Artists in Residence
Artist Residencies at The Arts Center are an investment in one’s professional career, with dedicated time, studio space and collaborative support. Artist Accelerator Residents are selected for professional and personal growth potential, as well as an ability and willingness to contribute to a thriving artist community.
Applications are now CLOSED. Applications will reopen in the Fall of 2022.
ABOUT THIS OPPORTUNITY: The Artist Accelerator Program offers in-person residencies available at The Arts Center. We seek enthusiastic emerging artists who desire community and plan to start or pivot their creative business using the following media: 2D/Painting, Low/Mid-Fire Ceramics, and other media including Writing, Art photography, Collage, Dance, and Installation.
This residence program offers a supportive environment, with shared studio space, and premium lectures in startup business and other skills critical to becoming a successful, professional artist. In addition to studio space, the residency also provides: 1:1 Professional Coaching, Group Critiques & Discussions, Educational Lectures on Relevant Professional Practices, and a Collaborative Exhibition
Cost for each resident is $800 with partial scholarships available.
We encourage a diverse selection of artists to apply, including artists from historically excluded communities including (but not limited to): artists from rural communities, emerging artists, artists from communities of color, LGBTQ+, artists who are self-taught, and artists new to creating artwork. We welcome artists regardless of citizenship status, color, familial status, gender identity or expression, religious observance, sex, sexual orientation, and sources or level of income.
More about the Artist Accelerator Program for emerging artists and artists seeking a successful career in the arts.
Artists in Residence
2021/2022 Artists
Caroline Feyling | Textiles
Caroline Feyling is a textile artist living in Oregon. She received her BFA in Fiber and Material Studies from School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Caroline creates functional Scandinavian style weavings that serve to bridge the gap between the contemporary and tradition, as well as the distance between heritage and daily life.
Jessica Rehfield | Illustration
Jessica Rehfield (zi/zey, she/they) is an artist from Juneau, AK. Their paintings, illustrations, and social projects explore the political and identity-based issues that define their life. Current work is a children’s book that features colorful acrylics paired with Yiddish words and phrases, that seeks to celebrate heritages, combat anti-Semitism and explore marginalized identity (as a Jewish-American person) using stories and the love of matzoh ball soup. Jessica earned a BLA in Art from the University of Alaska Southeast and MFA in Painting and Drawing from Oregon College of Art and Craft. They live in Salem, OR with fiancée and a giant cat.
Morgan Barnett | Painting
Morgan Barnett is a painter and botanist living in the Willamette Valley. She holds a BS in natural resources from Oregon State University. Morgan’s paintings are informed by her daily life and passions of plant ecology, mushroom foraging, and herbalism. Morgan’s current work focuses on personal symbolism around homemaking, subconscious narratives, and synchronicities through botanical imagery and surreal landscapes.
2020/2021 Artists
Jill Myer | Painting
Jill Myer is a visual artist whose work explores natural landscapes through the use of mediums such as plant matter, wool, bees wax and watercolor pigment. Myer works with watercolors for their simple but beautiful layers and subdued color palette, but also dives into bright full textured and tactile encaustic paintings. Myer grew up in Montana and received a Bachelors of Fine Art from the University of Montana in 2000 with an emphasis in painting and photography. After living in Alaska for many years, Myer now lives in Newport, OR with her husband and their dog, Simon. Jill’s Instagram
Citlalmina Xochitl Rios | Photography & Poetry
Citlalmina Xochitl Rios is an Indigenous photographer and poet. Rios is a Marine Corps Veteran from the San Gorgonio Pass and San Bernardino areas of California. She pulls her focus from what she knows as a veteran, a mother, and from the socioeconomic and cultural experiences of her youth. In 2019 and 2020, she was part of University of Oregon’s World Poetry Night and a poem of hers is being published in the upcoming edition of The Sand Canyon Review. In 2021, she will attend the College of Creative Studies in Detroit where she will focus on photography. Citlalmina’s Instagram
Cora Freyer | Painting
Born in Dusseldorf, Germany, Cora Freyer has been a professional artist since 2005. She holds a B.F.A from the Art Institute of Chicago and studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Freyer exhibited at Museum Kunstpalast, Duesseldorf and presently her paintings are at the Austin City Hall, TX. Freyer’s focus lays on painting, drawing, and digital-image-alterations. She uses a variety of media including, oil and water-based paint, ballpoint pen, and chalk/charcoal. Freyer’s figurative work centers around the depiction of the female and her roles in society while her landscapes investigate the combination of abstracted elements with realism. Cora’s Instagram
Eileen Hinckle | Painting
Eileen Hinckle has been working as a mural artist since 2012. She grew up in the Willamette Valley and is currently based out of Corvallis, Oregon. Her painting style is influenced by the seven years she spent living in South America where she learned from and participated in diverse communities of muralism and street art. Hinckle draws inspiration from her time spent exploring the forests and especially the jungle in South America. Her artwork is a visual exploration of the reconnection between humans and nature. In addition to murals, she makes paintings on canvas and mixed-media artwork. Eileen’s Instagram
Jess Felix | Ceramics
Jess Felix earned her BFA in Sculpture in 2004 from Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne, Australia. Exploring clay as a modeling material in school opened her to the world of experimentation and love for ceramics. She has exhibited in urban galleries in and around Melbourne, Australia, and in various group shows in the United States. Felix’s current series of Ceramic sculptures pay tribute to women climate activists/scientists which emphasize a message of interconnectedness and urgency. She also makes functional handbuilt pottery that incorporates her drawn designs, carved textures, and added appendages which lend her pieces fun and tangible dialogue. Felix teaches visual art and clay classes for kids and teens locally in and around Corvallis, OR. Jess’ Instagram
Caitlin Rose | Dance & Choreography
