Residency Resource Guide
guides to common questions, protocols and Much More!
Preparing for your Residency
We are so excited to welcome you to MASS MoCA! This section of the guide will help you plan your trip and get ready for spending time in North Adams.
Getting to MASS MoCA/ Travel by Plane/ Travel by Train/ Travel by Bus/ Car Rental/Taxi Service/ What to Bring for the Studio/ Shipping Supplies/ Day-to-Day Schedule/ Studios Events/ The Average Studios Cohort/ Life in North Adams/ General Safety Preparations
Getting to MASS MoCA
Use MASS MoCA’s website for driving directions from all surrounding areas: Directions to MASS MoCA
The GPS friendly address is: 87 Marshall Street, North Adams, MA 01247
Travel by Plane
There is no commercial air service to North Adams, but you can fly into one of the closest airports below. If you are flying internationally, it may be most affordable to fly into New York City and then take a train or bus from there.
Albany International Airport : Albany, NY, approximately 1.5 hours from North Adams
Bradley International Airport : Hartford, CT, approximately 2 hours from North Adams
Logan International Airport : Boston, MA, approximately 2.5 hours from North Adams
Travel by Train
Amtrak: 1-800-872-7245
Offers sporadic service from Boston and from New York City to Pittsfield, MA (about 1/2 hour drive from North Adams). It offers frequent trips from New York City to Albany/Rensselaer through the Amtrak Empire Service. Albany is about 1 hour drive from North Adams and it is very easy to reserve a taxi or call an Uber / Lyft (see taxi info below)
From the Pittsfield, MA, train station, we recommend scheduling a taxi ahead of time (35 minutes transit and please note Uber / Lyft don’t really exist in Pittsfield). If time allows (i.e. the 1:50 PM train), you can take the Berkshire Regional Transit’s #1 Pittsfield/North Adams Bus from the train station (“Intermodal center”) to the North Adams Wal-Mart (1 hour transit). From Wal-Mart there is the #34 North Adams Loop bus (18 min transit) to downtown North Adams. MASS MoCA is a 5 minute walk from the downtown bus stop. Alternative: there is no Uber/Lyft in North Adams, but you can book a local taxi from Wal-Mart (see below).
Travel by Bus
Peter Pan: 1-800-343-9999
Provides service from Albany, Boston, Hartford, and New York City to Pittsfield (30 min away). WARNING: There is also a bus that goes from New York to Williamstown, MA (10 min away), but it arrives at 9pm, after staff are available to check you in (the check-in widow is 3pm-5pm.) You are welcome to chose this option and arrive a day early, and we will make recommendations for AirBnBs or local hotels.
Greyhound Bus: 1 (214) 849-8966
Provides service to Pittsfield (30 min away) from Albany, Boston, New York, Hartford, and many other places (transfers needed). You can then order a taxi to North Adams (see taxi info below)
Berkshire Regional Transit Authority: 1-800-292-2782 or 413-499-2782
Provides local bus service within the Berkshires.
Car Rental
Enterprise Rent a Car: 413-443-6600, 526 East Street, Pittsfield, MA
Hertz Rent a Car: 413-499-4158, 811 Dalton Avenue, Pittsfield, MA
Zip Car: Williams College
Note: There are no places to rent a car or return a rental car in North Adams. We often have multiple artists coming from New York. We will be happy to connect you if you’re interested in car pooling!
TAXI SERVICE / LIMOUSINE / CAR SERVICE / UBER / LYFT:
NOTE: Uber/Lyft does not work once you’ve arrived in North Adams (we have no nearby drivers).
Below is a list of local drivers who can provide transportation from nearby airports and cities:
RJ’s Taxi: (413) 346-4907
Albany Airport: $125
Local service around North Adams/Williamstown
Tunnel City Taxi: 413-662-2100 (reservations required)
Albany airport or train station to North Adams: $140, each additional person +$25
Pittsfield to North Adams: $40 (each additional person +$5)
Norm’s Airport & Limo: 800-486-4946 (if no answer call office manager Dawn’s cell: 413-344-7047)
Pittsfield to North Adams: $65-$75 (1-2 people)
Albany airport to North Adams: $115
Bradley Airport (Hartford): $225
Boston/Logan Airport: $425
New York: $470
O.T.T. Taxi* 413-668-3838
Local service around North Adams / Williamstown
*Note: not as reliable but an option in case all else fails
Taxis in Pittsfield:
Berkshire Trips 413-623-4552 (Call or text, ask for Leslie)
$75 trip to North Adams
Pre-planning and pre-paying available (10% off if book ahead of time and pre-pay)
Also drivers in Williamstown
County Rainbow Taxi* 413-299-4300
$50 trip to North Adams
*Not many drivers and no call aheads
Weather
Spring: Snow typically melts in March or April, but the rogue snowstorm can happen as late as May. Often raining and very muddy if you venture out of town.
Summer: A lovely time of year. Sunny with occasional rain showers. It can get humid though! (Maybe bring a bathing suit for jumping in some nearby lakes or waterfalls)
Autumn: No argument; fall is the best season in the Berkshires. It can also be the most full of tourists for this reason! Enjoy warm days and crisp nights and hills covered with vibrant colors.
Winter: Expect snow and ice. At the museum our facilities folks are amazing at keeping the parking lots clear. The studios can get drafty, so we have space heaters if you need one. Bring your winter coat, gloves and other things to keep you nice and warm!
In the mountainous area of North Adams, weather is highly variable and dependent on elevation. Snow stays on the hilltops much longer than down here in town. See our average temperatures and rainfall here.
