The Arts Writing Residency embeds an arts writer in St. Louis’ Black arts communities, where they will incubate and enhance the city’s arts critical discourse.
The Black Embodiments Studio (Seattle, WA), Burnaway (Atlanta, GA) and The Luminary (St. Louis, MO) have long worked to incubate critical arts discourse in their respective cities, forging ties with artists, critics, researchers, and audiences for whom the arts are a central site for convening, reflection, and change. The Arts Writing Residency is a joint endeavor that advances the organizations’ long-standing commitments to arts writing as a necessary component to healthy arts communities—and reflects their beliefs that arts writing can and should be supportively cultivated and adequately compensated.
To this end, the residents will be hosted at The Luminary, their writing practice will be guided by The Black Embodiments Studio, and their work will be published by Burnaway.
The Arts Writing Residency will provide a structure of support for two writers to enter into and engage with St. Louis’ Black artists, and with museums, galleries, and events that feature and support them. The writers will receive housing accommodations in The Luminary’s residency apartment for one month, a $3,250.00 stipend to support their writing, and $350.00 travel stipend.
The Arts Writing Residency is a pilot program. As such, one resident will be selected from an application process only open to people who have already participated in The Black Embodiments Studio Arts Writing Incubator, or who will have completed their participation in Spring 2022. The second resident will be selected from an open call process, the eligibility of which is described below.
Applicants will pitch for how they will spend their time in residence. To be eligible for consideration, all pitches must thoughtfully and critically engage with St. Louis’ Black arts community. Applicants could propose, but are not limited to:
Publishing a weekly or biweekly column
Developing and publishing in-depth profiles of 2+ Black artists
Conducting interviews to be in conversation with St. Louis Black creatives
Writing a review of 2+ exhibitions, performances, or programs in St. Louis
Experimenting with arts writing and offer a new form
A combination of the above
Applications are due April 15, 2022.