Through its Fund for Displaced Artists, the Vermont Studio Center will fund two month-long residencies for Haitian artists and writers in 2010. These awards honor Flo McGarrell, son of longtime VSC Visiting Artist and friend James McGarrell, who was killed in Haiti's recent earthquake while in the art center where he worked.

The Vermont Studio Center community is saddened by this loss, and by the loss of so many others who have died in the quake. We hope that the international efforts in Haiti will soon bring relief to the Haitian people and that those efforts to heal and rebuild will be bolstered by the creative impulse and spirit of its artists.

The Studio Center's Fund for Displaced Artists was conceived in 2007, when VSC Trustee Marina Day wanted to do something to support California artists whose lives and studio practices had been disrupted by wildfires. In previous years, the Studio Center hosted two artists from New Orleans displaced by Hurricane Katrina and, with the support of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, hosted a number of New York artists displaced by the events of 9/11.

Nominations and applications for the McGarrell Award may be sent by email to admissions@vermontstudiocenter.org, and the award will be made by July 1, 2010. The fellowship will include room, board and studio, as well as a travel and materials stipend. For more information, please call (802) 635-2727.