The NOTO Art Center recently announced a new Resident Artist program, an opportunity aimed at supporting "emerging artists in their creative journeys while fostering a vibrant arts community."

This program is designed to provide selected artists with the resources, space and support needed to develop their artistic practice and launch their art careers and businesses.

"We are trying to do some new initiatives that speaks to arts in our community and new ways to help support artists and offer networking opportunities, tools and resources that they need to help elevate their professional art experience," Staci Ogle, arts administrator of NOTO.

Program to grant one artist a year-long residency

A studio space in NOTO's Avant Garde Underground common space will be provided to the artist. The space also includes facilities for collaboration and networking for the year-long residency.

The artist will have eight hours per month of classroom space for workshops, classes, or community events that the artist may wish to host.

Ogle said this is the first time the organization is offering this program and organizers are excited.

"But I also think it's probably new for our city. The goal is to help support artists so that we can continue to see artists retention in our city and watch the artists grow," said Ogle.

The artist will be expected to provide no less than 32 hours of volunteer work at the NOTO Art Center each month, contributing to the center’s operations and community initiatives. They will also create a cohesive body of work during their residency, which will culminate in an exhibition at the NOTO Art Center.

Lastly, they will be required to submit a 500-word essay at the end of the residency reflecting on their experience and the impact it had on their artistic career.

How can artist who are interested apply for the program?

Applicants must be 18 years of age or older and they must be members of Friends of NOTO at the time of the award and throughout the term of the residency.

"Ideally this is probably a program for an art student coming out of Washburn or somebody who's really thinking about, 'Do I want to take my artistry to the next professional level and maybe open a gallery in the future?' or you know some kind of creative center and not really sure how to do that," said Ogle. "This could be their stepping stone and give them the skills and confidence that they need to then go out on their own afterwards."

The applications can be found online at explorenoto.org.

When will an artist be chosen?

Entries will be reviewed and selected by the NOTO Arts Committee and approved by NOTO staff.

Those interested will have until April 15 to apply. Ogle said they hope to have an artist chosen by May.

"We'll keep looking if we don't get applicants that meet our deadline," she said. "We're still going to keep trying. This is important for us, so it's important for our community."

The selection process will focus on the artist’s potential for growth, the quality of their work and how they plan to use the resources provided by the residency.