Providing Time, Space and Inspiration is the founding principle of Burren College of Art. Our Residencies provide a place to retreat, reflect, and explore your practice outside of the demands and rigors of daily routine. Set in the centre of one of Europe’s most dramatic landscapes, the Burren is a place where the power and beauty of nature envelops and invites you to expand your vision and abilities as an artist.

Our residency program welcomes applications from artists working at all levels and stages of their careers. While our primary BCA Artist Residency program provides dedicated studio space and the use of our campus facilities for residents without any additional expectations, we are also able to offer residency programmes designed to support those seeking a greater degree of professional feedback and involvement in the College community.

The Residency + and Burren Immersion:12-week Residency programmes are available during the academic year between September and April. The Residency + offers studio time combined with weekly meetings with our faculty, while the Burren Immersion:12-week Residency combines independent studio time with advisory sessions along with the option to audit one or more of our undergraduate courses (without academic credit) during the semester. All of our residents are welcome to attend public discussions, visiting artist lectures, seminars, exhibitions and events throughout the year.

Mattering Worlds is an international media art residency exploring artistic practice in relation to more-than-human ecologies, technological infrastructures, and environmental transformation. Hosted by Ars Techne in Armenia, the program brings together artists, researchers, and cultural practitioners working across disciplines such as media art, sound, bioart, speculative design, and critical technology studies.

The residency supports research-driven and process-based artistic work that engages with ecological responsibility, situated knowledge, and experimental forms of collaboration. Participants are encouraged to develop projects that reflect on planetary conditions, local contexts, and the entanglements between human and non-human agencies. Rather than focusing solely on production, the program emphasizes dialogue, field inquiry, collective learning, and public engagement.

Residents take part in workshops, site visits, reading sessions, and open studio moments, while also contributing to Ars Techne’s public program through talks, presentations, or small-scale interventions. The residency aims to foster meaningful exchange between international and local communities, strengthen interdisciplinary networks, and create space for critical reflection on how artistic practices can respond to contemporary ecological and technological challenges.

Residencies at Zea Mays Printmaking are designed to fit each artist’s unique needs and desires. In addition to our state-of-the-art facilities and equipment, we offer residents the opportunity to enhance their experience with one-on-one instruction with our expert faculty. Dig into a new printmaking technique, receive guidance and feedback on your works-in-progress, or learn to apply Zea Mays Printmaking’s sustainability methods to your existing practice.

Enjoy the luxury of a fully equipped private studio within our print shop. The Annex is equipped with a gorgeous Takach etching press (39.5″ x 72″), large work tables, flat file storage, a sink and plenty of wall space for work in progress. We are happy to bring in additional equipment and tools as needed including a vertical etching tank, large hotplate, large rollers and hand brayers, screen printing press, drying boards.

Residency artists have access to all of the other facilities in the studio during our open hours. These include:

• airbrush aquatint booth
• vertical etching tanks with Ferric Chloride mordant and Copper Sulfate Saline mordant
• plate shear
• photopolymer darkroom with NuArc K-1 exposure unit (for plates up to 18” x 24”)
• screenprinting darkroom with LED exposure unit for screens up to 27” x 34”
• screenprinting washout sink with power washer
• Vandercook 4 letterpress and Showcard letterpress with wooden type
• Digital Lab (computer, scanner, Epson 4900 printer)
• Print dryer and flattener
• Light table

There are four virtual residency programs: Ocean, Our Earth and Sustainability.

They focus on topics such as ocean conservation, sustainability and rooted communities, memory, territory, the earth, and climate.

They are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and are supported as an endorsed activity by the United Nations Decade of the Ocean.

There are 4 programs in support of and committed to UNESCO’s environmental and humanistic goals.

We guide residents so they can focus on working on a project for 6 weeks through virtual meetings (1 per week), exchange dialogue and ideas with other residents (of all nationalities), participate in talks with special guests related to science and ancestral perspectives, and thus enhance their work.

We hold a virtual Open Studio and an exhibition on a virtual map to conclude each program.

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In 2027, Oak Spring will award its inaugural Fine Crafts and Design Fellowship to an early-career craftsperson or designer whose work demonstrates exceptional skill, artistic vision, and meaningful engagement with the natural world. This fellowship celebrates the intersection where form meets function, while honoring the aesthetics, material integrity, and craftsmanship at the heart of fine craft and design. The fellowship is intent- and inspiration-focused, rather than outcome-focused, meaning that we seek artists whose work is consistent with the objectives of the fellowship, without an expectation that they complete a prescribed project while at Oak Spring.

This fellowship is generously supported by Tiffany & Co. in honor of their lasting association with Mrs. Mellon and especially with the jewelry designer Jean Schlumberger.

The fellowship also honors the legacy of our founder Rachel “Bunny” Mellon – an avid gardener, patron, and collector – whose discerning eye and deep appreciation for exquisite design are reflected in her collaborations with artists such as Jean Schlumberger, Hubert de Givenchy, Cristóbal Balenciaga, and Diego Giacometti. Ideal applicants will demonstrate a commitment to material exploration, sustainability, and/or reimagining traditional techniques in innovative ways.

nWilderHaven Artist Residency (WHAR)

The WilderHaven Artist Residency aims to gather artists, musicians, writers, scholars and local artisans, cultivating a space where creative minds converge to explore, experiment, and connect. In an era marked by a deepening awareness of individuality and the pursuit of freedom, WHAR serves as a sanctuary for interdisciplinary practices. As artists navigate foreign lands and cultures, their work becomes a bridge between traditions and contemporary thought, contributing to a broader understanding of existence and the ever-evolving relationship between art, science, politics, economics, and spirituality.

Residency Structure

• Cohort Size: 8-14 artists per season, representing diverse media and career stages.
• Program Length: 2-week or 4 week stays (4 weeks strongly encouraged for a fully immersive experience).
• Key Events:
  1. Open-Format Artist Presentations (mid-season)
  2. Public Open Studio (final weekend)

Support & Flexibility

To keep fees accessible and creative freedom high, our team:

• Acts as on-site facilitators, not administrators—assisting with logistics, material sourcing, and technical questions as needed.
• Provides shared workspaces, amenities (kitchen, snack bar), and curated cultural excursions.
• Adapts living and studio arrangements to suit individual needs.

Where We Work

Residencies take place in multiple towns and natural retreats across:

• Yunnan Province (tropical ethnic cultural hubs)
• Guizhou Province (ethnic Yi and Miao regions)
• Sichuan Province 

Dream Factory Sound Sanctuary (DFSS) is a nonprofit artist residency and recording studio located in the quiet high desert of Southern California. Our residency program supports musicians, composers, producers, and sound artists seeking a focused environment to create, learn, explore, and deepen their craft.

We host one resident artist at a time for immersive stays. Residency length is typically 2–3 weeks, with some flexibility depending on the artist’s goals and schedule.

Each residency includes lodging, daily meals, full access to a professional recording studio, and a large library of acoustic and electronic instruments. Residents also have the option to work closely with an experienced studio engineer who can support both technical and creative development—whether the focus is recording and production, learning the fundamentals, or experimenting without pressure to complete an album or release.

The program is designed to reduce common barriers to creative growth by offering dedicated studio time, guidance when desired, and a peaceful natural setting that supports deep concentration. Dream Factory’s instrument collection and studio environment invite both traditional workflows and exploratory sound practices.

The surrounding desert landscape provides quiet and spaciousness; many artists weave in reflection, nature walks, and personal practices alongside studio work. DFSS is supported by community donations and partnerships that help us offer residencies with minimal financial