Caitlin Rose is a dance instructor and choreographer who creates dance for stage, film, and site-specific works. Rose began her technical dance training at the age of seven and started choreographing at the age of sixteen for small recitals and plays. In 2018, she received her bachelor of science in dance from Western Oregon University after receiving three awards in academic excellence for choreography and research in dance history. For her artist residency, Rose is choreographing and directing a short dance film in the contemporary dance medium about religious trauma. Caitlin’s Instagram
2019/2020 Artists
Kristie Potwora | Painting & Printmaking
Kristie (Johnson) Potwora holds an MFA and a BFA in Printmaking from the University of Oregon and a BA in Art Education from Humboldt State University. She is a member of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators (GNSI) and Print Arts Northwest (PAN). She teaches art courses at Lane Community College in Eugene, Oregon. She lives on 16 wooded acres in rural Oregon where she keeps a small flock of pet chickens. These chickens have inspired her to begin work in egg tempera and work towards writing and illustrating her first children’s book. As a member of the Artists in Residence group, Kristie is thrilled to be part of this wonderful community of supportive and creative artists and excited to finally embrace the work she’s always longed to do. Website: Kpotwora.com
Margot Dedrick | Painting
Margot Dedrick is an artist living and working in Corvallis. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art from St. Olaf College (2006) and a Masters of Science in Arts Administration and Museum Studies from the University of Oregon (2018), where she was the recipient of the Laurel Award Curatorial Internship at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art. Margot’s current work explores childhood memories by depicting whimsical creatures in abstracted, colorful compositions using watercolor, ink, and acrylics. For this artist residency, Margot is most excited about the opportunity to be surrounded by other artists, learn from working professionals, and to have a studio space outside of her home.
Sabra Comins | Mixed Media & Writing
Sabra Comins grew up at the end of a dirt road in Anchorage, Alaska. She spent much of her time submersed in nature, where she felt most at home. Sabra’s love of nature steered her to earn a Master of Environmental Management degree at Portland State University (2000). Her love of self-expression engaged her in ceramics and writing. She received grants for public art, completed the Institute of Children’s Literature course, Writing for Children and Teenagers, and had a ceramic sculpture show at the J. Crist Gallery (Boise, ID 2004). Sabra loves being an Artist in Residence for its guidance, education, and most of all community.
Shagufta Mulla | Painting
Shagufta Mulla, DVM is a wildlife artist living in Independence, OR. After a 20 year career as a small animal veterinarian, she changed paths in 2019 to pursue her lifelong passion for art. In contrast to her authoritarian upbringing, her oil and acrylic paintings celebrate individuality. Largely self-taught, Shagufta’s work frequently depicts a solitary subject, with birds, in particular, representing voice and freedom. Her work has been in the Salem Art Association’s Salem Salon show (2019), The Art Center’s 8 x 8 show (2019), and at Keizer Art Association’s Celebration of Flowers (2019) where she was awarded third place for her painting, “Steadfast.” She has also contributed work to Chintimini Wildlife’s annual art auction, Art Is Wild (Corvallis, 2019.) She enjoyed speaking with the public about her work during her residency at The Arts Center.
2018/2019
The first resident artists were featured in a catalog documenting artwork created during their residency, shown in tandem with the Art of Being an Artist, and exhibit for mid-career artists Pete Goldlust and Kristy Kún. A video documents the results of the first artists’ four-month residencies, and in this video, residents talk about their time as residents:
Justin Lodge | Painting
Justin Lodge is a artist and educator living and working in Albany, Oregon. He was born in Chardon, Ohio in 1976. Justin holds a Master of Landscape Architecture from Rhode Island School of Design (2005) and a Bachelor of Fine Art from the Cleveland Institute of Art (2000). Justin has found most significant about the residency so far is the opportunity to show his work both in the gallery and in a publication. These opportunities have given him the impetus to focus on producing and defining his work in a way he has not before. He has also benefited from being in communication with other artists, both in the studio and at the lectures. The lectures on professionalism and the business of art have given great information and set a tone for how to get yourself and your work out in the world. Justin’s Website
Kimberly Long | Ceramics
This opportunity has opened a whole new world to Kim and her work. Growing up in Pueblo, Colorado she was fortunate enough to be surrounded by local artists. The Sangre de Cristo Arts Center invited school-age students to engage with the arts and the artists. This left a lasting impression on her to always create and make. Kim is excited to be a part of a program with an encouraging community again. After recently moving to Corvallis, her imagination started to run wild and anytime she looked outside, she began to understand the origins of folklore. Getting to work at The Arts Center provides an artistic development opportunity that she never anticipated. Kim is eager to grow professionally, artistically, and confidently with an inspiring community. Kim’s Instagram
Tara Robinson | Painting
Tara Rodden Robinson, Ph.D., is an artist and illustrator. A biologist by training, she presents natural organisms with biological realism while expressing emotion and narrative through color and subtle anthropomorphism. When asked what she valued most about being an artist in residence at the Arts Center, she said, “As someone who works at home, I love coming to the Arts Center every day to be part of a community of creatives. I love meeting people and sharing our stories. Most of all, I value the opportunity to contribute to the lives of others through sharing my art and my love of nature.” Tara’s Website and Blog
Claire Elam | Ceramics – Peer Mentor
Claire grew up with a very close relationship with nature and small communities. These relationships developed throughout her adolescence and when it came time to leave for college she followed the course and chose to go somewhere very small, in the woods, and community-focused. Claire is excited to be mentoring Kimberly Long and sharing her ceramic knowledge in such a close and intimate manner.
For More Information on the Artists in Residence Program, contact Claire Elam
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