The Utah Museum of Contemporary Art believes in the power of the art of our time. Through programming, advocacy, and collaboration, we work with artists and communities to build a better world.

AIR Overview/Application

2021–2022 Aritst-in-Residence, Alise Andersen, working in her studio

Overview

The UMOCA Artist-in-Residence Program is the only long-term artist residency designed specifically to meet the needs of artists living in Utah. Utah artists will be selected primarily based on demonstrated artistic potential, commitment to working in a contemporary idiom, willingness to participate in a robust and intellectually-engaged community of artists, and readiness to devote the time necessary to advance their professional careers to the next level.

For artists interested in applying, we have two deadlines per year; December 31st and June 30th both by 11:59 PM. The December deadline is for artists interested in the residency cycle beginning July 1st of the following calendar year. The June deadline is for artists interested in the residency cycle beginning January 1st of the following calendar year. Two artists are selected for each cycle.

Benefits

UMOCA residents will receive a wide variety of benefits from the museum, including one year of free studio space inside the museum itself. UMOCA will also provide residents with private meetings with national curators, critics, and other art world professionals who will be brought to UMOCA specifically to give our residents opportunities for higher visibility inside and outside the state. In addition, UMOCA will support residents by offering workshops in professional development, special access to visiting artists and lecturers, and an exhibition in the A.I.R. Space Gallery at the culmination of their residency. 

The Utah Museum of Contemporary Art is committed to providing equal opportunity without regard to race, sex, age, national origin, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression or any other protected status.

Note:  Applicants must reside in Utah, and not be currently enrolled in school at any time during their participation in the program.

Applications must be submitted as a .pdf to jared.steffensen@utahmoca.org and include the following:

  • Contact Information: Name, address, phone number, email address, and website (if applicable).
  • CV
  • Letter of Intent- Please provide a description for a project that you would like to pursue or topic that you would like to research during your residency. Also, explain how program participation will affect your practice. Please limit your response to 500 words.
  • Artist Statement- Along with your statement, please explain how your body of work is in dialogue with current ideas within contemporary art, both locally and nationally. Please limit your response to 500 words.
  • List of 3 References- including names, phone numbers, and email addresses.
  • Documentation of work- 15 images of work PDF format ONLY (10MB or less), for video or audio work, please submit through a file sharing program like Google Docs, Hightail, Dropbox, or Wetransfer. You can also submit a link to Vimeo, Youtube, or similar site.