A writer’s favorite award may be money, but a close second is time. Writing
retreats offer this to the residents they choose. Every writer’s needs
differ in terms of length of residency, locales, facilities, expenses,
deadlines, application requirements, and other details, so a variety of
choices is listed below (in alphabetical order).
On the Web, visit the retreat’s individual site, the Alliance
of Artists Communities, Pilot-Search, or Yahoo!
for more guidance. Check with individual retreat materials (on the Web
or in print) for the most up-to-date details.
American
Academy in Berlin
Location: Hans Arnhold Center, an historic lakeside villa, in the Wannsee
district of Berlin, Germany
Eligibility: U.S. citizens only. Novelists, historians, critics, playwrights,
theater scholars, visual artists. No repeat residencies.
Includes: Furnished suites with small, equipped kitchen units, TVs,
VCRs. Spouse possible. Breakfast and dinner provided and served in the
dining room; fellows who wish to take meals in their rooms may do so.
Fees: Artist pays for materials. Institution pays for housing, studios,
food, travel, facilities, program admin. Stipends, fellowships &
awards available. Regular Berlin Prize Fellowships, plus one Emerging
Artists Fellowship and one Advanced Studies Fellowship.
Average # of Residents at once: 8–10
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 16:150
Resident Season: Sept 1-May 15
Average Residency Length: 1-2 academic semesters
Application Deadline: Feb 1
Anderson Center
for Interdisciplinary Studies
Location: Five miles north of Red Wing, Minnesota, on 320 acres of
farm and bottomlands, near the confluence of the Cannon and Mississippi
Rivers.
Eligibility: Writers, painters, composers, musicians, historians, photographers.
Eligibility determined by excellence of artistic samples (writing, slides,
etc.) and clearly defined focus of project to be worked on while at
the Center; genre or discipline; geography. Both emerging and established
artists are welcome. Repeat residencies permitted.
Includes: Free room (and board for 5 days per week) and a quiet workplace
in room or in studios. Spouse possible; two bedrooms can accommodate
couples; one partner would work in separate studio or room.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $15, travel, materials, some community
service. Institution pays for housing, studios, food, facilities, program
administration. Artist eligible for A. P. Anderson award for contributions
in literature and arts; fellowship programs with University of Minnesota,
Mankato State University, and The Loft Writing Departments.
Average # of Residents at once: 6
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 25:75
Resident Season: May-Sept
Average Residency Length: 2 weeks to 1 month, with some longer
Application Deadline: March 1
ART/OMI
Location: A converted 1830 farmhouse in New York’s historic Hudson
River Valley, near the town of Chatham..
Eligibility: International Artists’ Colony: painters, sculptors, installation
artists. Ledig House International Writers’ Colony: writers, poets,
translators. Music/OMI: Jazz and innovative musicians. No repeat residencies.
Must submit resume, work sample, and essay.
Includes: Rooming on campus. All meals provided.
Fees: Artist pays for travel, materials. Institution pays for housing,
studios, food, facilities, program administration. Fellowships for visual
artists in 1999 supported African-American or Native-American, Polish,
Australian, Danish, Korean, and Chinese artists (6 Fellowships in all).
Average # of Residents at once: 30
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 29:370
Resident Season: Writers year-round, musicians in Aug., 3 weeks in
July for visual artists.
Average Residency Length: 3-4 weeks
Application Deadline: Writers, Nov 30. Visual artists, March 1. Musicians,
May 1.
Atlantic
Center for the Arts
Location: 69 acres on tidal estuary, fronting Turnbull Bay, on the
east coast of central Florida.
Eligibility: Visual arts (painting, sculpture, photography, video installation),
architecture, music (composition, performing), literature, dance (ballet
and modern), theater. Repeat residencies permitted. Must submit resume,
work sample, and cover letter.
Includes: Individual bedrooms with private bath, small refrigerator,
and desk area. Spouse possible. Artists purchase own food and prepare
own meals.
Fees: Artist pays $800 (residency fee $300; housing $500), travel,
materials. 3 evening meals per week are provided, and a communal commercial
kitchen with basic equipment. Scholarships, fellowships/ awards available
on a limited basis.
Average # of Residents at once: 21
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 100:800
Resident Season: Year-round
Average Residency Length: 3 weeks
Application Deadline: Varies; approx. 3 months prior to start of residency;
future residents notified within 3 weeks of application; June 5 for
Aug 27 – Sept 16
Djerassi Resident Artists
Program
Location: 637-acre, former cattle ranch in Northern California about
35 miles south of San Francisco in secluded Santa Cruz Mountains between
Palo Alto & Pacific Ocean.
Eligibility: Writers, visual artists, composers, choreographers, performance
artists, media artists, and other artists working in new genres Repeat
residencies permitted.
