Hey artists, when you’re done tagging the side of that building with tiny hands (nice), listen up: Last week we told you why your art was going to be important in Trump’s America. This week, we’re bringing you news of three organizations fixing to help you make it.
The Brooklyn Arts Council, Triskelion Arts and the Brick Theater are all accepting submissions for their paid (!) artist residencies and festivals in 2017, and the content they’re calling for is either explicitly anti-Trump or just plain woke.
Some creatives barely bat an eye at the prospect of free rehearsal space, a modest stipend, production opportunities and other small affordances. But a Trump presidency is too ripe not to inspire raw creative material, and if mocking him in a comedy marathon isn’t your style then you may as well get the space, time and funding to figure out what is. Check these opportunities out — and note the deadlines, since one is tonight! — then get out there and make bravely, whatever your medium.
Triskelion Arts‘ 2017 Resident Artist Program
Deadline: Sunday, Nov. 20, 2016
Apply here
This 501(c)-3 dance venue and rehearsal space in Greenpoint is offering one choreographer or company 100 free hours of rehearsal space (YUGE) in any of their five studios — which range in size from broom closet to studio apartment, fyi — to be used between January and June 2017. The residency culminates with a three-performance run in their adjacent theater the weekend of June 15 – 17 in 2017. If selected, you’ll receive a $750 stipend for the performance, plus 15 percent of the box-office proceeds!
The resident artist will be chosen based on artistic merit and “the ability to leverage the benefits of this program to positively impact their work,” so make sure you’re ready to explain yourself on the application form. You’ll need a project proposal, two work samples, bio information and a marketing plan.
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Brooklyn Arts Council‘s SU-CASA
Deadline: Friday, Nov. 18, 2016 (TODAY!)
Apply here
Formerly known as SPARC, Brooklyn Arts Council’s SU-CASA is a community engagement-focused artist residency that places artists and arts organizations in residence at seniors centers across Brooklyn from Jan. 1 – June 30, 2017 in order to “positively impact the well-being of older adults through direct engagement in arts-based activities.” In addition to developing arts programming for the seniors, you’ll also get exhibits, readings, performances, open houses and other opportunities for cultural interaction within the surrounding community, plus a stipend of $4,500, an additional $1,000 materials/supplies budget, and access to materials and supplies from Materials for the Arts (swag).
This is obviously ideal for artists who care about the needs of older citizens, as well as those who speak other languages. The neat thing about this residency is that each participating senior center is unique, offering different types of spaces and resources tailored to various needs. What’s more, you’re getting to create responsive, dynamic work that actually reflects the experience of the folks you’re spending your time around, so you can be sure you’re not just spinning your creative wheels in a vacuum or trying to start from nothing. Apply!
Brick Theater‘s THIS IS NOT NORMAL
Deadline: Sat, Dec. 10, 2016
Apply here
Are you thinking what The Brick is thinking? “This Is Not Normal is an arts festival at The Brick, encouraging not only theater applications, but responses from all media. Replete with Not Normal weekly cabarets and Not Normal Collective Action Projects, the festival aims to remind us of the reality we live in and the reality we are moving towards.”
The festival, whose performance dates run in July 2017, was created on the assumption that “you’ll forget how not normal this is by June.” A portion of their proceeds will be donated to the ACLU. The Brick wants primarily plays, but is also accepting dance pieces, music, films and other performance works that can be ready to present in a repertory format which address the theme. Short works will be considered for weekly cabarets, and visual art and video installations will also be considered.
More of a plan-maker than a playwright? That might work for this, too: “The festival also welcomes programming ideas and opportunities for collective organizing in defense of civil liberties and non-discrimination. Educational outreach and community engagement ideas are also sought.” The box office gets split 70/30 (in favor of the theater) four weeks after the close of the festival.
Follow Sam on Twitter for more artist enragement: @ahoysamantha.