(Photos above: January Artists in Residence | courtesy of Caldera Arts Center)
Artists create bold new works in Central Oregon and connect with local communities.
Caldera celebrates its 20th year of programming by announcing three dynamic and diverse groups of Artists in Residence (AiR). The last Saturday of each month of residencies (January 28, February 25 and March 25) the Caldera Arts Center (31500 Blue Lake Drive, Sisters) opens its doors to the public from 12:30–3:30pm for AiR Open Studios when Artists in Residence and youth share their work with the public through presentations and performances.
Every winter Caldera welcomes artists from around the world for month-long stays at its Arts Center on Blue Lake in Central Oregon. Residencies are awarded based on a competitive application process open to artists from all disciplines. Residencies are a crucial part of the artistic process for many artists, giving them time and space away from the distractions of daily life to focus on their craft. In 2017, residents will create new works in dance, sculpture, culinary arts, fiber arts, theatre, poetry, film and many other genres.
In addition to their personal artistic practice, Artists in Residence are integrated into Caldera’s year-round Youth Program. Select AiR will teach workshops or host presentations to middle and high school students in Central Oregon, including a special week-long documentary film workshop in Warm Springs by Jamie Howell of Leavenworth, Washington. Howell’s residency is made possible by a collaboration between Caldera, BendFilm and The Museum at Warm Springs.
This year, for the first time, Artists in Residence will provide free, public workshops in Sisters and Bend. Workshops will include memoir writing, arts for social activism, somatic poetry, and more. Details and registration information will be available mid-December. Maesie Speer, Caldera facilities program manager, says, “We are excited to expand the opportunities for Central Oregonians to engage with our artists who come from all over the country to be inspired by the place we call home. These artists are not only advancing their own work, but are deeply committed to teaching and engaging with community.”
Caldera’s Artists in Residence Program is one of the few in the nation that supports parent artists by allowing children and an additional caretaker to accompany an artist during their stay. Caldera Creative Director Elizabeth Quinn notes that, “As a nonprofit committed to the development of young people, we see the support of parent artists as a natural extension of our work. It’s critical that our programs are as accessible as possible to all artists and supportive of their families.”
The last Saturday of each month of residencies (January 28, February 25 and March 25) the Caldera Arts Center (31500 Blue Lake Drive, Sisters) opens its doors to the public from 12:30–3:30pm for AiR Open Studios when Artists in Residence and youth share their work with the public through presentations and performances. This event is free and light refreshments will be served.
2017 Caldera Artists in Residence Roster
January
Lauren Chandler, culinary arts, Portland, Oregon
Shelby Davis, sculpture, Portland, Oregon
Genevieve Hudson, prose, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Dain Mergenthaler, installation, Brooklyn, New York
Tomas Moniz, prose, Berkeley, California
Kaj-anne Pepper, performance, Portland, Oregon
Annesofie Sandal, sculpture/video, New York, New York
Crystal Schenk, sculpture, Portland, Oregon
February
Esperanza Cortes, sculpture, New York, New York
Michael Crenshaw, music, Portland, Oregon
Christopher Kuhl, performing arts design, Los Angeles, California
Rachel Mauser, book arts, Louisville, Kentucky
Jeanne Medina, fiber arts/performance, Richmond, Virginia
Zoe Aja Moore, theatre, Los Angeles, California
Dean Spade, prose/video/activism, Seattle, Washington
Lindsay Wong, prose, Coquitlam, British Columbia
March
Kate Bredeson, theatre history, Portland, Oregon
Rachael Dichter, dance, San Francisco, California
Saideh Eftekhari, music, San Francisco, California
Allie Hankins, dance, Portland, Oregon
Jamie Howell, film, Leavenworth, Washington
Zoe Keller, illustration, Portland, Oregon
Michelle Peñaloza, poetry, Seattle, Washington
Sherrie Wolf, painting, Portland, Oregon
Caldera, Oregon’s first recipient of a National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award, celebrates 20 years of creativity this year. Founded in 1996, by Dan Wieden (co-founder of the Portland, Oregon-based international ad agency, Wieden+Kennedy) and his family, Caldera is a catalyst for the transformation of youth through innovative, year-round art and environmental programs. Caldera nurtures individual creativity to ignite self-expression and transform the way young people engage in their lives, families and communities.