Artists and youth as visionaries within an ecosystem of care and accountability.
Recess partners with artists, youth, writers, and their chosen publics to create transformative cultural experiences.
Our programs welcome radical thinkers to imagine and shape networks of resilience and safety. By challenging dominant narratives and activating new forms of creative production, Recess defines and advances the possibilities of contemporary art.
Recess is free and open to the public to serve as a meeting place to generate art, ideas and actions.
Please read all application guidelines and FAQ available at recessart.org/session-open-call-2024 before submitting any materials for consideration. Recess will only consider complete proposals submitted in the correct format.
Applications must be received by Monday, April 1, 2024 at 11:59pm EST.
Applicants must submit an application via the Submittable website (you must create an account if you do not already have one). Note that you will be prompted to submit references in the questionnaire section.
Please read all application guidelines below before submitting any materials for consideration. Recess will only consider complete proposals submitted in the correct format.
Project Description
You must fill out all of the required questions below when prompted in the Submittable platform. Limit your answers to each to 200 words or less:
- What questions, concepts, and/or methodologies are you hoping to further explore through Session?
- How does the proposed Session respond to a need for systems change and/or narrative shift?
- What will be installed in the gallery at the outset, and how will it evolve over time?
- What communities or demographics are you particularly hoping to reach, and why are they integral to your project? How will you invite them?
- What modes of engagement and public programming do you imagine?
- What is the desired length of your Session (Generally, Sessions are 6-8 weeks long. If you require a different length, please explain)
For those who wish to apply for the Session X Assembly Format, please check the box and answer the additional three questions:
- What past life and professional experiences have you had that would prepare you to work with systems-impacted youth? Why would working with these youth be important to your own artistic and personal development?
- How would you potentially use the 1-2 months of workshop time with Assembly youth to introduce them to your key concepts and materials?
- How would their intellectual and creative gifts be identified and developed throughout the course of the collaboration? How are youth engagement and contributions central to the process and project outcomes?
Project Budget
Please download this budget template to make an itemized list of possible project expenditures. It is available as a fillable .xlsx form that opens in either excel or googlesheets, or you can use it as a guide to craft your own. Additional expenses category rows can be added as needed. Project Expenses cannot exceed $10,000, unless you’ve listed other funding sources that will cover the overage in your budget notes. There is no expectation that outside funding needs to be raised for a successful Session project.
Please note that your own Artist Honoraria should not be a part of this budget, as it is fixed at $3500 for individuals and $5000 for multiple artists/collectives, and will be supplied on top of the max $10k Project Expenses allocation. Recess has already contracted with consultants to support 4 days of installation work and 2 sessions for photo and short video clip documentation of your Session Project. Please only include additional installation or documentation expenses that you believe to be beyond this scope in your budget.
If selected, the budget will be discussed and potentially amended with Recess staff. These need not be final numbers, so do not add an automatic contingency amount, as overages will be approved by staff as needed.
You must include the following items in the “File Upload” section:
- Work Samples (total of 10 images, videos, and/or audio samples)
- Image, Video and/or Audio List / Work Descriptions
- Resume or CV
The application requires the following items saved as individual files named with your first initial, last name, and description. Ex: jsmith_budget.xlsx, jsmith_CV.pdf, jsmith_1.jpg
1. Work Samples
Documentation should show work created within the past two years and/or renderings of the proposed project. Renderings are strongly encouraged, but not required. Media files should be titled with your first initial, last name, and number (e.g. jsmith1.jpg, jsmith2.mp4). Video and audio submissions must be Mac compatible. Each clip will be viewed for no longer than 2 minutes. Please submit work samples according to one of the following options:
- 10 .jpeg images (12 images if applying as a group), at 72 DPI resolution minimum, no dimension exceeding 1,000 pixels
- OR––up to 2 video or audio samples sent as links to online work (preferred) or as .MP4, .MOV Quicktime, or .AVI files no larger than 3 MB (each clip will be viewed for no longer than 2 minutes) and up to 8 .jpeg images (10 images if applying as a group)
2. Work Descriptions/Image List/Video List
A numbered list of images, audio, or videos with title, year, size, and medium of work. Include a brief (2-3 sentences) description of work if necessary
3. Resume or CV
CVs should be no longer than 5 pages. A combined CV of a collective if available is acceptable, otherwise include a CV for each participating artist in a collaboration.
If you have any questions about project fit, application questions or need technical or access support to complete your submission, please don’t hesitate to contact us at info@recessart.org. We will not be able to answer inquiries after 4pm ET on Monday, April 1 ,2024. so we encourage you to submit your application early in order to have the opportunity to address technical issues.