Forerunner Residency 2024
Program Description
In collaboration with Workhouse Union, we are pleased to offer Cultivate: A Village Vision for Rathnure, a two-week curated residency program from May 15th to 28th, 2023. With the support of Wexford Arts Office and The Arts Council, this opportunity will expand Cow House Studios’ remit to work proactively with our local rural community in Rathnure, Co. Wexford.
This is a new departure for Cow House Studios to engage with spatial practice and open the residency to artists, architects, and designers with an explicit collaborative and locally engaged focus. Workhouse Union’s team will work alongside Cow House Studios and the local community to prepare the stakeholder context and set clear expectations and support for the program.
This is a paid residency opportunity for four creative practitioners working in visual art, design, or architecture to engage with Cow House Studios and our local village of Rathnure through co-design, creative placemaking, and community engagement. This is a practical and hands-on residency experience for those interested in engaging with local community groups and stakeholders and imagining new opportunities within a small rural village.
The residency will include engagement with hard-to-reach voices, enhancing participants’ capacity in co-design and inclusion. The projects will realize tangible outcomes for the communities involved and provide the selected practitioners with a unique real-life learning platform.
Creative practitioners (collective and individual) are invited to apply. The opportunity is ideal for artists, architects, and designers who wish to develop their co-design, creative placemaking, and community engagement skills and experience.
Dates & Details
May 15th to 28th, 2023
Residency Details
The selected practitioners will come to Rathnure and reside at Cow House Studios for a period of 2 weeks in spring 2023, from May 15th to 28th. While here, they will be immersed in the supportive and invigorating environment at Cow House Studios. While on residency, Cow House Studios and Workhouse Union will provide.
Documented results outlining the context and expectations for the program.
Facilitated engagements with members of the community.
A €1000 stipend for each selected practitioner or collaborative group.
A private room and studio for each selected practitioner or collaborative group.
Three delicious and healthy meals are provided daily.*
*Breakfast and lunch are self-service, while dinner is enjoyed as a group and served by Caitriona or Frank. All food is lovingly prepared in our kitchen.
Application Guidelines
The deadline for this residency was Sunday, April 2nd, 2023. Applications are now closed.
Contact
For any further questions about the Open Residency Program, please contact Frank Abruzzese, Co-Director, Cow House Studios.
Frequently Asked Questions
Creative practitioners (collective and individual) are invited to apply. The opportunity is ideal for artists, architects, and designers who wish to develop their co-design, creative placemaking, and community engagement skills and experience.
Cultivate: A Village Vision for Rathnure is two weeks long.
Yes, we offer several residency opportunities each year. You can find a list of current opportunities here.
Four practitioners or collaborative groups will be awarded this residency.
The deadline for this residency was Sunday, April 2nd, 2023. Applications are now closed.
The 343 m2 (3700 ft2) open-plan studio contains a darkroom, computer lab, and lounge. The studios were designed for flexibility of use; the Cow House contains four individual spaces, and a shared open studio floor for larger group projects and alternative working methods.
The well-equipped black & white darkroom is capable of making prints up to 50 x 60 cm (20 x 24 in), and our computer lab consists of Apple Macintosh computers, a high-resolution film scanner, an Epson 9500 printer, Adobe Creative Suite, and wireless broadband. We have three Fuji X-T4 Digital cameras with a variety of lenses, a selection of tripods, studio lights, and seamless background papers. Artists may also use our various manual, and electric hand tools, including a table saw, miter saw, router, wood plane, circular saw, jigsaw, a variety of sanders, and power drills, in addition to a selection of clamps fasteners and glues.
Supplies provided at the studio include a selection of papers including newsprint, 100, 150 & 300-gram cartridge paper, 300-gram watercolor paper, and a selection of colored A3 pastel papers. We also have 10 oz (339 gram) unprimed cotton canvas that measures 183cm wide. The studio is stocked with student-grade watercolor & gouache by Reeves, a variety of water-based inks by Winsor Newton, Daler Rowney System 3 acrylic paint, student-grade oil paint by Winsor Newton, solvent, gesso, and a variety of mediums.
Students and artists alike may avail of disposable paint palettes, palette knives, brushes, and oil dippers. Additionally, the studio is also regularly stocked to ensure we have plenty of darkroom chemicals, ink for the printers, graphite pencils, charcoal, color pencils, watercolor pencils, oil pastels, chalk pastels, markers, erasers, scissors, sharp Exacto knives, cutting mats, masking tape, drawing clips, fixative and PVA glue, A3 & A1 size drawing boards and easels
Cow House Studios have a variety of materials available for use; however, if there are particular materials you are accustomed to using, it’s best to bring them with you.
If you do not have a car or are traveling from abroad, you will be collected from the bus stop in Enniscorthy. Practitioners must arrive in Enniscorthy by 3 pm on the first day of the program. For detailed bus schedules, please visit Wexford Bus or Bus Eireann.
Cow House Studios is located on rural farmland. The closest village, Rathnure, is three miles away. The nearest town, Enniscorthy, is twelve miles away.
There are occasional trips into town, and we also have six bicycles that can be used locally; however, if you would like to experience the Irish countryside, frequent nearby towns and villages, or get to the seaside, you will need your own vehicle that can be rented at Dublin Airport.
Basic art materials may be purchased in Enniscorthy, New Ross, and Wexford. If you need more than what is provided we recommend that you order additional or special materials online that can be delivered directly to the studio. Building or hardware supplies can be ordered and delivered by a local builder’s supply.
A stipend of €1000 euros is awarded to each practitioner or collaborative group
Documented results outlining the context and expectations for the program.
Facilitated engagements with members of the community.
A €1000 stipend for each selected practitioner or collaborative group.
A private room and studio for each selected practitioner or collaborative group.
Three delicious and healthy meals are provided daily.*
Breakfast and lunch are self-service, while dinner is enjoyed as a group and served by Caitriona or Frank. All food is lovingly prepared in our kitchen.
Residents live in the Barn, our cozy accommodation, during their stay at Cow House Studios. Each practitioner or collaborative group will have one bedroom. Our accommodation is adjacent to the studio.
Cow House Studios is located on the O’Gorman family farm. Rosie’s parents, Michael and Mary, live next door, and Michael still works the land. There is a family atmosphere at the Cow House, we have three very friendly dogs, as well as three cats, a horse, and a peacock, and we occasionally have family and friends visiting.
Delicious home-cooked meals are provided at dinner. Breakfast and lunch are self-service. We are happy to cater to most dietary requirements and preferences.
EU residents and residents from specific countries such as the USA and Canada do not need a visa to travel to Ireland. Citizens of certain countries do require a visa to travel to Ireland. Visa requirements for Ireland can be found HERE. If you need a letter to assist in securing a visa, please do not hesitate to contact us.
We provide bed linens, but please bring your own towels.