Art Residencies for Artist-Parents
For artists who are also parents, finding opportunities that meet both their creative and childcare needs can often be a challenge. That’s why we’ve put together a selection of funded art residency programs that welcome and support artists with families
Elsewhere Studios
The topic of parenthood has been gaining increased attention in the art world in recent years —specifically with regard to the lack of opportunities that meet the needs of artists who are also parents. On top of the difficulties that come with balancing a creative practice and childcare, artist-parents often find themselves excluded in the art world, or even stigmatized, faced with the myth that art and parenthood don’t mix. And gaps in their CV due to a lack of visibility and access create more obstacles when returning to work and applying for opportunities.
Artists and initiatives have been working to change this in a number of ways. Earlier this year, for example, art critic Hettie Judah collaborated with a group of artists to prepare a set of guidelines for institutions and residencies, under the title “How not to exclude artist parents”. The guide includes advice for making artist-parents feel welcome, as well as for being accommodating and flexible when it comes to planning and setting dates.
There’s also the work of Sustainable Arts Foundation, which was founded in 2010, and offers annual unrestricted cash awards to artists with children, as well as grants for residencies to make their programs more accessible and supportive for artist-parents. In Berlin, Kunst + Kind is an initiative that advocates for equal opportunities for artists and cultural workers with children or other care responsibilities. The initiative was founded in 2018 by the artists Ines Doleschal and Rani Le Prince, and their activities include working towards the creation of residency scholarships that cover childcare costs and ending age restrictions on opportunities, among others. They also organize a jour fixe every second Thursday of the month to facilitate networking and exchange among the community.
Thanks in no small part to the efforts of these initiatives, and of artist-parents themselves, there are some art residencies that offer specific programs and stipends for artist-parents. Some such programs provide or help cover essential services like childcare and prepared meals during the residency period. While other organizations offer space and access to artists with accompanying family members as part of their general residency program, but might not cover costs for childcare needs. And, like art residencies in general, family-friendly residencies may also take a variety of forms: self-guided, flexible, or more programmatic; from a one-week duration to a month or longer-term.
Here’s a look at some of the options and ways residencies are making family- and child-friendly programs available to artists.
Interlude Artist Residency
This one’s fairly new, and, as a residency program uniquely tailored to the needs of artist-parents, it’s “the first of its kind in the US”. Based in the Hudson Valley in Livingston, NY, Interlude Artist Residency was created in 2019 with the mission of addressing the gap in available residency opportunities for artists with families. To support both the creative and parental needs of its residents, the program offers a studio and family living space, as well as several prepared meals per week, and a stipend for childcare, transportation, additional food, and materials. Plus, artists receive the support of a program coordinator on site.
Interlude Artist Residency views
Camargo Foundation
The well-established Camargo Foundation has been organizing residencies since 1971 in Cassis, France. Among its many programs and activities, the foundation hosts a core residency program each year. This program is open to international artists, scholars and thinkers, offering them 6-11 week residencies, which include furnished apartments, studio facilities, a stipend of $250 per week and funding for travel costs. The foundation was a 2020 grant recipient of the Sustainable Arts Foundation, and it continues to open its core program to artists with families — welcoming spouses/partners and children to stay for the duration of the residency. The program specifies that accompanying children should be over the age of six and enrolled in school or other weekly activities outside of the foundation’s campus during the residency period. To help parents coordinate this, the Camargo staff offers guidance on local school enrollment.
Symposium Künstlergut Prösitz
Founded in 1992, Symposium Künstlergut Prösitz is a unique program in Germany, offering women artists with children a one-month scholarship to work in the fields of sculpture, installation and object art. The artist house is based in a small Saxon village, and was established by sculpture graduates of Dresden University of Fine Arts who had personally experienced the difficulty of trying to pursue an artistic career as a woman with young children. The symposium is open to artists Europe-wide, offering them a scholarship of 500 euros, accommodation and childcare services (up to 12 years old). At the end of the scholarship period, a group exhibition and catalog are also produced.
Symposium Künstlergut Prösitz views
Elsewhere Studios
Elsewhere Studios’ Family Residencies are also supported by the Sustainable Arts Foundation. The program hosts four artist-parents per year for a 10-day residency, where they can choose to bring their spouse/partner and children or attend on their own. Two families-in-residence attend during the same period, in order to facilitate exchange, sharing and collaboration between them. The families are provided living and studio space, and the artist receives a $1,000 stipend to be used to cover childcare or material costs as needed. The Elsewhere Studios staff provides further support by helping parents coordinate activities such as summer camp or childcare, or by including their children in residency programming and events on site.
Artist Residency in Motherhood
Founded by artist Lenka Clayton in 2012, An Artist Residency in Motherhood is described as “a self-directed, open-source artist residency” designed for artists who are mothers. What this means is that the residency is customisable and completely flexible, there are no costs, and no application process. The residency also takes place wherever the artist is based. Its aim is simple: the residency seeks to reframe thinking around motherhood, and parenthood, situating it as material and site for creativity, as opposed to as an obstacle to be overcome. To help guide artists who want to do their own Artist Residency in Motherhood, a D.I.Y. kit is available on the website. In the kit, artists find guidance on how to structure their residency, an adaptable manifesto, customisable business cards, and a form to register their residency on the website and join the community..
Cow House Studios
The Parenting Artists Residency at Cow House Studios is an annual two-week residency program located in Wexford, Ireland, specifically designed for artists with children under the age of 18. Participating artists are invited to bring their children and partners along for the residency, where they will be given accommodation, meals, childcare, and a stipend of €500. During the residency, artists are given time and space to work on existing projects, develop new work, or to use the opportunity to delve back into their practice after taking time off to have children. The residency seeks to provide a supportive and productive environment for parenting artists, who often otherwise experience isolation and exclusion from the art ecosystem.
McColl Center for Art & Innovation
McColl Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA offers a summer artist-in-residence program for educators and parents, making it possible for them to participate in a residency outside the constraints and responsibilities of the school year. Families are welcome to join residents during the 12-week program and are provided with a furnished apartment. In addition, artists receive a $6,000 stipend for living, material, and travel costs (note this stipend is only available to US-based artists), as well as a private studio, curatorial guidance, participation in a group show, and more.
Movement Research
Movement Research, a studio and laboratory providing support to movement-based artists, launched a Parent Artist Residency program in 2020 for artist-parents with children between the ages of 1 month and 13 years. Supported in part by the Sustainable Arts Foundation, the Parent Artist Residency program at Movement Research is designed for New York-based artists and helps to mitigate the high costs of childcare and studio rental costs in the city by offering them 50 hours of rehearsal space and a childcare stipend of $1,000, plus a residency stipend of $500 and a ten-class card for Movement Research classes.
Artpace
Located in San Antonio, Texas, Artpace has been operating as a non-profit residency program since 1995. Three times a year, three residents — one based in Texas, one based nationally, and one based internationally — are selected by a guest curator to participate in the program, and are supported in the production of new work over a two-month period. Residents receive a studio, as well as a stipend ($6,000) and a production budget up to $10,000. The residency is not specifically designed for artist-parents, but Artpace makes it clear that the program welcomes and accommodates parents and families. Along with a fully furnished apartment, families are also offered access to the organization’s van, and a living stipend. As a 2021 grant recipient of the Sustainable Arts Foundation, Artpace is also offering further childcare services and options to artist-parents.
A Community Built for the Arts
A global online community that celebrates and supports arts & culture
Other articles that you might enjoy