Includes: Writers’ rooms in Artists’ House include large desk, workspace,
and outdoor deck. Visual artists live and work in the twelve-sided barn.
No pets allowed.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $25, travel, materials. Institution
pays for housing, studios, food, facilities, program administration.
Gerald Oshita Memorial Fellowship of $2,500 for composer of color. Other
awards on occasion. Many residencies are supported by named annual,
or endowed fellowships
Average # of Residents at once: 9
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 60:560
Resident Season: Late March to mid Nov.
Average Residency Length: 30-31 days
Application Deadline: Feb. 15
Fine Arts Work Center in
Provincetown
Location: Provincetown, Mass., at the tip of Cape Cod
Eligibility: Fine arts, fiction, poetry, photography, sculpture. Focuses
on emerging artists and writers. Repeat residencies permitted. Must
submit application, work sample, and statement.
Includes: Visual artists provided with apartments and separate studio.
Writers provided with 1-3 room apartments. Apartments, all with kitchens
- artists purchase own food and prepare own meals.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $35, food, travel, materials. Institution
pays for Housing, studios, facilities, program administration, some
materials. The Work Center’s Winter Program is a fellowship program.
Stipends provided range from $375/ month (visual artists receive an
additional $75/ month for supplies) up to $600 per month depending on
funding.
Average # of Residents at once: 20
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 18:1100
Resident Season: Oct. 1-May 1
Average Residency Length: 7 months
Application Deadline: Writers and poets, December 1 (postmark). Visual
artists, February 1 (postmark)
The Gell
Writers’ Center of the Finger Lakes
Location: On 25 acres on Canandaigua Lake, in the center of the Finger
Lake region.
Eligibility: Visual artists, writers, musicians, dancers, performers,
and others.
Includes: Two-bedroom house, with separate work, kitchen, bathroom,
and dining space. No studios.
Fees: Artist pays for travel, food, personal needs, materials. Residency
Fee: $25/day members, $35/day non-members. $1,250 stipend for Gell Fellowship
recipients only.
Average # of Residents at once: 8 fellows plus other residents
Resident to Applicant Ratio: Unknown
Resident Season: Year-round
Average Residency Length: 7-10 days
Application Deadline: Ongoing
The Hambidge Center
for Creative Arts and Sciences
Location: 600 acres in extreme northeastern Georgia, nestled in the
Blue Ridge Mountains, 120 miles from Atlanta, 90 miles from Asheville,
NC.
Eligibility: Creative arts: writing, poetry, visual arts, music composition,
performance, and dance, environmental. Repeat residencies permitted.
Must submit resume, work sample, and 3 letters of recommendation.
Includes: Individual cottage/studios. Evening meals are provided Monday-Friday
(May-October) and are primarily vegetarian (no meat, but fish). Residents
purchase and prepare own food at other times. Each studio has a full
kitchen.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $20, fixed residency/ housing fee
$125/ week (1 month = $500), travel, materials, most food. Institution
pays for facilities, program administration, some food. Hambidge offers
a limited number of resident scholarships that are listed in the material
sent to applicants.
Average # of Residents at once: 7+
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 86:163
Resident Season: May–Oct. (Limited residency available Jan. and Feb.)
Average Residency Length: 2-6 weeks
Application Deadline: Nov. 1 for March-Aug. res. May 1 for Sept.-Dec.
res. Late appl. reviewed on 1st-come, 1st-served basis & as space
becomes available.
Hedgebrook
Location: 33-acre farm on Whidbey Island, Washington State, about an
hour north of Seattle
Eligibility: Women only. Writers in all literary genres, regardless
of publication history. No repeat residencies.
Includes: 6 fully furnished cottages, including efficiency kitchen,
bathroom, desk, and loft.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $15, travel, materials. Institution
pays for housing, food, facilities, program administration, some travel.
Fellowships/awards and travel scholarships available.
Average # of Residents at once: 6
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 67:352
Resident Season: Mid-Jan to May 31. Late June to early Dec.
Average Residency Length: 4-5 weeks
Application Deadline: Oct. 1, March 15
The MacDowell
Colony, Inc.
Location: 450 acres of woodlands and fields near Mt. Monadnock, in
southern New Hampshire in the town of Peterboroug. Oldest and largest
colony in states.
Eligibility: Visual artists, writers, composers, filmmakers, interdisciplinary
artists. Main criteria for acceptance is quality of work. Repeat residencies
permitted. Must submit application, work sample, and 2 references.
Includes: 32 studios; 7 live-in studios, 25 studios assigned with separate
bedroom in common building. All meals provided. No pets; spouses possible
only as separate applicants
Fees: Artist pays application fee $20 (one application per person per
year), materials, travel. Institution pays for housing, studios, food,
facilities, program administration, travel (the latter based on need).
