artist studios residency

MAD ARTIST STUDIOS OVERVIEW: Located on the sixth floor of the Museum and open to the public, the Artist Studios at MAD is a community engagement and professional development program for contemporary artists and designers. The first program of its kind, the Artist Studios opportunity is designed to encourage visitors to meet artists-in-residence as they expand their creative practice while working on-site at MAD. Three artists (two Daily Residents and one Artist Fellow) are selected per six-month session, for which they receive access to studio space in the Museum and a stipend. Visitors are welcome to visit MAD’s Artist Studios three days each week to view works in progress and converse with the artists and designers.

The artists chosen for MAD’s Artist Studios program represent a wide range of creative practices within the fields of art, craft, and design. Established in 2008, the program has served as an important platform for more than 180 artists and designers to advance their careers and is widely recognized as an innovative model for Museum education. The MAD Artist Fellowship was introduced in 2016 to support the practice of emerging NYC-based artists from historically underrepresented communities. Alumni of the program have gone on to highly regarded careers, and after their time at MAD have proceeded to exhibit work at MAD and other major institutions, including the Queens Museum, Whitney Museum, Brooklyn Museum, and Studio Museum, among others.

STRUCTURE AND EXPECTATIONS:

The Artist Studios program offers one full-time MAD Artist Fellowship and two part-time Daily Residencies per six-month session (February–July and August–January).

The full-time MAD Artist Fellow receives a $15,000 stipend and dedicated studio space in the Museum. Fellows must commit to a weekly schedule of 21 public “open studio” hours each week on 3 set days in which the museum public can visit. The Fellow’s weekly schedule remains set throughout the six-month residency. In addition to their 21 public “open studio” hours, Fellows are encouraged to utilize the studio space throughout the week for private studio hours. The Artist Fellow also receives a one-time unrestricted $1000 materials and mentorship stipend at the start of their residency.

The two Daily Residents receive a $5,200 stipend and share a studio space in the Museum. Daily Residents commit to 7 public “open studio” hours per week. The daily residents’ weekly schedule will be established in conjunction with MAD’s Education Department and will remain set throughout the six-month residency. In addition to their 7 public “open studio” hours during each assigned week in the Museum, Daily Residents are encouraged to utilize the studio space for private studio hours. Daily residents benefit from a $200/week stipend when in the studios ($5,250 total over the six-month span of the residency). Each Daily Resident also receives a one-time unrestricted $500 materials and mentorship stipend at the start of their residency.

During their weekly “open studio” hours, all Artist Studios residents also welcome occasional visits from K-12 school groups (facilitated in-person and virtually by paid artist-educators) and public tour groups (facilitated in-person by volunteer docents).

PROGRAM BENEFITS: Artist Studios residents benefit from studio space and a stipend (see section above) as well as:

• Additional paid public programming opportunities
• Professional development and studio visits with museum staff
• Interaction with Museum visitors, generating exposure, and reaching new audiences
• Continued engagement through the community of Artist Studios alumni
• Access to the Museum galleries, public programs, and exhibition openings

Fellowship Eligibility: The MAD Artist Fellowship is designed to support emerging artists and designers from historically underrepresented communities. Candidates for the MAD Artist Fellowship must meet the criteria above, and also:

• Be an emerging artist or designer with an active practice (see below for details). Established artists are eligible for the Daily Residencies, but not for the Artist Fellowship.
• Identify as an artist from a historically underrepresented community as determined by (for example) race/ethnicity, ability, and gender.
• Be a resident of the New York metro area.

Emerging artists who can demonstrate a commitment to their practice are eligible to apply for the MAD Artist Fellowship. For the Fellowship opportunity, the Museum defines an “emerging” artist or designer as someone who:

• Has created a body of work that shows range during an active period of at least 2 years.
• Has not yet received a significant prize, grant, or award above $15,000.
• Does not have a considerable amount of work that has been acquired by museums and/or curated into an extensive number of solo and group exhibitions in galleries and museums.
• Is not a current full-time student, full-time tenured faculty, or its equivalent. There is no formal education requirement for the Artist Studios program, but applicants cannot be enrolled in a degree-granting program at the time of application.

APPLYING FOR MULTIPLE OPPORTUNITIES Artists who are interested in applying for both the Daily Residency and the MAD Artist Fellowship should complete one application for the MAD Artist Fellowship and indicate their interest in the Daily Residency within their Fellowship application materials. Candidates applying for multiple opportunities will only be selected for one program. Similarly, candidates interested in multiple sessions will only be selected for one session.

NOTIFICATION PROCESS Initial notifications will be sent in June 2022 indicating whether applicants have advanced to the final stage of consideration. Finalists will be invited to meet for a studio visit and interview with members of the Education Department in June 2022. Final determinations and offers will be made in July 2022.