PlatteForum is an award-winning and innovative arts, youth development, social justice and artist-in-residence program in Denver, founded in 2002. As a 501 (c)3 nonprofit organization, PlatteForum teams youth with professional artists in intensive, structured, and long-term creative learning environments. Resident Artists collaboratively plan, produce, and exhibit a body of work in an environment in which artistic excellence is highly valued along with support from ArtLab Interns. Youth in PlatteForum’s programs delve into a variety of art forms and social justice topics, confronting challenges and obstacles and making life-changing discoveries about who they are, what they are capable of achieving, and where they belong in the world.

As an artist community, PlatteForum supports the creation and presentation of new art and ideas by contemporary artists. By supporting working artists, PlatteForum generates dialogue in the larger community about the role of the artist and social justice in society. Located in a rich urban context, PlatteForum’s dynamic, artist-centered residencies are built upon the notion of engaging the broader community in the creation of new work, where artists, youth, and the public collaborate. Each resident artist becomes a catalyst for innovative and expanded thinking about what art is and can be.

PlatteForum values supporting resident artists in a myriad of ways not limited to: stipend provided in exchange for skills sharing with our ArtLab interns, mental health support through partnerships with local licensed therapists or by reimbursement, mentorship and/or meetings with local arts leaders and curators, guidance towards goals offered from staff, supplies and tools support, as well as exhibition promotion and media support.

Residencies at PlatteForum are competitive with over 100 applications and only four to five slots awarded each year. Each residency gives the artist the time, space and support to extend their work and share their ideas with the public. Artistic excellence, innovative ideas for engagement and collaboration with the public, and a diversity of ideas, genres, social justice topics and methodologies are paramount in selecting artists for only four to five available slots in the Artist Residency program each year. Residencies are typically 6-8 weeks in duration.



The Artist Residency program is open to artists in all genres and disciplines. Applications from established professional artists, emerging artists, and graduate students are welcome. We encourage local, national, and international artists (if local and national COVID and/or public health guidelines permit) to apply. Artistic excellence, merit, and creative ways of interacting with the public are important criteria in the selection process. Former Resident Artists may apply again after a three-year waiting period. (for example, a Resident Artist from the 2019-20 season is not eligible to apply until the 2022-23 season).

PlatteForum is a member of the Alliance of Artist Communities, an international organization that advocates for creative environments that support the work of today’s artists. Community connections nurtured by collaborations and partnerships with organizations, schools, and individuals that extend the artist’s aesthetic are integral to each residency. The PlatteForum approach — teaming Resident Artists with youth and the community — makes a valuable contribution to our community’s cultural discourse, fosters personal growth for the artist, and positively impacts the lives of participating individuals. PlatteForum’s uniqueness gives artists, youth, and community members opportunities that they might not find elsewhere.

You may apply for this program in one of two categories:

Artist: The residency program lends itself to the creation of a wide variety of work including film, video, or experimental media works. Participants can mix and match these benefits according to their needs.

Researcher: Artists, scholars, curators, archivists, writers, and theorists are invited to propose new or in-progress research in the area of emergent media arts practices towards the publication of critical texts, scholarly research, or production of curatorial projects. 

Applicants will provide a project statement and supporting portfolio of work.

REQUIRED FOR APPLICATION

• Residency Plan: 
  All residents must have a plan of action for what work they will complete during their time at CAE.
• Public Component Plan:
  All residencies must include a public component accessible to the outside community that connects to their residency plan. The public component of your application must relate to your artist residency and engage the local and broader community. This may include open studio visits, presentations, teaching a class/workshop, works-in-progress showing, or other outreach or community engagement project. CAE will help you schedule your public component, but it is up to you to plan how you will execute this event and identify any outside community partners that you are interested in working with in your application. Please make sure that the public component you identify can be completed while you are in residence.
• Letters of Recommendation:
  All applicants must include at least 2 letters of recommendation to be considered. These letters must speak to the artist’s professional proficiency and character.

ARTIST HOUSING AND WORKSPACE

The artist living space is a private cottage conveniently located just a 5 minute (4/10 mile) walk from Downtown Evergreen and Evergreen Lake. It is a 1 bedroom/1 bath studio with a full kitchen. Artist will have use of a large flat shared yard and Cub Creek which runs adjacent to the length of the property. The artist cottage has a strict NO smoking policy inside and pets are not allowed. The cottage is a 10-minute drive to the artist studio at CAE, and 25 minutes from Red Rocks Amphitheater.

STUDIOS & SPECIAL EQUIPMENT

• Exhibition / Installation Space
• Free Wi-Fi
• Ceramics Workspace
• Electric Wheels
• Slab Roller
• Clay Mixers
• Electric Kiln
• Computer and internet connection provided in common area (shared)
• Internet connection provided in private studio
• Photo + Video Editing Suite
• Painting Workspace (Oil)
• Easels
• Folding Art Horses/Drawing Benches
• Drying Racks
• Large Sinks
• Glass Kiln

CONTACT

www.evergreenarts.org/artistinresidence

(303) 674-0056

sara@evergreenrarts.org

31880 Rocky Village Drive

Evergreen, CO 80439

United States

This residency is aimed at writers, visual, and interdisciplinary artists in the Pacific Northwest who are towards beginning of their creative paths and can benefit from the time to focus and receive support from a community of peers and specialists in their fields.

Applicants must live in Washington, Oregon, British Columbia, Idaho, or Montana

We use a bi-annual nomination process to reach a diverse pool of candidates from across the U.S. and to focus administrative resources on the program itself. The process begins with an invitation to dozens of nominators (alumni, academics, artists, curators, writers, etc.) to share names of eligible individuals, including visual artists, curators, writers, or other art professionals. Nominees must have a strong work history and be interested in a largely self-directed experience in a secluded setting. Above all, they must be kind and thoughtful of others.

Nominees show their interest by submitting an online application, and selections are made by lottery to ensure that all applications are considered equally. We aim to balance accepted residents with a waitlist in case of cancellations. Residents are given access to a handbook with details of our program and events, including informal studio visits and guided nature explorations.

Practicing emerging and mid-career artists are invited to apply. 

We offer residencies for adults 21 and up. We do not exclude people currently enrolled in fine arts higher education (BFA/MFA). Please visit our Submittable page for information about fellowship opportunities for writers and artists from the Pacific Northwest, who are BIPOC, or who are LGBTQ+ visual artists from the Pacific Northwest. We offer a mix of fellowships and low-cost paid residencies; if you apply for a fellowship for which you're eligible, you can elect to also be reviewed for paid residency. (This way, you are juried as narrowly or broadly as you wish within one application fee.)

Our Submittable page with application information is here.