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May 16, 2016

Applications Closed: 2016-17 UMS Artists in Residence

UMS
By UMS

Applications are now closed. We’ll announce artists in August 2016.

2016-17 UMS Artists in Residence Program

UMS is pleased to announce the third installment of our artists in “residence” program. Why “residence” in quotes? Because instead of a traditional artist residence, during which artists quite literally live and work at the place where the artist residency is located, we’re asking area artists to take residence at our performances.

Five artists (including visual, literary, and performing artists) will be selected to take “residence” at UMS performances, using these experiences as a resource to support the creation of new work or to fuel an artistic journey.  

In 2016-17 season, our residency’s theme is renegade art-making and art-makers. Artists in residence can choose performances from our Renegade events.

Who should apply

We’re looking for five residents to participate in this program. We welcome artists from across disciplines including visual arts, literary arts, and performing arts. Applicants should be at least 18 years of age and should be based regionally to be able to attend performances.

Residents will receive

  • Complimentary UMS performance tickets to
    • Two to three 2016-17 Renegade performances of their choosing
    • One performance that’s not a Renegade series performance of their choosing (choose from rest of season)
    • Two “required” performances that all UMS artists in residence will attend together: a special kick-off performance on Sunday, September 11 (details to be announced) and Igor and Moreno’s Idiot-Syncrasy (January 12-14, date to be determined).
    • Performances should support an artistic journey (more on that in the application guidelines section below). Some ticket restrictions may apply.
  • Opportunities for special behind-the-scenes access to UMS and artists, based on artist availability and interest.
  • Access to gatherings with other residents and visiting artists throughout the course of the season and opportunities to share thoughts, experiences, and process.
  • $500 stipend

UMS will

  • Interview artists prior to the program’s start and at the end of the program to document residents’ journeys. Interviews and other documentation of the residency experience will appear here on our blog.
  • Ask artists to submit two short posts over the course of the year for our blog; the content of these posts is open-ended and will be determined by UMS and artists together.
  • Engage residents in selected education and community engagement activities with university and community.
  • Offer opportunities to showcase creative work in conjunction with UMS events when possible. Rights to the work remain wholly with the residents; UMS simply requests permission to share work in a manner agreed-upon with the residents.

How to apply

Submit the following materials by Friday, June 17.

  • Statement of intent. In 500 words, tell us about 3-4 UMS performances you would like to attend and explain how experiencing Renegade series performances might support your creative work. What do you hope to produce as a result of the residency?
  • CV. 1-2 page CV highlighting your artistic work.
  • Portfolio. Samples of your work. If your portfolio is available online, please send a link (or links) to your portfolio. Writers should submit 5-10 pages of work. Visual artists should submit 3-4 photo representations of different works. Performing artists should submit 2-3 visual representations of different works (in the case of musicians, submit 3-4 musical selections). Interdisciplinary work welcome. If your portfolio is not accessible online, send your portfolio to us via email attachment or link to Dropbox to ums-lobby@umich.edu. Please use subject line “Community AiR Application: [Your Name].

Questions? Ask them in the comments below or email ums-lobby@umich.edu. We welcome your feedback.

Apply

Find out about our growing cohort of UMS Artist in Residence alumni.

In this video, 2014-15 residents chat about what they loved about and learned through the program.

Members of the media interested in more information about the program should contact Anna Prushinskaya, manager of digital media, at annavp@umich.edu.