What to bring for the Studio
Each studio is minimally furnished with a desk or folding table, a chair, and most have a small shelf. Additional folding tables are available. Lighting is overhead LED troffers (typical commercial office lighting) and we have clamp lights to augment. There are shared slop sinks in both buildings. Easels, additional worktables or alternative seating can likely be provided, but you should consider bringing the essentials to meet the needs of your practice. If you are traveling without a car, consider shipping supplies in advance (see next section). The closest art supply store is a 30 minute drive from North Adams (see Entertainment, Restaurants & Local Services). We usually organize one material run to a local art store at the beginning of the residency (usually Michaels, Joanne’s or Home Depot).
Make sure to check out our facilities page for a list of all the basic tools we have on hand and info about our print shop, looms, and housing.
Shipping Supplies
You are more than welcome to ship supplies or order packages to the Studios starting the week before your residency. Any packages that arrive in advance will be safely stored until your arrival. Make sure to use the following address to ship materials to Studios:
YOUR NAME
c/o The Studios at MASS MoCA
1320 MASS MoCA Way
North Adams, MA 01247
Day-To-Day Schedule
Residencies at the Studios at MASS MoCA are largely self-directed. With 24-hr access to the studios and apartments, you can set your own schedule. On arrival day, you can arrive between 3-5pm. We will hold two orientations, one at 3:30 and one at 5pm and we hold a welcome dinner at 6:00 PM. If you arrive early on arrival day, you are more than welcomed to wander the museum or town before orientation.
During your stay, lunches are available daily at 1 PM. Most days after 10am, staff will be in the office (which shares the same space as the studios) and are available by phone/text in case of emergencies. We’ll check in with you every now and then to see if there’s anything you need, but we love to have you stop by the office anytime you need something, even if it’s just another person to talk to for a little while!
Studios Events
We host a variety of events for residents throughout each session, all optional. Events may include any of the following: a group welcome dinner, cohort slide presentations, field trips to regional cultural institutions, material shopping trips to nearby art stores, specialized MASS MoCA gallery tours, studio visits from a MASS MoCA curator, critique evenings, mid-session artist meet ups at Bright Ideas and a monthly public Open Studios.
The Average Studios Cohort
At 100% capacity, the Studios hosts 10 artists a time. On average, 64% of our residents are artists of color, 66% of artists are in residence on a fellowship, 57% identify as women, 22% identify as men and 29% identify as genderqueer, trans, or non-binary. Some artists are emerging and some are mid-career. The median age of our residents is 38. The majority of our residents are visual artists with 1-2 writers per session. We occasionally host performing artists.
Life in North Adams
For decades now, artists have been drawn to the small, rural post-industrial city of North Adams, tucked into the far northwest corner of Massachusetts. North Adams continues to beckon creatives with its ready access to nature, affordable cost of living and, of course, MASS MoCA’s spectacular (and enormous) galleries and amazing performing arts spaces for immersing oneself in astounding and risk-taking contemporary art, not to mention the rich cultural landscape of the surrounding Berkshires and a general proximity to New York City and Boston.
Though North Adams is a remote place to get to, once you are living here in the center of our small city, the residency takes on more of an an urban vibe. The residency apartments are across the street from the MASS MoCA campus, which functions as a secondary town square with a variety of food options, coffee shop and a brewery right on site. The grocery store (Big Y) is also within walking distance from the Studios and apartments and main street is also right around the corner. From the apartments, it’s possible to walk to a variety of local galleries, the post office, the gym, a yoga studio, bookstore, and an assortment of restaurants. Having a car can be handy for trips further afield such as to hiking trails, to gather supplies or to explore the surrounding towns in Massachusetts or just over the borders in Vermont and New York. Our residency staff will also have occasional access to a MASS MoCA van to take residents on supply runs and other group outings, so a car is by no means necessary.
North Adams census demographics
Learn what restaurants, entertainment and other services are available in the area.
General Safety Preparations
The safety of our visiting artists is of the utmost importance to us! We host artists from all over the world and recognize that each artist will experience this region differently based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to, race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and social class. As residency staff, we will do our best to provide for you with focus and care while you’re here, to be available to answer questions, and to help you navigate our town. If you have specific questions about life in North Adams and the Studios at MASS MoCA, please feel free to reach out to our Studios Manager, Carolina Porras Monroy, at cporras@massmoca.org or our Residency Manager Luiza Folegatti at lfolegatti@massmoca.org.
All bedrooms, apartments, studios, and studio buildings are equipped with locks. We recommend you keep your studio locked when you are not in it. MASS MoCA security staff is on site 24/7 and patrols through the studios a couple times a night. If at any time you feel unsafe in any space or when traveling between spaces, please tell staff so that we can try to address your concerns.
Cell service: can be spotty or nonexistent in parts of the Berkshires, depending on your carrier. If you are out hiking, be sure you have a paper map or a digital one saved onto your phone. You may also lose data for your map/travel app too, so prepare accordingly.
Hiking: If you decide to enjoy any of the hundreds of miles of hiking trails in our region, always be aware as you walk. Black bears live in our area, and although they are rare to come across and not prone to attacking humans, it is best to give them distance and backtrack. Ticks are extremely common in the Berkshires in nearly all seasons, so always do a tick-check after spending time in the woods or on grass. We have a high incidence rate of lyme disease among our deer ticks. Learn how to identify ticks and check for them.
Health Care Resources: For a list of local health care services and pharmacies see our Local Services Guide.