Connecting Artists and Students

We know that art education provides students with skills that benefit them in the art studio and beyond: creativity, focus, critique, planning, and much more. When students attend school surrounded by art, they learn to think artistically, and they develop an understanding that the role of the arts in our society is crucially important. This knowledge is vital to our students as they grow into the innovators and creators of tomorrow. 

This is the impetus behind the McNeely Family Studio Residency, a program established in 2021 through the generosity of the McNeely family: Kevin, Rosemary, and Hannah Rose ‘19. The McNeelys are passionate about the arts in all of their forms, and this love for creative expression inspired them to endow a residency program that would attract established artists to be “embedded” in daily life at Sonoma Academy for an extended period of time. 

The goal of the residency is to host working artists from around the country and the world who will work closely with our students, cultivating the next generation of talented artists and providing insight into what it means to pursue a career in visual art. Artists will give lectures, hold workshops, exhibit their own work, create community-based art projects, and meaningfully engage with students, parents, and staffulty. 

Slideshow of past residents.

Cloth Collaborative is an art making space focused on textile practices as a means to explore ourselves in relationship to each other and the earth, a space where community can come together,  make, converse, and heal. We host small (6 to 8 participants)  textile based courses, intensive  workshops and project-based workshops,  along with open studio time. The space is a collaborative and wholistic effort, teaching hands on classes, hosting conversations, book groups,  and artist talks exploring the intersection of making and community building. We believe art has the potential to be a transformative agent in the world both on a personal and cultural level.

Farwell House Artist Residency is a multidisciplinary artist residency with a mission to nurture the creative process by providing an opportunity for artists (21 yrs+) to work without interruption in a supportive, rural environment. We strive to develop opportunities that are inclusive and welcoming to all, regardless of age, race, sexual orientation, or ability. Artists are selected through an open application process to live and work at Farwell House for a two week period. During this time artists have the opportunity to work on various tasks related to their artistic field. Also during this time, artists will be required to participate in one community engagement activity. This requirement may be accomplished through an exhibit, studio visit, workshop, reading, lecture or performance. Although our primary goal is to provide space and time for the artist, we deeply desire to engage with our communities through this type of interaction.

Stone Quarry’s Visiting Artist Program focuses on artists’ engagements with the landscape in a variety of materials, approaches, and disciplines. Stone Quarry envisions the park as a boundary object, a space that anyone can imagine, contribute, and collectively shape. The Visiting Artist Program positions responsiveness and collaboration at its center to create inclusive and equitable relationships with artists. Visiting Artists are awarded a stipend to create a project on the grounds. The Program is both process and project-based, which makes each artist’s conversation and time with Stone Quarry designed to fit the needs of the artist and their work. 

We do not accept submissions for this program. Stone Quarry's Artistic Director administers invitations to participate in the visiting artist program. This process is guided by an Art Advisory Committee, a group of independent artists and scholars whose wide-ranging expertise informs the programming and advances the organization's commitment to equitable and inclusive practices. 

Learn more about Teaching Artists, Affiliate Artists, and Commissions at Stone Quarry.

Makers Circle is a non-profit organization that uses the power of art and creative placemaking to help build sustainable, compassionate communities.

We believe that the arts and artists should play a major role in community regeneration, cultural and environmental healing, and civic engagement. Our team of community organizers, facilitators, and place-based artists uses their combined talents to work with communities and non-profit organizations around the globe to develop innovative projects that put the power of curiosity and wonder at the center of community building. Makers Circle is also the parent organization of the highly celebrated global photography community, the Kinship Photography Collective—a community of practice that creates rich visual conversations exploring the kindred connections between nature, culture, and belonging. Most recently, we launched Kinship Studio, a residency and retreat center in Cumberland, Maryland (USA), that welcomes photographers, community artists, and creative makers of all skill levels looking to seed, incubate, launch, or complete personal work or community projects. 

Arthereistanbul is an independent, artist-run space and residency based in the Yeldeğirmeni neighborhood of Kadıköy, Istanbul, founded in 2014 by displaced Syrian artists. Operating on a non-profit basis, it supports artistic production, intercultural dialogue, and community-based practices, with a particular focus on artists at risk affected by conflict, censorship, or displacement.

Arthereistanbul combines residencies, exhibitions, workshops, public programmes, and collaborative projects connecting local and international artists with surrounding communities. Over the years, it has developed projects addressing social inclusion, LGBTQ+ visibility, ecology, neighborhood collaboration, and freedom of expression, while also participating in regional networks supporting artists at risk.

The space includes shared studios, workshops, accommodation, a sound lab, darkroom, and production facilities, functioning as both a cultural platform and a living environment for exchange and experimentation. Working within the dense urban context of Istanbul, Arthereistanbul develops adaptive, low-resource, and community-oriented approaches to artistic and cultural practice.