Stipend available during 1998-2001 that will provide financial aid to
writers as part of pilot program. Fellowships/awards and travel grants
available..
Average # of Residents at once: 32 summer, 22 other seasons
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 196:1182
Resident Season: Year-round
Average Residency Length: 4 weeks, with max of 2 months
Application Deadline: Jan. 15 for May-Aug residency; April 15 for Sept..-Dec.
residency; Sept. 15 for Jan.-April residency
Mary
Anderson Center for the Arts
Location: 400 acres of rolling woodlands and wildlife sanctuary, 15
minutes north of downtown Louisville, Kentucky
Eligibility: Writing, visual arts, musicians of all genres. Repeat
residencies permitted.
Includes: Private rooms in Loftus House. Meals provided.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $15, sliding scale residency fee
$30/day suggested minimum ($900), deposit of 20% of total fee due to
secure residency after notification of acceptance, travel, materials.
Institution pays for housing, studios, food, facilities, program administration.
Fellowships available.
Average # of Residents at once: 4
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 80:175
Resident Season: Year-round
Average Residency Length: 1 month
Application Deadline: Ongoing, except for specific fellowships
The Millay Colony for the Arts
Location: 600-acre historic estate, 3 hours from both Boston and New
York in Austerlitz, NY
Eligibility: Writers, composers, visual artists. Selection based on
quality of work. Repeat residencies permitted. Must submit application,
work sample, resume, and 1 letter of recommendation.
Includes: 6 studios. Separate living and studio rooms. Private bedroom..
Two artists have private baths, and four share bathrooms. All food provided.
Dinners prepared weeknights; artists prepare other meals.
Fees: Artist pays for travel and materials. Institution pays for housing,
studios, food, facilities, program administration. No stipends or fellowships/awards
available.
Average # of Residents at once: 6
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 72:500+
Resident Season: Year-round
Average Residency Length: 1 month
Application Deadline: Feb 1 for June-Sept. residency; May 1 for Oct.-Jan.
residency; Sept. 1 for Feb.-May residency.
Northwood
University/Alden B. Dow Creativity Center
Location: On the campus of Northwood University, Midland Michigan.
Eligibility: Visual artists, writers, musicians/dancers/performers,
architects/designers, collaborative groups. No repeat residencies.
Includes: 4 studios. Large apartment/work space with kitchen in a wooded
environment. Lunch provided Monday through Friday at the Creativity
Center; Fellows purchase own food and prepare all other meals.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $10, travel, materials, most food.
Institution pays for housing, studios, facilities, program administration,
some food. Artist eligible for $750 stipend to be used on project costs
or personal needs.
Average # of Residents at once: 4
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 4:65
Resident Season: June-Aug.
Average Residency Length: 10 weeks
Application Deadline: Dec. 31
Ragdale Foundation
Location: 30 miles north of Chicago near Lake Michigan, in the suburb
of Lake Forest
Eligibility: Fiction writers, visual artists, poets, creative non-fiction
writers, composers. Artists of all career levels welcome. Repeat residencies
permitted.
Includes: Bedroom and studio. All meals provided.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $20, fixed res. fee $15/day (contribution
towards food costs; 1 month = $450), $75 deposit (applied toward residency
fee), travel, materials. Institution pays for housing, studios, food,
facilities, program administration.
Average # of Residents at once: 12
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 163:429
Resident Season: All year, except May and last half of Dec.
Average Residency Length: 2 weeks-2 months
Application Deadline: Jan. 15 for June-Dec. residency. June 1 for Jan.-April
residency. Latter season less competitive.
Sitka Center
for Art and Ecology
Location: In the Cascade Head National Scenic Research Area, overlooking
the Salmon River estuary and Pacific Ocean. 100 miles down the Oregon
Coast from Astoria.
Eligibility: Visual artists, writers, musicians/dancers/performers,
architects/designers, scholars. No repeat residencies. Must submit resume,
work sample, and 2 letters of recommendation.
Includes: Individual residences, with kitchens and baths. One Residence
has second sleeping area and a larger living area so it can accommodate
spouse and one child. Own studio. Artists purchase own food and prepare
own meals.
Fees: Artist pays for food, travel, materials. Institution pays for
housing, studios, facilities, program admin. Artist eligible for Founders’
Series award of $500 monthly stipend to one of the four artists in residence
each year. Founders Series Invitational opportunity for artists of international
stature, which provides a modest stipend and covers travel and materials
costs.
