Red House Residency 2021

Call for Applications Summer/Fall 2021

The Red House Residency, located in Bath County, Virginia is intended to support emerging or established women artists and writers with a two-week artist residency (see “dates” below).  Emerging and established women artists, including plein aire and landscape painters, botanical artists, nature artists and crafters, fiber and textile artists, nature journals, printmakers, poets and writers are invited to reply.  Residencies will be offered in June and September of 2021.  Note: residents are asked to follow all guidelines and mandates related to Covid-19, should they still be in place.
Story of the Residency This residency is supported and hosted by the McGuire-Reagan family on their family farm, Sycamore Bend.  The Cowpasture River runs through the farm.  Artists are welcome to swim, tube, fish, and let the river inspire them.  The beauty of theAllegheny Highlands includes the George Washington National Forest, Douthat State Park, and Countless outdoor scenic and recreation areas.  The family wants to support women artists, with an additional goal being to encourage and educate others from beginning local students to visiting amateurs.  This is a quiet, serene environment where artists and writers can focus on their art.
Sycamore Bend has been in Amanda’s family  since 1974 when her parents Anne and Lockhart bought and old log house and some surrounding acres.  Billy and Amanda began renting out that house as a vacation get-away when they moved to the adjoining property.  Since then, their house and the Red House for residents have been incorporated into Sycamore Bend.  They have raised two children, Catharine and Will there.  While Billy raised cattle for about a decade, the main activities on the farm now are haymaking and trailblazing.
The Red House The residency house is a four-room, one bedroom, one bath camping cottage with modern furnishings and Wi-Fi.  There is an equipped kitchen, and residents will provide their own meals.  A wood stove, and space heater warm the house in the colder months.  A list of what to bring will be sent to accepted residents.  Photos are on our Facebook page, Red House Residency.
Dates:  Residencies will be slightly less than two weeks to allow for cleaning during this Covid era.  Dates for the residency with a noon arrival and departure are: May 30th- June 11th June 13th- June 25th August 29th- Sept 10th Sept 12th- Sept 24th
Applications ​must be received by February 14th, 2021 at midnight EST.  Notifications will be made by email by March 15th, 2021. Acceptances must be received by April 1, 2021, midnight EST.  We will maintain a waiting list.
There are several parts to this application.  Applicants can send them by email or hard copy, but must include each of the following:  preferred dates, artist statement, plan, public event and work samples.
Dates Preferred:  state your date preference in order of most to least preferred.  If all dates are acceptable, state ALL.
Artist statement: Tell us about you, your art, your artistic inspiration, and your artistic goals. Max 500 words.
Plan: What is your plan for the residency?  What will you do to advance your art process while you are here?  How will this setting enhance your your artistic process?  Max 500 words.
Public Event:  (Adjustments may be made due to the status of the pandemic).  Visual artists and writers are required to provide one outreach activity, public event, or public project during their stay.  What will you provide? Describe the activity and state your goals for the activity.     
Examples:  preference will be given for a hands-on, arts activity for any age given outdoor capacity and Covid restrictions.  Other examples include a demo, lecture and/or display of your work.  We are happy for you to “think outside of the box” to provide alternative ideas.  We will work with you on this so that you are comfortable with the plan.  There are a variety of locations on the farm that lend themselves to group activities, and the resident can work with the artistic director and host to decide which suits their offering best. (The 2020 resident was able to conduct a safe, outdoor, socially-distant session for non-artist adults). Max 500 words
Work Samples: Visual Artists:  5 images of your artwork, either scanned or good quality photographs.  We prefer 300 dpi, 8 inches maximum on the longest side, jpg scans, but good photographs are acceptable. Writers:  3 writing samples of 15,000 words.  Please let us know if any have been published.
Expectations:
Note: this is a rural area and residents must have a car. Agreement:  Accepted residents will be sent a residency agreement, which must be completed and sent to the address below (under “Fee”) one month prior to the start of the residency.
Jurying Subsequent Residents:  Residents will be asked to help in the selection process for next year’s resident along with the host and 2020 resident.  Visual artists will assess applications from visual artists; writers will assess applications from writers.
Contribution:  Fee:  Mail a $30, non-refundable application fee made out to Sycamore Bend to tthis address:  RHResidency, 5503 River Road, Millboro, Virginia 24460
Covid Considerations: The pandemic has affected all areas of our lives, and this residency is no exception.  As stated above, we will work with you to make your public event safe, and feel safe for you and participants.  We ask that you clean the red house before you depart, focusing on high-touch areas.  Rest assured, we will clean and air out the house before you arrive, and it will be vacant for at least 36 hours prior to your arrival.

If you have any questions while deciding to apply, please feel free to contact us at RHResidency2021@gmail.com