Each year Abrons provides free studio space for 11 months, starting in late September, to five New York City visual artists and one curator under the AIRspace residency program, formerly the Visual Artist-in-Residence Workspace Program. Among the artists selected for the AIRspace program are painters, printmakers, photographers, sculptors, and video and installation artists.

Numerous studio spaces to residents within the Abrons building are offered. Four studios are located in a shared space on the second floor. A clay artist works in a ground floor space adjacent to our ceramics studio with open access to kiln facilities. This year, the residency program expanded to accommodate one curatorial resident who will receive third floor office space and the opportunity to curate three shows in a variety of exhibition spaces at the Abrons Arts Center. Abrons Visual Arts Director Jonathan Durham will assist in the formation of a curatorial advisory board for the resident in order to foster an ongoing dialogue for his or her individual writing and exhibition interests.

AIRspace arranges meetings and studio visits between the residents and the numerous critics, curators, and artists who visit the program. Recent guest studio visitors during the 2009-2010 cycle include Lisa Cooley, Candice Madey, Matthew Higgs, Benjamin Godsill, and Heather Darcy Bhandai. The program provides a range of career development opportunities throughout the residency, including educational work within the Abrons arts training and gallery programs, as well as an open studios event and a culminating group exhibition.

The Abrons Arts Center is proud to announce the six 2010-2011 AIRspace artists-in-residence: Miguel Amado, William Cordova, Veronica Frenning, Yeon Jin Kim, Nyeema Morgan, and Austin Shull. Click here to read more about the 2010-2011 residents.

Selections for the residency are made by a juried panel of professional artists, critics, curators, and Abrons Arts Center staff. Participants in past juried panels have included artists Yoko Inoue, Leslie Hewitt, Marykate Maher and Roberto Visani; independent curator and critic Cecilia Alemani; and Abrons Visual Arts Director Jonathan Durham. The application deadline is May 1 of every year. The 2011-2012 application will be posted in February 2011.

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the New York City Council. Additional support was provided by the Milton and Sally Avery Arts Foundation, the Daniel J. & Edith A. Ehrlich Family Foundation, and the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Trust.