A residency buys an artist the scarcest thing in the practice: uninterrupted time, in a space that is not your kitchen table, usually somewhere unfamiliar.
25 active residencies
Residencies vary enormously in what they actually provide, and the difference matters more than the prestige of the host. A fully supported residency covers studio space, accommodation, and a stipend, and sometimes a materials or production budget on top. A studio-only residency gives you the space and nothing else — still valuable, but you are covering your own living costs for the duration. Some residencies charge a fee to attend.
Durations run from a two-week intensive to a year-long tenancy, with one to three months the most common. Shorter residencies suit a concentrated body of work or a research trip; longer ones suit projects that need to develop in place, or that depend on a relationship with a particular community or landscape.
New Zealand and Australian residencies are listed here alongside international programmes that accept applicants from Aotearoa and Australia — including exchange residencies run by Creative New Zealand and Creative Australia, which reserve places for their own nationals at partner institutions overseas.
Selection panels consistently weigh the fit between your proposal and the specific place: what the site, its collections, its people, or its landscape offer that your studio at home does not. Generic proposals read as generic wherever they are sent.
