AlexRenew Public Art Residency

The City of Alexandria's Public Art Program in collaboration with Alexandria Renew Enterprises (AlexRenew) is launching the AlexRenew Public Art Residency. The program seeks an artist for an 18-month residency running from approximately May 2019 to October 2020. This residency provides an opportunity for artists to engage deeply with AlexRenew's work treating wastewater for the City of Alexandria and its RiverRenew project, a major initiative to improve the health of Alexandria's waterways. The selected artist will receive an all-inclusive budget of $30,000 and will work collaboratively with Public Art Program and AlexRenew staff throughout the process. Artists should have an interest in exploring water-related environmental issues and working with communities.

Over the 18-month residency, the selected artist will have access to AlexRenew staff, support from the Office of the Arts, and workspace at AlexRenew's offices as needed. The artist's project must respond to three goals: enable local residents to explore and understand their relationship to water and waterway health; increase residents' personal commitments to water stewardship; and increase understanding of natural and infrastructural water systems. The project must result in a temporary or permanent public art installation with a strong community engagement component, including clear plans for community participation. The project must have a physical presence in a publicly owned location in Alexandria and be available for public interaction.

Artists and artist teams age 18 and over living in the United States are eligible to apply. Artists may work in various media but should demonstrate a strong community engagement/social practice component and interest in engaging with water or environmental issues. Submission deadline is February 10, 2019 by 11:59 PM Mountain Standard Time. Work sample requirements: minimum 10 images (maximum 10), 0-6 audio files, 0-6 video files, with a total of 10-16 samples. Finalists will be selected in March 2019 and invited to Alexandria for a site visit and interview, with finalists paid $750 plus up to $400 travel stipend.