Independent PROJECTS RESIDENCY
The option to work on an Independent Project is intended for creative people in all mediums who don’t need access to advanced facilities or instruction. Our Artist-Staff members Stephanie Mae and Evan Lanese will coordinate with you and support you during your residency, connecting you to available tools and local resources.
Perfect for the painter, writer, fiber artist, musician, photographer, or site-specific installation artist looking to connect with the environment while living in community with a collaborative group of artists.
Take in the deep greens of the forest, the waterfalls and rivers and lakes, the rugged landscapes and old mining towns of the Upper Peninsula. Work, play, rest, explore, and let the wilderness inspire you.
Independent Projects Residents will share indoor space and electricity in the A-Frame. This is a clean indoor workspace for Independent Projects, and also for some communal activities. If it’s raining or dark outside, and most times during the day, you will have access to this indoor space, with electricity, lighting, and screendoors. We will provide table space and storage space in the A-Frame for Independent Project Residents’ supplies and projects, but while not actively working on them, Residents are required to clean up their work areas and put supplies away, so this space can still be accessed by others. The A-Frame turns into a community screen-printing studio for one full day, and is used for presentations on some evenings.
The little rustic shelter called a Grillikota in Finnish, which is also affectionately coined the “Witch Hut,” can be used to brew up vats of natural dyes, or to dry out materials. Outdoor spaces abound, and the open air Picnic Pavilion is a covered shelter with picnic tables that can be used between meals.
Independent Residents should plan to bring all tools and materials needed for their work. Hand tools and some power tools are available for use including a small workbench with a vice, hand tools (hammers, screwdrivers, files, random hardware), basic power tools (drills, saws, grinding wheel) and yard tools.
The Studio Barn is mostly used for the Wild Clay Workshop, but also holds space for your snacking & break time needs, as well as storage for communal shop tools. All work spaces at camp are communal, and you are welcome to hang out in the Studio Barn, especially after clay workshop hours - dusk/mosquito hour is a great time to convene around the tables in the Barn and craft, socialize, or play music. Our fire pit in front of the A-frame is communal and will be the center of many a night-time s’more circle.
Collaborate in woodworking and homesteading with our local friend, Mel Seeger, at his “one-man-Mac-truck-sawmill” in Matchwood, just down the road! Mel is always in need of a hand doing this or that, and he’ll teach you everything you want to know about logging, milling, barn-building, or local history!
“Journey To Land Art,” 2019. VCAC Resident, Julie JAO, transforms from a Painter to a Land Artist with a series of Transformation Spirals.
Video by Resident Artists Katherine Jean and Jeremy Hosterman of Giraffe-a-scope.
Previous Independent Residents’ Projects:
large land art and site-specific installations
natural dyes and ink-making using local plants
broomcraft using local wood
basket weaving with local fibers
spoon carving, hand-work woodcraft
mask making, papier mache
music and theater on the stage in the woods
stamp carving, printmaking
photography of the old mining towns nearby
embroidery work, handmade merit badges
paintings and drawings inspired by the landscape
Questions? Contact Amy at visitor.center.artists@gmail.com
INDEPENDENT PROJECTS RESIDENCY - VCAC PROVIDES:
Three amazing meals served each day with the entire group of Residents
Access to maintained camping grounds, well-water, solar-shower, composting outhouses
Project support and assistance with local resources from Staff Artists
Shared indoor work space, electricity, and lighting in the A-Frame
Use of basic shop tools, power tools and random hardware in the Studio Barn
Miles of maintained and mapped hiking trails in the woods
Special presentations and guided discussions
Field trips to the beach, waterfalls, and areas of cultural interest
Local transportation when needed
Access to the covered Picnic Pavilion between meals
A variety of outdoor spaces for installation and land art
Various auxiliary spaces including in the Grillikota / Witch Hut for boiling and toiling with natural dyes, the Porcupine Palace: a comfortably refurbished hunting blind in the woods, the Oak Tree Theater: a rustic stage in the woods for performances, the Aspen Chapel: a gorgeous, meditative grove of Aspens with benches to sit on.
