School of Art helps establish first artist-in-residency program

The University of Cincinnati and collaborator Wave Pool — a socially engaged art center in Cincinnati — have received $75,0000 from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to establish a program that provides artists fellowships and residencies by partnering with local businesses.

The program, called MATCH (Multidisciplinary Artists for Transformational Change), will pair artists with local businesses and organizations to integrate arts, culture and design activities into local efforts to strengthen and engage communities and lay the groundwork for long-term systems change.

“It will make it one of the best paid artist residency programs nationwide,” says Jordan Tate, the grant’s co-author, professor of art and director of UC’s master of fine arts program in the School of Art, within the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP).

According to Tate, the artists will be embedded at businesses and organizations for two 15- week periods part time and teach at educational institutions and community centers. In return, they will receive wages, a stipend from the grant and exposure to the business world.

“MATCH artists will span media and disciplines ranging from more traditional art approaches to new media and social practice,”he says, adding that the typical pathway to success for artists is either through galleries or academia which have built-in support systems.   

"We know this project will not only bring life-changing opportunities to artists, but also expand our city's understanding of what roles creatives can play in future building for our community on the whole," says Cal Cullen, Wave Pool co-founder and former executive director.  

This NEA award is one of 57 grants nationwide, totaling $4,175,000, that the NEA has approved in the Our Town category.

The NEA supports a wide range of projects that “enrich our lives and contribute to healthy and thriving communities,” says NEA Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD. “These organizations play an important role in advancing the creative vitality of our nation and helping to ensure that all people can benefit from arts, culture and design.”

To learn more about the MATCH program and the potential to host an artist-in-residence contact Professor Tate at tatejd@ucmail.uc.edu. 

Featured image at top WavePool headquarters in Cincinnati's Camp Washington neighborhood. Photo/Maria Seda-Reeder