no need to get dolled up! Consider bringing a hair clip to tie up your hair rather than dragging your hair products and hair dryer along.
• Keep a journal! Written, visual, or digital (or all three) record your residency experience.
• Charge your GPS, Ipod, cell phone, camera, or other electronics before you go.
• Have a packing list and keep track of what you bring so you can re-pack everything when your residency is over. It’s also handy to maintain a record of your packing list so you can refer to it when you have another residency.
• Prep work is important, begin projects that are detailed or take a lot of prep work the day before you want to work on that project so when your ready to work on it, your not wasting time. I spent 2 days prepping these red boards before I began to paint the imagery on them.

• Take care of you studio or space, damaging the residency’s furniture or materials may mean you get charged or your deposit is not returned. I always tape down crate paper on table tops and under areas where I use permanent art materials like inks, paints and glues. Lay tarps under easels and areas where material may get onto the floor. These precautions will also help protect your art. Other artists have used the space before you and their art materials and residue may be still on the table tops or easels.
• Keep plastic and grocery bags from your food purchases to help pack up your materials when you have to bring them home. Have you considered how you are getting that work of art home safely? You can also uses your blankets, pillow and towels as packing cushion, just make sure they are clean before you wrap your art in them.
• Pack at least one nice or professional outfit. You may have the chance to show your work in a gallery, attend an opening, or have a residency sponsored dinner or event to attend to.

During my residency I accomplished: 35 paintings (various sized), 1 series of 2 paintings, 2 series of 4 paintings and 2 series of 6 paintings for a total of 57 paintings. I also made 1 pair of hand painted shoes, an installation, collaborative project creating 60 broadsides, updated: CV, resume, bio, brand new artist statement, archived professional press, exhibitions history and inventory….all in 6 weeks.

I set a goal to make a minimum of one painting a day on average (A painting takes me about 10 hours to complete). Which I worked really hard to complete, and I accomplished! When I was tired of painting each day, I had a small weekly list of tasks I wanted to work on as well. This structure was how I managed to be so productive. While it may not work for you, it is a quick breakdown of how I managed to fit everything into a 6 week residency! How much work do you want to create, what projects are you going to focus on? Break down what you want to accomplish into weekly goals. Below is a weekly breakdown of what I accomplished.

• Week 1 I focused on goal setting; both long and short term. Get off and running right away on creating work and getting some structure to your career. I began to paint right away and I also I planned to work on my business plan the entire time too. I began to read Business Planning for Dummies. It was a good way to work step by step, and broke everything down into understandable terms. My business plan is still a work in progress but so far has been well worth it. Interested in creating your own? Try this website to learn more about Writing a Business Plan. And if your asking yourself if a business plan is necessary….yes.

It took me about 2 hours to unpack and
move into my studio, a few hours later I made my first painting!

“You’re so Cheesy”

• Week 2 I focused on creating a professional and non-professional press archive, creating an exhibitions history list, and making an inventory. This allowed me to take a step back and organize previous materials I had so I can keep track and care of this information in the future. This was a very big task and I also used week three to help do all of these. Be sure to use archival materials and supplies when handling and archiving your press. If you are an emerging artist, begin to keep and make copies of your press and exhibitions contracts and forms, you will most likely need this information in the future!

Press Archive

•  Week 3 I focused on portfolio information such as CV, resume, bio, and statement….artist necessities! I tend to update them every month so I am only adding one or two items rather than overhauling or starting from scratch when they are too outdated. I also experimentally painted octopus tentacles on a pair of shoes. A residency is a good time to push yourself and try something new. Try a new subject, medium, material or technique!

• Week 4 I focused on basic marketing. I had two new sets of business cards made, began to read a social networking book, designed a basic price list, marketing audits, email newsletter list, and joined Google + for my arts related endeavors.
• Week 5 I focused on painting. I also packed up half of my work and shipped it home. This week I had the chance to use the Water Jet Machine. Be sure to utilize equipment that your residency provides you with, sometimes its a once in a life time chance! This was my first crack at using wood, machinery, and creating an installation!

Working with the Water Jet Machine

• Week 6 I focused on finishing up some paintings. Midway through the week, I stopped painting so everything could dry before I had to pack up and leave so I began to focus on writing my business plan some more. I also began working on the collaborative broadside project. Residencies are a good place to meet and work with other artists. They can help with tips, critiques, networking and advice, so be friendly!

Broadside collaboration project with Laura Madeline Wiseman

• Week 7 It’s often a good idea to leave something unfinished so when you move back home and are in a period of adjustment, you know where to pick up and start working again! But give yourself a week or two (maybe even more) to rest and recover. A residency is a time to focus on your work, after a month or more of non-stop art, reward yourself with a break. I took about two and a half weeks to adjust and slowly get back into art.

What am I working on now? Well I’m still blogging, but I have been photographing my new work in preparation for gallery submissions. I’m building a personal art database of high and low resolution photos to be more organized and prepared. I am also writing three grants, one of which is the Minnesota State Arts Board Artist Initiative Grant. That is a good grant for all Minnesotan artists to start with if you wish to begin grant writing. Deadline in a few days!