Each year, we hold open calls for our Summer Exhibition, Summer Residency, Winter Residency, and Haunted Mill.
In an effort to simplify the application process, the details listed below are identical to those in our application portal, SlideRoom. If you’re preparing an application early, please note that this page is updated with new information in the weeks before each open call goes out. That said, we try to keep the application process consistent each year, and only ask for information that we need for review.
If you still have questions, please email will@wassaicproject.org. We also hold info sessions and office hours for each program.
Summer Exhibition
Applications are run through our SlideRoom portal. Notification of acceptance will occur within 60 days of the application due date. Accepted applicants will have 7 days to commit to the exhibition.
Review Process
Applicants are evaluated by our Co-Directors — Eve, Bowie, and Jeff — and our Director of Artistic Programming, Will. Artists are selected based on the quality of the work and how well a given piece fits alongside other pieces selected for the show.
Don’t overthink this. There’s no one thing we’re looking for, and we’re always open to creative new uses of Maxon Mills as an exhibition space.
Application Requirements
- Contact info
- CV or publication list (3 pages max)
- Project proposal
- Portfolio
- $25 application fee
Project Proposals
We accept four types of proposals for our summer programming: ready-to-hang work, site-specific installations, temporary installations/performances, and printed works. Your application can include multiple proposals.
For all proposals, include:
- A formal description of the work you would like to show.
- A three-sentence conceptual description of the work you would like to show or your artistic practice more generally.
- A note about any special circumstances you anticipate around the installation of your work. We have limited equipment available, so we need to know in advance if you require anything specific.
For ready-to-hang work proposals:
Please outline any special circumstances you anticipate around the installation of your work. We have limited equipment available, so we need to know in advance if you require anything specific.
For site-specific installation proposals:
Please include completed past works, drawings and/or style references, and explain how the piece will look or function.
Artists interested in creating a site-specific installation are also eligible for an Exhibitions Fellowship to help realize their work. Up to five fellows will be offered a no-fee residency in April or May, and will be considered full participants in our residency program.
No separate application is needed for the Exhibitions Fellowship, and acceptance of the fellowship — should it be offered — is entirely optional. Artists interested in making site-specific work for the exhibition should still apply regardless of whether or not they are interested in or able to be in residence in April or May.
For temporary installations or performances for the Summer Festival Program:
Please explain how the piece will look or function.
Portfolio
Provide 1 to 10 work samples, including title, year, medium, and dimensions, and anything else we should know.
Size requirements:
- Images — up to 5mb each, in jpg format
- Video — up to 250MB each
- Audio —up to 30MB each
- PDFs — up to 10MB each
- If your work is time-based or has video documentation, you may also link to media from YouTube, Vimeo, and SoundCloud.
Please label each file as: LastName_FirstName_Title_Year.
Please include full information for each work as well: title, date, medium and dimensions, and any other pertinent information which will help us better understand your work.
· · ·
If you have additional questions, see our Summer Exhibition FAQ. If you still have questions, email our Programming Coordinator, danielle@wassaicproject.org.
Summer Residency
Summer residents receive 24-hour access to an adaptable, semi-private, 200-300 square foot studios in the historic Luther Barn. Accommodations include a private bedroom in a shared house, complete with common spaces, 1–2 full bathrooms, and a kitchen (artists participating in our Family Residency will receive a private house). Artists-in-residence also have access to our print shop and wood shop. Monthly programming includes open studios, group studio visits with our embedded critics, Ghost of a Dream, and one-on-one studio visits and artist talks with 2–3 creative professionals, our Director of Artistic Programming, and WP staff.
This call is for individual artists, collaborative teams, and groups of two or more individual artists, and artists applying through our Family Residency program. Applications are run through our Slideroom portal. Dates for the program are:
- May 30–June 24, 2024
- June 27–July 29, 2024
- August 1–26, 2024
- August 29–September 23, 2024
Fees
The actual cost of each residency is $5,000 per month, which includes a semi-private studio, private bedroom, full use of our facilities, studio visits, insurance, and staff support. In an effort to serve and support emerging artists, we attempt to subsidize residencies for all individual artists who do not have other forms of support. Thanks to the generous support of donors and grants, the artist’s contribution for the winter residency program is $900 per 4-week period.
Fellowships
We offer the following fellowships:
- The Work and Family Fellowship offers no-fee residencies and $500 honorariums to several artists-in-residence per year participating in the Family Residency program.
