Artist in Residence Program

We invite proposals for the Artist-in-Residence Program at the University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS) for the 2025 summer sessions. We welcome proposals from artists of all genres to spend 4-8 weeks with a community of students, researchers, and staff to exchange ideas and create experiences that will celebrate place-based art and science.

UMBS is one of the nation’s largest and longest continuously operating field research stations. Located in northern Michigan among more than 10,000 acres of forest, streams, and wetlands where researchers and students explore and answer ecological, evolutionary, and earth systems questions. On any given day, June through mid-August, 100-250 students, researchers, and staff work and live at the Pellston, Michigan, campus creating a robust scientific community.

We are eager to create a space for art in our research-filled experiences and to explore the connections between science and art.  We ask that the Resident Artist engage with the UMBS community of students, researchers, and staff through:

• Hands-on workshops to share how they approach their work;
• Completion of a UMBS community-wide project that will remain on campus; and
• Engagement with the broader northern Michigan community (i.e., public lecture, exhibition, media story, and social media posts).

Time in residence at the Pellston campus is flexible, but ideally the residency will happen over 4-8 weeks in June and July. We will work with the artist to set up a studio space suited to their work. UMBS will cover any supply costs for hands-on workshops. Housing and meals will be provided at the Biological Station campus along with a $1,500 honorarium.

How to Apply:

We invite artists to submit proposals outlining their residency goals and how they plan to interact with the UMBS community during the 2025 summer session. Please include the following in one document, if possible:

1)     A one-page statement describing your goals for this residency, including preferred residency dates

2)     A description of possible programs you could lead while at UMBS

3)     Ideas for leading a UMBS community-wide project and ways to engage the broader northern Michigan community

4)     A resume, summary, and examples* of your creative work

5)     Contact information for two references familiar with your work

*For visual artists: Send or provide a link to 5 different digital images in jpg or pdf format (if sending, please do not exceed 3MB for each file).  For all other mediums: An appropriate sample of your recent work (e.g., a brief manuscript excerpt, story, poetry, etc. – maximum of six pages – from writers and poets; one uploaded video or audio from dancers & other performing artists.

Please send all materials as email with one attachment to UMBS Associate Director Karie Slavik at slavik@umich.edu.

Application deadline: February 1, 2025