Chalk Hill Artist Residency is a place that encourages high-quality, creative output in all media for abled and disabled artists alike. Using a wondrous natural setting in Northern California as the catalyst for exchange and interaction between artists and the cultural community, Chalk Hill creates synergies that expand artistic horizons and opportunities. Artists from local nonprofits are invited
to spend a day at Chalk Hill making art and developing a reciprocal relationship with our current artist-in-residence. The Studio Program has a proven track record of working with local agencies and has been enthusiastically received by these artists. Together we schedule logistics for the day, then we are witness to the magic that happens when the participants arrive, meet the artist in residence and begin their art practice. We partner with the following agencies and their client artists: Becoming Independent Artworks, NAMI Sonoma County, Sonoma County Department of Health Services, and the Wellness and Advocacy Center. Following a format of “sharing” rather than teaching, the Studio Program creates an atmosphere of peer-to-peer exchange that leads to impromptu collaborations and new work. We offer creative time and space to artists that are underserved—there is an unmet need for artists with disabilities to access professional art spaces and contemporary artists. Artists with developmental disabilities and mental health challenges have long been a marginalized population. Far from being limited, these artists are incredibly talented, unbound by formal rules and current art markets. They create from their heart with emotional authenticity as their muse. Giving the space and time to develop their talents is key to the mission of the Studio Program. Here, they are respected as fellow professional artists and their individual gifts are recognized for their inherent artistic value. The Studio Program has had important outcomes for participating artists; it has allowed them to be introduced to Sonoma County museums, San Francisco galleries, and other professional Bay Area venues. The Studio Program offers unique access into the greater arts community for artists with disabilities. The natural setting of the ranch inspires them in ways not found in institutional settings and encourages independent living skills. Simply being involved in a professional art program as artists, rather than individuals with disabilities, is a meaningful step to help combat the stigma surrounding and affecting people who have a different experience of reality. Our Studio Program also leads to exhibition opportunities and performances during residency Open Studios. A recent example of this was a performance of the Artisticatz (of Becoming Independent) with resident sound artist Rinus Van Alebeek. Rinus conducted an Open House with a live radio cast on the global/Berlin-based channel: Radio On. This kind of collaboration and international exposure for the Artisticatz was wonderfully unprecedented and big time fun! Chalk Hill Studio Program’s goal is to become a nationally recognized program for artists living with disabilities, and to facilitate interaction between nonprofits that support those artists.
