2019 Wrangell Mountains Center Residency - McCarthy, Alaska

The Wrangell Mountains Center (WMC) is a nonprofit organization connecting people with wildlands through art, science, and education in the Wrangell Mountains. The Wrangell Mountains Residency Program supports artists of all genres, writers, and inquiring minds in the creation of their work. The organization and community provide unrestricted work time and space to focused individuals. Applicants with creative and inquisitive minds are invited to apply, with consideration for how they might engage with the local ecology, community, or history.

Two residencies are available in 2019: June 2-16 and August 12-26. The experience combines rugged Alaskan small town life, off-grid experiences, and access to one of the most dynamic natural landscapes in North America. The location is positioned near ice-capped mountains, the Kennicott River, McCarthy Creek, and the Kennicott Glacier terminus. McCarthy was established during the copper mining period in the early 20th century and is currently on the National Register of Historic Places. The WMC campus includes the Old Hardware Store (built in 1911) and the adjacent Porphyry Place homestead property, which houses programming and models off-the-grid technologies and practices.

Each resident receives a furnished live/work space, access to common areas, and a fully stocked kitchen with staff-prepared simple healthy meals. The remote location has limited access to goods and services; participants should bring all necessary research materials and art supplies. Limited wi-fi internet is available but not reliable. McCarthy is located approximately 300 miles east of Anchorage at the end of a 60-mile dirt road open only during summer months. The town has no electrical grid and a summer population of a few hundred. Selection is based on artistic merit, importance of the Wrangell St. Elias/McCarthy experience to the artist's work, need or benefit to the artist, the artist's proposed plan to engage with the community, and feasibility of plans and ideas. Entry fee: $30.00. International applicants are eligible.