This intensive studio residency, hosted by SVA's MFA Fine Arts Department, has been designed for artists working in both medium-specific and cross-platform modes of production that aim for the intersection of art and ideas. Taught by distinguished members of the MFA Fine Arts faculty, the residency fosters a culture of rigorous practice and contemporary thought.
Each artist will have use of a private studio in a location central to New York City's gallery districts, museums and alternative hubs for culture and technology. Daily studio visits from renowned artists, curators and theorists support an ongoing discourse among an international community of fellow artists. In addition to concentrated work in the studio, artists will attend lectures, gallery walks, museum visits and workshops that support a professional art practice. Through focused creative engagement with the history and criticism of contemporary art, participants will be encouraged by a faculty of leading artists and scholars to take their work to the next level, aesthetically and conceptually. Faculty and guest lecturers will represent a variety of contemporary perspectives.
While the focus of the residency is on content and critical discourse, work in a variety of media is supported and encouraged, including drawing, painting, photography, performance, installation, digital and interactive media, electronics, sound, and all modes of experimental practice. Artists committed to a single form or medium can expect to delve deeper into the material concerns of their practice. Residents are also invited to consider the sociopolitical potentiality of art practices situated outside the paradigm of individual authorship, via forays into social practice and public forms. Ultimately, the goal of the program is to create an inclusive space for artistic research, activated by the spirit of inquiry.
Participants will have access to SVA's Visible Futures Lab and the opportunity to work with state-of-the-art tools for both digital and traditional fabrication. The printmaking studio is available for an additional fee, and provides access to silkscreen, etching, lithography, letterpress and digital facilities. Participants must have a working knowledge of the printmaking process they wish to use in order to be granted access. Artists have access to the studios daily from 8:00 am to 11:00 pm. Overnight stays are allowed with entry to the building prior to 11:00 pm. The program culminates in an open studio exhibition.
Faculty and guest lecturers have included: Dara Birnbaum, Jodie Lyn-Kee-Chow, Media Farzin, Mark Thomas Gibson, Miguel Luciano, Angel Nevarez, Juan Puntes, Jacob Rhodes, David Ross, Jerry Saltz, Mark Tribe and Caroline Woolard.
Note: A portfolio is required for review and acceptance to this program.
For further information or questions regarding SVA's Artist Residency Programs, email residency@sva.edu.
SVA’s Artist Residency programs are hosted by the Division of Continuing Education.
For additional courses and workshops please visit https://sva.edu/academics/continuing-education
Residency Eligibility
Residency Experience Summary
Application Information
To apply, please compile the following materials and submit them through our online application.
- Work sample (see guidelines below)
- Image list including title, medium, size and date (for visual work samples only)
- Artist's Statement / Statement of Purpose (250-500 words)
- CV
Fine Arts: Contemporary Practices
Session 1: May 27 - June 27, 2025
Session 2: July 8 - August 8, 2025
$3,200 per session / $6,400 for both sessions
$3,200 per session / $6,400 for both sessions
Please email residencya@sva.edu for information regarding tuition assistance.
Residency Program Tuition Assistance Awards
SVA's Artist Residency programs are currently providing a select number of tuition assistance awards for accepted artists in need. Please note there is a limited amount of awards available per program and applying does not guarantee an award. For further details or to apply for a tuition assistance award, contact residency@sva.edu with the subject line "Tuition Assistance Award Application."