Call for Entries: Botanical Artists in Residence Program at the Oak Spring Foundation

​The inaugural Botanical Artists in Residence Program (BAiR) offered by the Oak Spring Garden Foundation is now accepting applications - as part of its Artists Awards program

The opportunities offered by BAiR and the requirements for applications are detailed below, followed by

• information about other artists awards made by OGSF and
• how to find out more about the Oak Spring Garden Foundation and its gardens, library and botanical art.

What's on offer

• a $1,500 award
• stay at the Oak Spring estate in Upperville, Virginia - with accommodation and 24-hour access to studio space. 
• for a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of four weeks sometime during the period April 1 – May 22, 2020.
• ground transportation to/from Oak Spring (from either Dulles Airport or Union Station).
• This is a copy of the 2020 OSGF Residency Handbook
• This is a link to the Oak Spring Foundation's page on Google Arts and Culture which demonstrates some of the artwork in the Library.

Transportation to/from Washington, D.C. is the responsibility of the applicant. 
​

The aim of this program is to extend our support for artists to practitioners of botanical illustration 

The Oak Spring Estate - home to the Oak Spring Garden Foundation - from above (House and gardens bottom left and Library top left) in Upperville, Virginia

​What's required

• Artists must choose from plants in Oak Spring’s living collection, during the period of residency. in order to maintain the integrity of The Oak Spring Florilegium
• Artists must submit at least one original artwork produced as a result of the residency to The Oak Spring Florilegium and assign all copyright in the artwork to the Florilegium.

The award is contingent upon the awardee submitting one original work that Oak Spring obtains full copyright to, and which will become part of The Oak Spring Florilegium.

Artists will also be asked to provide digital submissions of other works started or completed on-site for an archive held at Oak Spring. However, the artists may keep their original sketches and any additional original works produced as part of the residency.

Who can apply?

Botanical artists who:

• demonstrate artistic excellence in botanical art over time
• have been selected to exhibit in international juried exhibitions of botanical art. 
• are available for a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of four weeks during April 1 – May 22, 2020  for a residency on the Oak Spring estate in Upperville, Virginia
• have a visa to visit the USA if a non-resident/citizen
• can finance getting and from Washington DC (Dulles Airport or Union Station)

What you have to do to apply

First READ the flyer about the  Botanical Artists in Residence Program (BAiR) ​
​
Next

• create a profile and login to our OSGF Applicant Portal at osgf.force.com/grantee/.
• Log in and select “Explore Grant Opportunities” in the upper left
• Select “2020 Botanical Artists Application.”

You may encounter errors in creating an application profile if you use Safari as your web browser. Please try using a different web browser, and if you continue to encounter issues, try clearing your cache.
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You must submit

• a resume/curriculum vitae (not to exceed 3 pages);
• a short description of your creative practice and how you would benefit from a residency at Oak Spring;
• five images of your best works (required). All images submitted must be of art executed by hand in two-dimensional media including watercolor, pencil, pen and ink, colored pencil, mixed media, oil, acrylic, gouache, egg tempera, and original prints (aquatints, etchings, etc.). 
• any and relevant links/uploads to/of an online portfolio of work (optional);
• references who can speak to your artistic practice and suitability as a resident. (Successfully completed residencies at other arts organizations or botanical institutions will be an asset.) 

Deadline for receipt of applications: November 8, 2019 at midnight EST.

The aim is to notify all applicants on the status of our selections by mid-December 2019.  

Other Artists Awards
​

The OSGF also offers: the 2020 Artist Awards 

• including Eliza Moore Fellowship for Artistic Excellence – a $10,000 grant and two-week residency for one awardee on mutually agreeable dates in 2020.
• the Artists in Residence Program (AiR) - a $1,500 grant as part of a 6-week residency which provides the opportunity for artists and writers to pursue and accomplish their own creative endeavors in a beautiful rural environment.

​This is a post about the 2019 Fellows and Artists in Residence.

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​About the Oak Spring Garden Foundation
​

You can read about the Oak Spring Garden Foundation on its website:

• Mission and Values
• History
• Gardens
• Library
• Gallery - of images of Oak Spring

​Plus view some of its botanical art on the Oak Spring Garden Page on Google Arts and Culture

OSGF is an operating foundation dedicated to sharing the gifts and ideas of Rachel "Bunny" Mellon.  Its mission is to support and inspire fresh thinking and bold action on the history and future of plants, including the art and culture of plants, gardens and landscapes. 

Exhibits on the OSGF Page on Google Arts and Culture

The Library, built in 1981 as a gift from her husband Paul Mellon, was expanded in 1997 to contain her growing collection of books, manuscripts and art on plants, gardens, and landscapes. This legacy is maintained today on a 700-acre estate, which is now the home of OSGF and serves as continual inspiration as we help to perpetuate and share Mrs. Mellon’s gifts to the future. 

The three principles which underpin the work of the Foundation are:

• Integrating the best thinking with advanced practice
• Nurturing diverse perspectives and fostering inclusion
• ​Integrative approaches that bring together sciences, humanities and social sciences for their mutual benefit and to realize the full potential of Bunny Mellon’s legacy.