Now Accepting Applications!
our general application for January-June 2025 residencies with fellowship and financial aid support is open.
Applications are available in english and spanish.
Deadline to apply is june 8th
How to Apply:
Calls for applications are made four times a year and will open two months prior to the deadline. We have several different ways to apply. Learn more about each to choose the option that best fits your situation.
Ya tenemos la aplicación general en español.
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General Application:
Most people apply through our general application, which is typically for residencies 3-9 months out from the award date. In our regular application, you can opt to be considered for financial aid or one of our fully funded fellowships. Because our regular application includes financial aid, it is our most competitive option. Artists requesting financial aid typically pay between $0 - $450/wk depending on their needs. This application is also available in Spanish. Deadlines for General Applications are June 8th and November 8th each year. The application will open two months prior to the deadline.
Learn more about our Financial Aid and Fellowships.
Early Application:
Our "Early Application" is for artists who could benefit from additional lead time (announcements made 9 months - 15 months ahead of residency dates) to plan their stay and to apply for outside funding from sources such as their university or international or regional arts councils. Artists applying with the Early Application will NOT be considered for MASS MoCA's financial aid budget OR fellowships, so you should only use this particular application if you are planning to fully fund your stay through outside grants or personal funds at our already subsidized rate of $650 per week. Deadline for Early Applications are March 8th and October 8th. Applications will open two months prior to the deadline.
Alumni Application:
If you’re a Studios at MASS MoCA alum, we’re happy to have you back! Each application cycle, we have a special, simplified application for you to tell us briefly what you’ve been up to since your prior residency. With this application, you’re only competing against fellow alumni, so while not as competitive as our general application, we only reserve a few alumni spots each season and acceptance is not guaranteed. At this time, alumni are not eligible for residency fellowships or our reduced financial aid and instead pay a standard alumni rate of $400/wk for residencies of 4 weeks, or $450/wk for a 2-week residency. (Please note: students who have attended a workshop-in-residence are not considered eligible alumni for this opportunity.) Alumni apps follow the Early Application timeline.
How to apply:
Artists are invited to apply through MASS MoCA’s Assets for Artists Submittable page. See table below for current application deadlines. The application is always free to apply. You can join our mailing list to be kept up-to-date when our next application round opens.
Upcoming Application and Notification Timeline:
Eligibility + Artist Selection:
We welcome applications from artists at all career stages, income levels, and geographic locations. We primarily seek applications from visual artists (painters, sculptors, installation artists, photographers, video/new media artists, fiber artists, printmakers, etc.) and writers in all literary disciplines. We discourage applications from dancers, musicians, and other performers because our studios are only well suited for artists who work quietly (nothing is sound-proofed) and who don't require space for rehearsal / movement arts. Groups/collectives may apply to work on joint projects in the visual and literary arts. The studios have light-duty ventilation, so an art practice generating strong fumes cannot be accommodated.
Submissions are reviewed by a diverse, rotating jury. Scoring is based on the quality of work, the strength of the proposed goals for the residency, as well as on the jurors’ judgment about how much this opportunity would benefit the applicant and their goals. Our selection rubric takes equity factors into consideration in order to better support those marginalized within arts institutions/ opportunities. Within the application, artists have the option to describe any equity factors the jurors should take into consideration. This may include considerations of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, disability, status as a care-giver, veteran, immigration status, overall financial needs, and lack of access to formal art education. We recognize that racism and racial inequality pervade the cultural sector, our local community, and the world at large. If you have any questions about how we can best support you during your stay, please reach out. Learn about how the Assets for Artists’ department is endeavoring to work within an anti-oppression framework.
The curatorial jury is not announced in advance, but you can peruse our jury from the previous year on our Curatorial Jury page. Due to the volume of applications we receive each season, we are not able to give feedback to individual applicants either before or after the selection process.
An artist must be at least 18 in order to apply; otherwise age is not a consideration in selection.
Costs + Financial Aid
Read more about the Studios costs, financial aid and fellowships here.
If you have any questions regarding the application or selection process, please email: studios@massmoca.org