- The Sustainable Arts Fellowship offers several no-fee residencies and $500 honorariums per year to family residents who identify as Black, Indigenous or a person of color.
- The Mary Ann Unger Fellowship offers one no-fee residency per year to a female-identifying artist who primarily works in sculpture and who identifies as Black, Indigenous or a person of color.
- The ArtForArtists Fellowship for Social Justice-Based Practice offers one no-fee residency and $500 honorarium per year to an artist who identifies as Black, Indigenous or a Person of Color.
To be considered for the Work and Family Fellowship and Sustainable Arts Fellowship:
In your application, please take some time to reflect on the ways in which care and caregiving, whatever those words mean to you, come through (or might come through) in your work. It’s okay if this isn’t something you’ve considered before. We think of these fellowships as a starting point towards building a future where artists shape the way society sees and values care.
All applicants are considered for the Mary Ann Unger Fellowship and the ArtForArtists Fellowship for Social Justice-Based Practice and do not have to complete any additional information on their application.
Financial Assistance
We also offer need-based financial assistance to artists-in-residence for whom it would be impossible to attend without financial support. Financial need is self-reported by artists in their applications. We ask that artists who are in a position to fully contribute towards the residency fee please do so.
Application Requirements
- Contact information
- 1–10 work samples
- CV (3 pages max)
- 2 references
- $25 application fee
- Proposal: We believe our residency works best as a creative laboratory untied to outcome. We would like to hear about what makes you curious, what you are interested in investigating, and what your jumping off point would be. (200 words max)
- Optional question: We want to look at your work according to your definition of success. Are there additional criteria that you would like the panel/us to consider when reviewing your work? For example: What do you consider to be a successful piece or process? If you work with a community, the artistic product may not be the sole or most important creation of the work. Are there other impacts and creations in your process we should focus on? Please share any documentation that could bring us close to these impacts—interviews, testimony from participants, writing about the work, images from an event, etc.
Review
Artists-in-residence are selected by a review panel composed of the Wassaic Project Co-Directors, Director of Artistic Programming, and professionals in the field. Residents will be selected based on the quality of their work, commitment to their practice, and ability to interact positively with the community at large.
Notifications
Notifications will be sent out on in early December.
· · ·
If you have additional questions, see our Residency FAQ. If you still have questions, email our Programming Coordinator, danielle@wassaicproject.org.
Winter Residency
Winter residents receive 24-hour access to an adaptable, semi-private, ~100 square-foot studio space in the historic Maxon Mills. Accommodations include a private bedroom in a shared house, complete with common spaces, 1–2 full bathrooms, and a kitchen (artists participating in our Family Residency will receive a private house). Artists-in-residence also have access to our wood shop. Monthly programming includes open studios, group studio visits with our embedded critics, Ghost of a Dream, and one-on-one studio visits and artist talks with 2–3 creative professionals, our Director of Artistic Programming, and WP staff. Dates for the program are:
- January 9–27, 2025
- January 30–February 24, 2025
- February 27–March 10, 2025
- March 13–April 7, 2025
This call is for individual artists, collaborative teams, and groups of two or more individual artists, and artists applying through our Family Residency program. Applications are run through our Slideroom portal.
Fees
The actual cost of each residency is $5,000 per month, which includes a semi-private studio, private bedroom, full use of our facilities, studio visits, insurance, and staff support. In an effort to serve and support emerging artists, we attempt to subsidize residencies for all individual artists who do not have other forms of support. Thanks to the generous support of donors and grants, the artist’s contribution for the winter residency program is $600 per 4-week period.
Fellowships
We offer the following fellowships:
- The Work and Family Fellowship offers no-fee residencies and $500 honorariums to several artists-in-residence per year participating in the Family Residency program.
- The Sustainable Arts Fellowship offers several no-fee residencies and $500 honorariums per year to family residents who identify as Black, Indigenous or a person of color.
- The Mary Ann Unger Fellowship offers one no-fee residency per year to a female-identifying artist who primarily works in sculpture and who identifies as Black, Indigenous or a person of color.
- The ArtForArtists Fellowship for Social Justice-Based Practice offers one no-fee residency and $500 honorarium per year to an artist who identifies as Black, Indigenous or a Person of Color.
To be considered for the Work and Family Fellowship and Sustainable Arts Fellowship:
In your application, please take some time to reflect on the ways in which care and caregiving, whatever those words mean to you, come through (or might come through) in your work. It’s okay if this isn’t something you’ve considered before. We think of these fellowships as a starting point towards building a future where artists shape the way society sees and values care.
