Auckland Council seeks 2014 artist in residence

Opportunity for writers

Auckland Council is seeking a new artist in residence for 2014. Applications are now open for a residency which enables an artist to live and work on a regional park for two months.

The artist selected will live in a beachside bach either at Tawharanui Regional Park or at Scandrett Regional Park (both north east of Warkworth) and will create a new body of work related to the park or to the residency experience. 

Residency coordinator Michelle Edge says living on a park 24/7 exposes artists to places that change; dramatically or subtly, from day to day depending on the time, tide and weather.

“Regional parks offer dynamic settings to escape to and they can trigger new ways of seeing things. For most artists the two month residency flies by and some are profoundly influenced by their park-based experiences.

“This opportunity is open to makers and creators, whatever their art form. Previous residents have included a poet, composer, painter, sculptor, installation artist, photographer and film-maker,” she says.

An artist’s fee, to assist the development of new work, is offered as well as free accommodation. In return for their park sojourn and ‘outdoor studio’ the artist shares their work with the public or park visitors during or after the residency. Outcomes from past residents have included: a book, a cd of new compositions, a concert and exhibitions.

Ms Edge says the summer holiday season is the perfect time for prospective applicants to drop in to Tawharanui or Scandrett Regional Parks and come up with an innovative and original concept to go with their application.

“There are no prescribed subjects, scale or materials,” she says. “So it’s a chance for artists to respond really creatively.”

“Their work could be about a microscopic creature or texture or a grandiose concept or view, about a heritage feature or natural phenomenon. We want to show the public an aspect of a park through an artist’s eyes and experience.”

Applications for the 2014 Auckland regional parks Artist in Residence programme are open until 17 February 2014. For more information, phone 09 301 7203 or 09 365 3189 or go to www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/arts.