About the Christenberry Fellowship
The late William Christenberry was best known for his evocative photographs, collages, assemblages, paintings, drawings, and sculptures of his birthplace, Hale County, Alabama, and for his haunting vision of the American South. As a teacher and mentor to hundreds of students at the Corcoran College of Art and Design in Washington, DC he was a guiding force for aspiring artists.
To honor his legacy, Washington, DC’s Studio Gallery is offering The Christenberry Fellowship. Through it, local emerging artists gain their first entry to a professional gallery, where they can join a broad and diverse artistic community and display and market their work alongside that of established artists.
A grant underwriting this fellowship worth $1,000 annually was made possible by Jeff Mace. It enables the selected fellow to join the artist-run, cooperative for one year (with renewal possibility), without having to pay the normal fellowship member fee and to skip the normal jurying process for Studio Gallery membership.
The goal is to expose new artists to the greater Washington, DC art world and to increase their professional skills by displaying their works within a gallery setting. Local emerging artists learn to: create a cohesive body of work, refine it with a curator, optimize its exhibition design and lighting selections, and maximize its potential for purchase through marketing, promotion, and sales techniques. In addition, by joining an artist-run gallery, they meet and interact with a cross-section of working Washington artists for informal networking and mentoring.
Eligibility and Restrictions
Studio Gallery welcomes applications from promising artists who attended accredited art schools or college art programs who are between the ages of 21-30; live within the Washington, D.C. area; work in two or three dimensions (example: painters, photographers, sculptors, and book makers); maintain a web site; demonstrate an understanding of the aesthetic standards and goals of Studio Gallery; and show that they have the potential to benefit as artists from the fellowship. Work from filmmakers or performance artists cannot properly be displayed at Studio Gallery and cannot, therefore, be accepted.
Award
A Christenberry Fellowship Committee determines who is selected for the two-year program. The committee will review applications plus digital images of five artworks; finalists may be asked to bring the originals of the five submitted digital images to Studio Gallery for final selection of the Christenberry Fellow.
Selection and Application Process
To be considered for a fellowship, send the following items to: director@studiogallerydc.com by July 10, 2023. Please write on the subject line: Christenberry Fellowship Application.
Include:
1. A cover letter describing your interests and plans if selected as a fellow
2. A resume including education and work experience
3. A brief artistic biography (maximum of 500 words)
4. An artist's statement (maximum of 500 words)
5. Images of your artworks (5-7 images in JPG or PDF format. Include title, media, dimensions and year)
Following submission of a complete application, you will be notified if you are included in the final round by July 15, 2023.
Finalists will be contacted for interviews to be conducted in late July or early August. Finalists may also be asked to submit their original artwork for review in person by the committee. All information given by applicants is subject to verification by the interviewers.
Selected applicants will begin their fellowship terms on August 30, 2023.
Benefits
• Within a year, the Christenberry Fellow will have a group exhibit with the other chosen Studio Gallery Fellows.
• All-Member Group Exhibitions—Fellow Members may participate in all-member shows.
• Garden Gallery Exhibitions—Fellow Members will have the opportunity to show, in turn with all other Members, within the Garden Gallery and will have the opportunity for one solo show in the Garden Gallery.
• Artwork within the Gallery—Fellow Members may have up to two, two-dimensional works in the Gallery storeroom for showing to patrons. Fellows may have up to four unframed works protected by clear plastic sleeves in the display bins, and a flat portfolio containing unframed works on paper.
• Gallery Website—Fellow Members are entitled and encouraged to display materials on the Gallery website and to link to their individual website.
• Exhibition Promotion—The Gallery maintains an active email list of patrons, other interested persons and media contacts, and promotes each show utilizing these lists. The Gallery is also active in using social media, maintains a Featured Artist Blog and Online Store, and sends targeted announcements to local media.
Responsibilities
• Spend time at the Gallery learning about and assisting with Gallery operations.
• Gallery sit twice per quarter.
• Attend monthly membership meetings and to join at least one management committee.
• Support fellow Studio Gallery Members by attending shows and events.