How to Create Your Own Artist Residency from Home
What is an Artist Residency
The roots of artist residencies date back centuries, most notably in the 1900s. Back in the day, artists were sponsored to live and work with wealthy families, royal households, and churches, offering them housing and studio space as a way to foster creativity.
An artist residency nowadays is a program designed to give artists time, space, and creative freedom to work on their art practice without distractions. Often, application-based programs with a juried selection process, artist residencies, can show prestige on artist resumes, especially with programs that are internationally recognized, such as MacDowell. Some programs can be quite costly, while others are fully funded, including travel expenses, daily predeums or stipends. Artist residencies can range from urban city life settings to quiet cottages in the countryside around the world. The location the artist chooses ultimately depends on their preference. Some programs can be more structured with guided instruction from mentors and faculty throughout the entirety of the stay, or a more flexible approach for intentional isolation that facilitates introspection. In return, the residency might ask the artist to share their work with the community, exhibit a painting in a gallery, or teach a hands-on workshop. Some artist residencies might not ask anything of the artist and are purely there to help develop and enrich an artist’s creative practice.
In my previous post, I shared my first art residency experience. I included the short film I created as a result of my two weeks away in a medicinal plant sanctuary in Rutland, Ohio. If you are curious, read on and watch the film!
With a wide range of residencies to choose from around the world, the application process can be lengthy, while the application fee can be costly, and at the end of the day, many of us still have forty-hour work weeks, are stay-at-home parents, or have a busy lifestyle. These are all factors that can create friction between the dream of wanting to attend a residency and actually applying for one, with often a slim chance of getting chosen from a pool of hundreds of other talented artists who are equally deserving of the opportunity. Rejection can be discouraging, especially after spending hours writing thoughtful responses to application questions. The time and energy spent away from your art practice just to apply for a program that will give you the time and space to work on your art practice feels a bit counterintuitive at times. So why not create your own?
A self-appointed artist residency is best suited for artists who can thrive independently and have the devotion to keep themselves accountable to work on their art consistently during their set timeline.
Outline your intent
Before starting your own residency, here are a few questions to consider.
What do you need right now? Do you need time to focus and zone in on a project you’ve never had the opportunity to begin? Do you want a chance to try new media and play with new materials? Do you need time for reflection and introspection? Is there a specific topic you want to research and learn more about during your at-home residency?
Find clarity and decide on the reason you want to start.
Create a timeline
It’s important to set a deadline; an endpoint will allow you to plan out what you are going to do within your chosen timeframe.
One week? Two weeks? Weekends only? Evenings only?
The beauty of creating your own residency is getting the freedom to work around your own schedule, even if that means only getting two hours every morning before work for the next two weeks.
Having a clear start date and a clear end date helps with productivity because you are more attuned to the fact that you have limited time to fulfill your artistic goals.
Choose a location
Location is a key factor in residencies as many artist are influenced by their surroundings and the ambiance they create to achieve the inspiration behind their work. In a previous article, I wrote about the importance of setting the scene for your art practice, even if it is a makeshift studio. Having the right space to work is almost as important as the work itself.
Stay at home in a designated studio space, even if you have to convert the kitchen table into your studio or block off a corner of the living room during the length of your self-appointed residency.
If your home makes you feel stuck in a rut, a location change is all it takes. Think of where you can go that will make you feel inspired. If you are tight on budget, ask a fellow art friend if they would be willing to swap studios with you for a week. Have an extended sleepover with a close relative and explain to them your intention behind the stay, and ask if they would be willing to lend a spare bedroom as a form of sponsoring you as a live and work artist. Travel and rent an Airbnb. Rent an Airbnb with a friend who also wants to participate in your self-appointed residency. Get creative with the resources you already have on hand, or make it the reason you decide to travel. Many artists use residencies as a way of traveling and seeing the world, which can then inspire their creative endeavors.
Design your own structure
Knowing exactly what you are going to do makes it real. Having clarity on what you are going to do is important, even if your goal is open-ended.
Some artists may choose to focus solely on research, and their days may look like snuggling on a couch with piles of books, reading and absorbing information. Other artists may choose to focus on quantitative painting, and their days may be structured based on how many 5 x 5 landscape paintings they can get done. Artists can choose to take a hybrid approach throughout the day and have the first half of the day be productivity-driven and the second half be quiet time for reflection. The choice is yours.
Share it with your community and make it official
Make an announcement. Post it to social media. Tell your friends and family. Having at least one person who knows and can keep you accountable for your own timeline can be the driving force to completion. Sharing your residency gives it momentum and makes it feel real.
A few tips: unless your work involves the use of digital forms, do your best to stay off screens to be fully immersed and present with your designated time. Limit access to distractions, and don’t be afraid to set boundaries during this time in terms of communication. Let it be known that, unless it’s an emergency, you will not be picking up the phone during your set work hours.
You don’t have to be an artist to start your own residency, and you will find that the same structure can be applied to everyday life. If there is a book you have been meaning to read but can’t find the “time” to start, make time by going to bed thirty minutes earlier every night to read before bed, create a deadline for yourself, and tell a friend. You can send them a short text every day saying what chapters you finished to help keep you on track.
As the new year approaches and people grow tired of setting New Year’s resolutions that always seem to fall off, utilize the artist residency structure and build momentum around the very thing you want to complete. Remember to give yourself grace if things don’t go as planned. After all, this is your own time and practice.