Average # of Residents at once: 2–3
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 14:18
Resident Season: Oct. 1 to Jan. 21; Feb. 1 to May 21
Average Residency Length: 3-4 months
Application Deadline: April 15
Ucross
Foundation Residency Program
Location: 22,000 acre working cattle ranch in northeast Wyoming, in
the foothills of the Big Horn Mountains, 27 miles southeast of Sheridan
Eligibility: Writers and visual artists of all disciplines, composers,
musicians, dancers, choreographers, general scholars and historians,
filmmakers, environmentalists and naturalists
Includes: 8 studios, including 4 writing studios and 4 visual artist
studios. Separate, private bedrooms, shared bathrooms. All meals provided
(lunch delivered to studios) Monday-Friday; food provided for artists
to prepare their meals on weekends.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $20, travel, materials. Institution
pays for housing, studios, food. No stipends or fellowships/awards are
available.
Average # of Residents at once: 8 (max)
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 60:300
Resident Season: Aug.–early Dec., Feb.-early June
Average Residency Length: 2-8 weeks
Application Deadline: March 1, Oct. 1
Vermont Studio
Center
Location: Northern Vermont, in the town of Johnson
Eligibility: Painters, sculptors, printmakers, photographers, mixed
media, writers, poets. Repeat residencies permitted.
Includes: Private studios. 6 residence houses, dining hall, complete
linen service, housekeeping service. Meals: All meals provided.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $25, residency fee $3,200/month,
travel, materials. Institution pays for housing, studios, food, facilities,
program administration. 150 full fellowships per year awarded on a competitive
basis. Numerous international, regional, and statewide fellowship programs.
250 partial grants and work-exchange available.
Average # of Residents at once: 50 (24 painters, 12 sculptors, 12 writers,
2 printmakers/photographers)
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 500:2220
Resident Season: Year-round
Average Residency Length: 1 month
Application Deadline: Feb 15, June 15, and Sept 30
Villa Montalvo
Location: 175 acres in the eastern foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains,
16 miles from San Jose, 50 miles from San Francisco, located on an historic
site
Eligibility: Writers, painters, sculptors, musicians, composers, playwrights,
architects, multidisciplinary. No repeat residencies. Must submit application,
resume, work sample, and brief proposal.
Includes: 5 furnished apartments, with private bath and kitchen. 2
apartments have living rooms with desks for writers. The composer’s
apartment has a baby grand piano (3 other apartments have upright pianos).
Spouse possible. Artists purchase own food and prepare own meals; once-a-week
potluck.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $20, refundable security deposit
$100, food, travel, materials. Institution pays for housing, studios,
facilities, program administration. Seven $400 fellowships given each
year, based on merit. $75 honoraria for artists’ presentations given
as part of Villa Montalvo’s Outreach Program.
Average # of Residents at once: 3-5
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 36:293
Resident Season: Year-round
Average Residency Length: 6 weeks
Application Deadline: March 1, September 1
The Virginia Center for
the Creative Arts
Location: 450 acres in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of
central Virginia, 160 miles southwest of Wash, DC
Eligibility: Painters, sculptors, printmakers, poets, fiction writers,
screenwriters, playwrights, composers, performance artists, video. Repeat
residencies permitted. Must submit application, resume, work sample,
and paragraph.
Includes: 22 bedrooms, shared bathrooms. Individual studio. All meals
provided. Breakfast and dinner served in dining room. Lunches delivered
to studios. Spouses possible only as separate applicants.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $20, voluntary residency fee $30/day
suggested, travel, materials. Institution pays for housing, studios,
food, facilities, program administration. Occasionally, fully funded
residencies or stipends available.
Average # of Residents at once: 22
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 329:562
Resident Season: Year-round
Average Residency Length: 2 weeks–2 months
Application Deadline: Jan. 15, May 15, and Sept. 15
The Corporation of Yaddo
Location: 400 acres of lakes, woodlands, and gardens in Saratoga Springs,
New York, three hours from NYC
Eligibility: Fiction and non-fiction writers, poets, playwrights, painters,
composers, choreographers, performance artists, filmmakers, videographers.
Artists must be working at the professional level in their fields..
Repeat residencies permitted. Must submit resume, work sample, application,
and 2 letters of support.
Includes: Private studio and private bedroom. No pets. Spouses possible
only as separate applicants.
Fees: Artist pays application fee $20, travel, materials. Institution
pays for housing, studios, food, travel, facilities, program administration.
Small fund exists to provide limited help toward travel expenses for
persons invited who otherwise might not be able to visit.
Average # of Residents at once: 35 during summers, 15 during other
seasons
Resident to Applicant Ratio: 195:949
Resident Season: Year-round
Average Residency Length: 2 weeks–2 months; longer better
Application Deadline: Jan. 15 (for May to Feb. residency), Aug. 1 (for
Oct. to May residency)
Tell us what you think. Email talkback@pifmagazine.com
Camille Renshaw is the Editor-in-Chief for Pif Magazine.
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