The Northwest Minnesota Arts Council is Excited to Announce 14 New Artists Available for Residencies

 Fourteen area artists recently completed the Northwest Minnesota Art Council’s teaching artist training and are available for school and community residencies. Northwest Minnesota Arts Council is proud to now promote a roster of 23 local artists trained in our Teaching Artist Roster Program (TARP). 

This new cohort of artists include visual artists Alyssa Aune of Gatzke, Beau Bakken of Hallock, Trey Everett of Crookston, Amy Fuglestad of Crookston, Samantha Harrill of Warroad, Jill Levene of Warren, Caylie Nicholson of Hallock, Gail Ose of Thief River Falls, Jodi Peterson of Moorhead who teaches in Ada, Jessica Ross of Fisher, Mandy Smestad of East Grand Forks, and Acacia Winters of Thief River Falls; and performing artists Eden Johnson of Lake Bronson and Megan Maloney of Thief River Falls. 

They join Kristin Eggerling of Hallock, Christine Foster of Thief River Falls, Janet Johnson of Roseau, Jolene Juhl of Greenbush, Cindy Kolling of Gully, Misti Koop of East Grand Forks, Aliza Novacek-Olson of Roseau, Stephanie Olson of Thief River Falls, and Elizabeth Rockstad of Ada. 

Residences and multi-day workshops offered are in ceramics, storytelling, writing, visual arts, violin, self-portraits, watercolor or acrylic painting, mural painting, creative expression, glass fusing, encaustic art, mixed media, collaborative design and technical theater, performing arts, textiles, mosaic, printmaking, and more. 

To view the roster and learn more about the artists (including how to contact them) visit our website at:   

https://northwestminnesotaartscouncil.org/tarp-artists. Or click on Artists at the top of our website and then click on Teaching Artists List.

The Teaching Artist Roster Program (TARP) is designed to support artists (visual, performing, writing, media, fine art) in refining and developing skills for conducting collaborative, in-depth arts learning experiences in organizations, community settings, and schools. Artists applied and a cohort was selected to participate in this training.  Artists interested in being added to the roster can apply this Fall to be in the next group going through the mainly online training of seven sessions.  

These artists learned valuable skills and tools to best teach their creative practice. The training helped them to expand the ways they apply their craft, belong to a network of fellow teaching artists who serve as resources, mentors and peers, and employ strategies that contribute to success as a teaching artist.

Schools and festivals can apply for funding to sponsor these local artists to come into their school for residencies or to their festival for a workshop experience over a couple days. Artists on the roster have created a residency plan with lesson plans, materials list, and other documents that take most of the work out of applying.

Schools can apply for an Artist Residency grant of $3,000 as early as this fall through our on-line grant system. The Login to create a user and start an application is in the upper right corner of our website.To apply, schools fill out an application showing interest in funding, then requests are made with add-on forms within the on-line grant software for specific project funding requests. Each residency requires a minimum 10% cash match. Funding for residency activities comes from the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment in Minnesota. School residencies are first come, first served grants to school districts in our seven-county area. You will need to contact the artist directly to schedule the residency. 

Festivals within our seven county service area can apply for our July 31, October 31, February 28 or April 30 deadlines to include artists in what they are offering the public with grant funding in the arts.  There is a minimum 10% cash match.    

Please contact Northwest Minnesota Arts Council in Warren with any questions about this TARP program, to receive a flyer in the mail with the artists available, or to receive grant funding to bring one of these teaching artists into your school or festival.  The NWMAC phone number is 218-745-8886 ext 1 and email is director@nwartscouncil.org.