Tag: artists

Fall Writers Residencies Due May 31st

The Sundress Academy for the Arts (SAFTA) is excited to announce that they are now accepting applications for short-term residencies writers in all genres including poetry, fiction, nonfiction, journalism, academic writing, playwriting, and more. Each residency includes a room of one’s own, access to a communal kitchen, bathroom, office, and living space, plus wireless internet. 

SAFTA is currently accepting applications for our fall residency period, which runs from August 24, 2020 to January 3, 2021. The length of a residency can run from one to three weeks. The deadline for fall residency applications is May 31st, 2020.  

A Note Regarding COVID-19: We are moving forward with fall applications with the assumption that travel will be permitted again by late summer. However, if you are accepted for this residency and are unable to travel due to continued social distancing measures or other coronavirus-related problems, your residency can be moved to the fall of 2021 with all scholarships still applicable.

For the fall residency period, SAFTA will be partnering with VIDA to offer two fellowships (one full fellowship and one 50% fellowship) for a week-long residency to two women or nonbinary writers in any genre. One fully-funded Writer’s Coop residency scholarship is also available for Fall 2020.  VIDA’s mission as a research-driven organization is to increase critical attention to women’s writing as well as further transparency around gender equality issues in contemporary literary culture. Fellowships will be chosen by guest judge, Christina Mun-Lutz. 

Christina Mun-Lutz is a Korean-American poet who lives in St. Petersburg, FL where she teaches creative writing and is a staff member at Eckerd College. Her work has appeared in Puerto del Sol, RHINO, Juked, Spoon River Poetry Review, and elsewhere. She currently serves on the Board of Directors at VIDA: Women in Literary Arts and is the Editor-in-Chief of the VIDA Review.

The SAFTA farmhouse is located on a working farm that rests on a 45-acre wooded plot in a Tennessee “holler” perfect for hiking, camping, and nature walks. Located less than a half-hour from downtown Knoxville, an energetic and arts-forward city of 200,000 in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, SAFTA is an ideal location for those looking for a rural get-away with access to urban amenities. 

The residency bedrooms are 130 sq. ft. with queen-size platform bed, closet, dresser, and desk. There is also a communal kitchen supplied with stove, refrigerator, and microwave plus plenty of cook- and dining-ware. The facility also includes a full-size working 19th century full-size letterpress with type, woodworking tools, a 1930’s drafting table, and an extensive library of contemporary literature. 

For more information and application material, visit sundressacademyforthearts.com.

Sundress offers new fellowship donation opportunity


Sundress Academy for the Arts (SAFTA) is excited to offer a new opportunity for donors and artists to collaborate through our new Fund-a-Fellow program. SAFTA, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, is an artists’ retreat on a 45-acre farm in Knoxville, Tennessee that offers residencies to writers, visual artists, filmmakers, composers, academics, and more. With two residency rooms and a dry cabin on site, we offer a rotating space for nationally recognized and emerging artists in multiple disciplines.

Through this new fellowship program, donors will have the opportunity to allocate their donations toward a specific artist, genre, or vision.

For example, a donor may choose to fund a residency for an artist who is part of a specific marginalized group or an artist who is producing a specific genre of work.

Your tax-deductible donation may be offered to any particular group of artists or writers you wish. Previously funded awards have offered fellowships for people of color, LGBTQIA writers, mothers, Appalachian writers, Tennessee artists, graduate students, women over 40, and more. Upon donation, we will advertise that a new fellowship has been made available and begin accepting applications from artists whose work aligns with your vision. Our staff of editors and qualified outside readers will judge applications.

Donations may come in the following amounts:

A $125 donation covers:

  • 50% of a week-long residency, including lodging, at Firefly Farms in Knoxville, TN.

A $250 donation covers:

  • 100% of a week-long residency, including lodging, at Firefly Farms in Knoxville, TN.

A $500 donation covers:

  • 100% of a week-long residency, including lodging, at Firefly Farms in Knoxville, TN.
  • $250 stipend for travel

A $1,000 donation covers:

  • 100% of a two-week-long residency, including lodging, at Firefly Farms in Knoxville, TN.
  • $500 stipend

As a nonprofit, we rely on the money we draw in from our residency, events, and books to fund our daily operations, but due to the current state of arts funding, the only way for organizations like ours to truly grow and thrive is through the generosity of the public. Donations, community support, and philanthropic patronage help us connect with and support artists and writers. Our efforts have already attracted attention from individuals and organizations in the Knoxville community and beyond, and we hope that you would join them with your financial support.

To learn more about this opportunity, please contact Erin Elizabeth Smith at erin@sundresspublications.com.