2024 Fellowship

The 2024 application opens on September 20th to accept 200 applications and closes on October 5th at 11:59 pm or after the 200 applications, whichever comes first.

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https://airie.submittable.com/submit

AIRIE invites emerging or professional artists, writers, curators, choreographers, musicians and other creatives who want to contribute to the interpretation and communication of environmental themes through the inspiring nature of Everglades National Park.

Eligibility:
• Emerging or Professional artists in any artistic discipline, including (but not limited to) visual, performing, literary arts
• Pursuing research & development stage of artistic project/explorations
• 21+ Years of Age
• Eligible to travel to the United States*
• Eligible to stay for the whole month of assigned residency (exceptions must be discussed and approved before accepting residency)
• Can contend with the AIRIE residency contractual terms laid out in the FAQ

*AIRIE is not responsible for procuring or sponsor visas to the United States

AIRIE provides a $4,000 fellowship grant to each accepted Fellow, a one-month residency in Everglades National Park, as well as a $1500 travel/food stipend to support artists as they dedicate time to their practice and discoveries in the Park. Artists are provided a furnished, air-conditioned single apartment, or a dorm style apartment with a shared kitchen, for the length of the residency. Everglades National Park (ENP) welcomes AIRIE Fellows as Park Volunteers during their residency, providing the same liability and insurance that all National Park Service volunteers receive. The ENP will facilitate introductions to rangers and scientists working inside the park and provide residents with resources for exploring the various habitats and wildlife. In addition, AIRIE facilitates other varied experiences for residents throughout the Everglades with local partner organizations.

Yes! We welcome past fellows to apply.

An application cost of $20 to apply for the AIRIE Residency Program.

If this cost is prohibitive, please contact hello@airie.org for assistance.

In addition to your general contact information, the application asks for a brief artist statement, biography, résumé/CV (optional), response to prompts about your intended work and the theme, references (optional), and (optional) information about diversity demographics. You are also asked to submit work samples. For visual/music/video arts: 5 - 10 pieces, with the ability to upload images, audio, and/or video. For literary arts discipline, they may upload at least 2 samples with a 10-page maximum for each sample or 20 pages total. PDF is preferred.

Yes, you can! (See below for details)

The $4,000 grant noted above would be awarded to the collective as a whole. Additionally, the travel support budget is based on a single traveler and would not increase based on the members of the group. Finally, the residence space is a studio that is suitable for single occupancy. A larger collective would need to procure additional housing.

Fellows live and work in the single room AIRIE Cabin, or a dorm style unit with a private room and shared kitchen in Everglades National Park. Both are air-conditioned, furnished apartments with a kitchen, bathroom, laundry, and WiFi connection. The cabin is large enough to provide for working studio space, and is located in the Royal Palm area which is near Park Headquarters, the Ernest F. Coe Visitors Center. The cabin is approximately 15 minutes by car from the nearest towns of Florida City and Homestead, where supermarkets, supply stores and other resources are readily found.

Accepted residents will need to bring personal clothing, food and supplies. The AIRIE Cabin is stocked simple pantry items, pots, dishes/utensils, towels, linens, a TV, and bluetooth speaker. We have a selection of art supplies, bug protective gear, and camping gear. A bicycle is available for use at the AIRIE Lab, however a car is highly recommended and is necessary to reach the nearby towns and to access the remote parts of the Everglades ecosystem.

Artists are expected to leave the accommodations neat and clean and to comply with all regulations and standards governing park employees and visitors. Artists should be self-sufficient and also willing to work closely with park staff, the AIRIE Residency Coordinator, and the local community to achieve program goals.

The Everglades has seasons: The dry, winter season begins in October and ends in April. The hot, wet summer season generally runs from April to October, and is known to bring mosquitoes and incredible thunderstorms to the Park. During the summer season, we recommend artists bring rain gear which might include a rain jacket, poncho, rain boots.

Solitude Alert: You will be the only artist in residence in the park during the time you are here. While there is park staff living nearby to the residence and rangers working during the days, your work will be mainly individual.

WIFI: There is WIFI in the AIRIE Cabin, Everglades National Park Visitors Center and AIRIE Nest Gallery.

Artists are expected to spend one (1) month in residence in the everglades and use their time exploring, learning about and responding to the dynamic qualities of Everglades National Park and local communities.

Artists are required to respect Park Regulations. They should not bring natural, organic materials to the Park, should not use organic materials from the Park in creating work, and should not remove any natural materials from the Park. Their work must not involve ground disturbances or manipulation of wildlife in any way. It is the resident’s responsibility to be informed of Park rules and to follow them.

Interaction with visitors: Each AIRIE resident is asked to volunteer a few hours to interact with interested Park visitors and staff during the residency. These interactions may take the form of lectures, exhibitions, demonstrations, performances, “art walks” equipped with cameras or sketchbooks, or mini workshops. These outreach activities are programmed in collaboration with ENP and AIRIE staff.

Exit survey: Each AIRIE resident is asked to complete an exit survey about their experience and leave feedback that may be used by AIRIE in promotional campaigns, grant applications, and public announcements.

Each AIRIE Fellow is required to make a donation of artwork to the Everglades National Park collection.

Visual Art Donation: Each artist is expected to donate an artwork no later than one year after the residency is completed. The artwork should grow out of and reflect the residency and should be representative of the artist’s style. AIRIE is committed to showing artists’ work in high level venues and therefore requests a museum-quality donation, in order to better represent the artist in future.

AIRIE exhibitions: Artists expected to provide a digital image of the donated work and grant ENP the right to reproduce the work.

Literary Donation: ENP requires non-exclusive publication rights to a literary work produced during or following the residency. This work should grow out of and reflect the residency experience.

Performance Donation: Usually in the form of video or recording, details of the donation will be negotiated with AIRIE and ENP.

All donations are required within one year from the last day of the residency.

Promotional Images Donation: Each artist is asked to contribute a minimum of 5 images of their art, sketches, or themselves at work, that are produced during or as a result of their residency. The artist will give AIRIE permission to use these photos for promotional purposes.

When exhibiting, performing or publishing any work generated during or as a result of an AIRIE residency and patronage, AIRIE Fellows will offer press and/or event-based acknowledgment of the role of the residency in generating and/or presenting the work. The credit line should read: “This work was produced following [or during] a residency at Everglades National Park, [YEAR], Artists in Residence in Everglades (AIRIE).”

We welcome everyone to our residency and are committed to making our programs and events accessible. Please inform us of accessibility needs (including limited mobility) to allow us to provide seamless access and a positive residency experience. We will gladly make additional accommodations with advance notice.

AIRIE applications are assessed in two rounds. The first-round jury consists of industry experts who will verify excellent artistic and creative expression of the applicants as well as response to application prompts.

The final selection of artists will be made by members of the AIRIE National Advisory Committee (NAC). They will assess applicants’ artistry and response to prompts, with the additional curatorial responsibility of choosing an ideal group of artists to be named AIRIE Fellows. These artists will not only interpret the nature and stories of the Everglades but be able to present meaningful answers to the application prompts that inspire connection and discourse through their work. The NAC will work in collaboration with AIRIE Staff and and Everglades National Park representatives.

Proposals that incorporate the following will be preferred:

• Artist’s work and perspective explores environmental and social justice themes

• Artist’s work aligns with AIRIE and Everglades National Park core missions