All applicants are considered for the Mary Ann Unger Fellowship and the ArtForArtists Fellowship for Social Justice-Based Practice and do not have to complete any additional information on their application.
Financial Assistance
We also offer need-based financial assistance to artists-in-residence for whom it would be impossible to attend without financial support. Financial need is self-reported by artists in their applications. We ask that artists who are in a position to fully contribute towards the residency fee please do so.
Application Requirements
- Contact information
- 1–10 work samples
- CV (3 pages max)
- 2 references
- $25 application fee
- Proposal: We believe our residency works best as a creative laboratory untied to outcome. We would like to hear about what makes you curious, what you are interested in investigating, and what your jumping off point would be. (200 words max)
- Optional question: We want to look at your work according to your definition of success. Are there additional criteria that you would like the panel/us to consider when reviewing your work? For example: What do you consider to be a successful piece or process? If you work with a community, the artistic product may not be the sole or most important creation of the work. Are there other impacts and creations in your process we should focus on? Please share any documentation that could bring us close to these impacts—interviews, testimony from participants, writing about the work, images from an event, etc.
Deadline
May 6th, 2024 at midnight ET.
Review
Artists-in-residence are selected by a review panel composed of the Wassaic Project Co-Directors, Director of Artistic Programming, and professionals in the field. Residents will be selected based on the quality of their work, commitment to their practice, and ability to interact positively with the community at large.
Notifications
Notifications will be sent out on or before August 5th, 2024.
· · ·
If you have additional questions, see our Residency FAQ. We’ll also be holding an in-person info session on March 16, a Zoom info session on April 17, and office hours on April 24, April 25, May 1, May 6. If you still have questions, email our Programming Coordinator, danielle@wassaicproject.org.
Haunted Mill
The Haunted Mill is our annual Halloween event in the hamlet of Wassaic.
This year we are accepting a few types of proposals: site-specific installations for the first floor of Maxon Mills, outdoor installations, and performances. We will prioritize interactive and immersive proposals. We want to see your haunted games, your creepy trick or treat stations, and all of the spooky experiences you dream up.
Artists will have complete creative control over their installation, as long as they keep their work PG-13. We’re looking for artists who are excited to participate and get weird, and who are self-directed and independent with their projects. For installation artists, we offer housing in one of our residency houses (for 1–3 weeks between October 6 and October 29, 2022) alongside private studio space in Maxon Mills, additional studio space in Luther Barn, and full access to our wood shop and print shop. We offer all participating artists and artistic teams a modest honorarium.
Application Requirements
We accept three types of proposals: site-specific installation in Maxon Mills, outdoor installations, and performances. Applications are run through our SlideRoom portal.
For all applications:
- Contact info
- Proposal
- 1–10 work samples (5 or more images of completed works and and 1-5 sketches, mock-ups, or works in progress of what you’re thinking about for your installation.)
- CV (PDF, 2 pages maximum)
- $25 application fee
For site-specific installations in Maxon Mills and outdoor installations:
Artists will have complete creative control over their installation, as long as they keep their work PG-13. We want artists who are excited to participate and get weird, as well as artists who are self-directed and independent with their projects and vision. Wassaic Project offers housing in one of our residency houses for 1–3 weeks between October 4 and October 28, 2023, private studio space in Maxon Mills, additional studio space in Luther Barn, and full access to our wood shop and print shop. We will offer a modest honorarium to participating artists and artistic teams.
For performances:
Please explain how the piece will look or function. If your work is time-based or has video documentation, you may also link to media from YouTube, Vimeo, or SoundCloud.
Application Deadline
May 6 at midnight ET.
Notifications
Notifications will be sent out on or before July 1st.
· · ·
Please email danielle@wassaicproject.org if you have any questions about applying or if you cannot afford to pay the application fee. We’ll also be hosting a Zoom info session on April 17.
Print Fellowship
Note: Our print and wood shops are closed for renovations, so we are not accepting applications for the Print Fellowship in 2024.
Our part-time Print Fellow lives and works in Wassaic for 6 months, managing our print shop, providing support on projects by artists-in-residence, and producing prints with 10 artists in our Print Editions program throughout the summer. The Print Fellow will have an opportunity to work closely with a community of artists and have full access to a 24-hour print shop in Wassaic, NY.
The Wassaic Project is an equal opportunity employer. We encourage candidates from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds to apply.
