Re-drawing the world

The concept of artist residencies has long been a cornerstone of the evolution of artistic creation. These programmes provide invaluable opportunities for artists to step outside their everyday environments. However, as the world evolves and technology burgeons, so too should the frameworks that support and nurture creativity. Which prompts me to ask: how can traditional artist residencies evolve to maintain their relevance and value?

While often perceived as a modern construct, artist residencies have deep historical roots. The establishment of the Accademia del Disegno (Academy of Design) in Florence in 1563 by Cosimo Medici, a banker and patron of the arts, marked a shift in how artistic talent was nurtured. This institution was among the first to provide artists with a dedicated space for refining their skills — an idea that remains central to the concept of residencies today.

Even before such institutions emerged in Europe, similar practices were already established in the courts of some African countries, China, and India, where artists played pivotal roles in shaping the public image of the court.

Although these artists were not formally part of a “residency”, they lived and worked within the court’s confines, benefiting from its resources and patronage. Such settings were integral to the portrayal of power, wealth, and cultural refinement, but also enabled artistic skills and knowledge to be passed down within guilds or families. One of the earliest modern artist-in-residence programmes in Asia was established in 1964 by the Uchida Yoko company in Tokyo, Japan. This programme invited foreign artists to live and work in Tokyo, fostering cross-cultural interactions and artistic collaboration. By the 1990s, there was a surge in residency programmes, extending from Brazil to Taiwan, Mexico, and Cameroon and with a strong grassroots connection.

Many initiatives aimed to not only extend hospitality to artists but also to establish alternative, community-focused hubs for artistic knowledge and experience. Residential art centres began assuming the role of catalysts in the contemporary art landscape, playing an indispensable part in linking the local creative milieu with the global art sphere.

Today, artist residencies continue to provide new spaces and paradigms for knowledge production — but their impact extends far beyond individual practices. Such programmes facilitate critical creative discourse, offering artists the opportunity to explore new ideas, techniques, and perspectives. By providing time, space, and resources, residencies enable artists to focus on their work without distraction, often leading to significant developments in their practice. In Africa, artist residencies have been particularly impactful.

The continent’s rich cultural fabric provides a unique model that combines traditional collective learning with individual artistic exploration. The Tankwa Artscape Residency, in SA, invites artists to engage with the Karoo desert landscape through site-responsive art. In Lagos, Nigeria, the Guest Artists Space (GAS) Foundation, founded by renowned artist Yinka Shonibare, facilitates international cultural dialogue. Other notable examples include the Nirox Residency and the Bag Factory in Joburg.

In 2026, The Lenox in Cape Town will be converted into a luxury boutique hotel that will also house an artist residency. This public-private partnership with the French government will dedicate an entire floor to a permanent art residency, providing a creative haven for up to nine artists a year.

Looking to the future, the value of residencies lies not only in their ability to provide artists with time, space, and cross-cultural exchange but also in their potential to foster meaningful interdisciplinary collaboration and adapt-to-change drivers. In future, residencies should shift to a more integrated model, where artists act as integrators, connecting scientists, technologists, designers, entrepreneurs, and activists in a creative-cultural back end. Such an interdisciplinary approach will allow residencies to address key questions about our future, particularly how new technologies and cultural practices can shape the way we live.

A prime example of this evolution is the Brooklyn Museum’s Entrepreneur in Residence initiative in 2022, which enlisted retail mogul Rachel Shechtman to foster experimentation and entrepreneurialism within the museum. The programme’s theme, “The Museum of the Future, Today”, highlights how residencies can tap into expertise beyond the art world. The artist residency of the future should become an incubator of interdisciplinary collaboration — a space where diverse fields of knowledge and practices intersect. By promoting connections between art, science, fashion, technology, and nature, residencies can become powerful platforms for addressing social and environmental challenges, with brilliant, creative minds playing a central role as change drivers.

The challenge lies in creating spaces where creativity meets innovation, breaking down disciplinary boundaries and focusing on how we can collectively shape the future. Imagine a residency where an artist known for their work in sculpture collaborates with a marine biologist specialising in coral reefs. Together, they could create a project that explores the beauty and fragility of coral ecosystems while raising awareness of ocean conservation. This kind of interdisciplinary collaboration blends art, environmental science, and activism into a mechanism for scientific and ecological advancement.

Elana Brundyn is the founder of Brundyn Arts and Culture, an art consultancy based in Cape Town. brundyn.com

• From the September edition of Wanted, 2024.