ST[ART] RESIDENCY

St[art] is a residency program in Calgary run by the Calgary Allied Arts Foundation (CAAF) - a non profit foundation that encourages development of art and culture in Calgary and assists with the acquisitions of works of art for the City of Calgary.

St[art] was established in 2006 and was developed in response to the scarcity of studio and exhibition spaces available for visual artists in the City of Calgary. The residency gives Canadian artists and designers, both emerging and mid-career, the opportunity to work and exhibit in a studio on a short-term basis. The early success and popularity of the program based on studio space at Art Central in downtown Calgary encouraged CAAF to expand the program to a second studio space. This is in an historic warehouse at 319 - 10 Avenue SW, which has become a haven for many artist's studios.

St[art] @ Art Central, the first studio space to be offered by CAAF, has been offered since July of 2006. Residencies in the space are offered on a one-month or two-month basis depending on programming requirements submitted by the artist. Although not large in size, it offers residents an excellent opportunity to work on small-scale pieces. At the same time, it provides them the opportunity to connect with other artists as well as members of the public on an ongoing basis. First Thursday a monthly event in downtown Calgary offers the residents an excellent opportunity to stage their own exhibition and to gain crucial exposure. Since its inception, st[art] has seen the number of applicants for the space exceed programming availability.

St[art] 4Five was created to offer artists a larger working space for a longer time period. Although not as visually accessible to the public, it provides residents an excellent opportunity to make contact with other working artists as well as allowing the option for exhibition openings. Residencies in the space are offered for three-month periods. St[art] 4Five began operating in July 2009.

The St[art] 4Five residency is unfortunately NOT available for the period January-June 2012.

Submissions for each st[art] space are juried twice a year. Applications submitted before the deadline date of Oct 31st [extended this year to November 15th, 2011] are considered for residencies within the January-June period of the year following. Applications submitted before the deadline date of April 30th are considered for residencies within the July-December period of that same year. Members of the st[art] committee review each submission and select successful applicants based on merit of proposal and programming requirements. Each residency allows for a monthly stipend of $500 as well as an exhibition allowance per residency of $100.

Click here for a pdf with full program and submission details.

Alice S. Helwig

st[art]@art central resident January 8, 2012 to March 3, 2012

Take Me Home - 2011 - acrylic on canvas

INVITATION

Reception: First Thursday, February 2nd, 2012
5:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Art Central Studio Loop

ARTIST STATEMENT

Alice S. Helwig utilizes techniques such as collage, texturing, glazing and underpainting to explore the prairie landscape. "I am painting the landscape that is familiar to me," she says. "The imagery that I have been working with has become spiritual and dreamlike. The images are quick glances we have of the landscape as we move through it."

Themes of alienation, awe, personal epiphanies and prayerfulness emerge. The fleeting moment transcends itself to reveal that feeling, that truth, which we intuitively understand but find difficult to articulate. These are visual poems which insinuate the eternal into our understanding of the immediate.

THE PROJECT

I presently work in a home studio in isolation. This studio time will give me a chance to meet and network with other artists. I intend to assemble a series of paintings, a cohesive body of work. I want to concentrate on a new series to present to new markets and the galleries which presently represent me.

I am interested in combining abstract art techniques (application of paint in non traditional forms i.e. pouring, staining, dripping) with the landscape motif. The progression of my painting is leading to new methods and more abstraction. I will be concentrating on developing new work and techniques.

I will be documenting the progress of my work on the blog at my website - http://www.ashelwig.com.

Classic Memories - 2011 - acrylic on canvas