Schedule
May through October
Qualifications:
- Print specific training preferred
- Proficiency in Photoshop, CMYK color separation, and other digital media
- Ability to work in a collaborative environment
- Familiarity with shop maintenance and transparency printing/troubleshooting
- Experience providing instruction or guidance
- An interest in becoming a part of the Wassaic community
- An ability to live well with others
Responsibilities:
- Daily walk-through and clean up/troubleshooting
- Weekly check-in
- Monthly orientations and coordinating with artists-in-residence
- Weekly hours of technical support: 16 hours/week to be scheduled with the rhythm of the residency (i.e. two full days, four half days, or whatever combination works best for the fellow and the artists’ needs)
- Edition prints and assist artists with file preparation (no more than two Print Edition artists per month)
Compensation:
- $700/month on contract on payroll
- Housing: private room in a shared house
- 24-hour access to the print shop and facilities as well as our wood shop and kiln
- Semi-open, raw studio space in the Luther Barn
- Participation in Wassaic Project residency programming including monthly artist presentations, studio visits, and open studios
- One artist proof from every Print Editions program artist. Past artists have included James Siena, Mark Dion, Rachel Owens, Yashua Klos, Heather Hart, William Powhida, Jennifer Dalton and Molly Dilworth, among many others
Application Requirements:
- Contact information
- 10–20 work samples: Up to 10 work samples that show the breadth of your experience with a focus on technical skills related to screen-printing, and up to 10 images of your own artistic practice
- CV (Two pages max)
- Two references
- Please address: level of expertise with screen printing; working collaboratively with other artists in printmaking environment; experience in print shop management (preferred but not required)
· · ·
If you have any additional questions, please email our Programming Coordinator, danielle@wassaicproject.org, for more information.
Sculpture Fellowship
Our Sculpture Fellow manages our wood and ceramic shops and helps support our programming. Our programming includes a year-round artist residency program, 2-3 exhibitions in the Maxon Mills gallery, artist presentations and visiting critic lectures, virtual programs, summer and winter benefits, as well as three more seasonal community events. Special consideration will be given to those with experience in exhibitions installation, and those who are also visual and/or performing artists.
Responsibilities include:
- Assisting and supporting two major exhibitions, as well as additional artist projects. This may include building walls, pedestals, hanging artwork, packing artwork for shipment, transporting artwork, etc.
- The major exhibitions include: our annual Summer Exhibition from May to September (install: April/May, deinstall: Sept/October), and our Winter Exhibition from December to March (install: November, deinstall: March/April).
- Assisting and supporting our year-round artist residency program. This includes facilitating orientations for our wood and ceramic shops for each residency cycle (once/month), providing weekly office hours/technical support (and occasional instruction) to artists-in-residence, physically maintaining the wood and ceramic shops, and assisting artists-in-residence with kiln loading and unloading (as needed).
Qualifications include:
- Bachelor’s Degree required.
- Fluency in Google Docs/Sheets.
- Intermediate competence with tools. Building skills and/or art handling experience required.
- Licensed driver with a responsible record.
Key characteristics:
- A connector and team player: someone who is comfortable working closely with a wide variety of people and finding ways for them to collaborate and communicate.
- An excellent facilitator and organizer who can assess the skills of others and assign tasks accordingly.
- Flexible working style and ability to remain calm in an active and decentralized office.
- Energetic and positive, with a good sense of humor and passion for improving the lives of others through the arts.
- A strong interest in joining the Wassaic Project community.
Compensation/expectation:
- Start date: June 1, 2023
- Duration: One year position (negotiable for longer)
- Expectation: ~30 hours/week, full time in Wassaic in-office/on-site
- Availability and attendance at all public events, including weekends
- Compensation: $15,000/year
- Housing provided on-site (shared house with two additional Wassaic Project staff members)
- Semi-private studio space (will change seasonally)
- Access to Wassaic Project facilities including our wood shop, kiln, and print shop (seasonal)
- Participation in our studio visits program
Health insurance is not offered.
To apply:
- Application opens: November 1, 2022
- Deadline to apply: January 2, 2023
- Cover letter (300 words max): What makes you an ideal candidate? What do you hope to get out of this experience? What questions do you have for us?
- Resume/CV (2 pages max)
- Two professional references (including email and phone numbers)
- 5 images and corresponding info if you are a visual/performing artist
The Wassaic Project is an equal opportunity employer. We encourage candidates from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds to apply.
· · ·
If you have any additional questions, please email our Programming Coordinator, danielle@wassaicproject.org, for more information. A recording of our last info session is available here.
Website link: https://www.wassaicproject.org/apply