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2022. The Steam Junk Treaties. Howie Tsui & Shary Boyle. Ink and gouache on paper. 76cm x 94cm
We invite artists to retreat to Banff and spend time quietly working alone, looking inward, connecting with the natural world, and engaging with others away from professional stress and pressure.
With a focus on studio practice, artists will be encouraged to reflect on “why” they are making art, for “whom”, and to “what” end? In what ways do market influences and institutional expectations consciously or unconsciously impact our work? How does making art heal or help the world? Visual Arts Thematic Residency – The System and Other Universes welcomes participants to consider new, unique, or radical paradigms for being an artist in shifting, uncertain times.
The aim is not to seek conclusions, but to welcome concern, curiosity, and the unknown into a safe and supportive environment. Those who question the purpose and destinations of their practice and are open to exploring alternate routes and sources from which to create, are encouraged to apply.
This residency will be gently led, with an abundance of time to work in the studio and explore Minhrpa, Banff National Park, and Treaty 7 territory.
All manners and approaches of art-making are welcome.
This program offers a structured space where visual artists come together to create work and discuss the pertinent theme, as well as time and space to delve deeply into their practice while away from the constraints of everyday life. Through peer interaction, studio work, formal lectures, and studio visits from world-renowned visiting faculty, participants gain new ideas and insights that can be applied to creative exploration and professional development of their work.
Participants are provided with a studio, accessible 24 hours a day, as well as targeted access to our extensive facilities. Facility access is based on availability of facilitators, and priority access is given to those requesting their use in their initial application.
In addition, artists can build connections, create networks, and share their work with other artists-in-residence and the public.
This residency is for visual artists who have completed formal education or training at the post-secondary level, or who have acquired equivalent experience through traditional knowledge and practices, and who have received recognition from their peers.
This program is designed for participation over the entire program period. Variable dates will not be considered. Collaborative groups are welcome to apply. Groups no larger than two people will be considered.
Banff Centre invites applicants from anywhere in the world, and artists of all ages (18+), backgrounds, gender identities, and expressions.
Banff Centre is grateful to the following supporters for making this program possible:
Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Outstanding Artist Program Endowment
Shary Boyle is the recipient of a 2021 Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from the Ontario College of Art and Design University where she graduated from in 1994, before developing a multidisciplinary practice centered on drawing, sculpture and performance. Boyle’s work considers the social history of ceramic figures, animist mythologies, and folk-art forms to create a symbolic, feminist and politically charged language uniquely her own. Boyle activates her practice through collaboration and mentorship, engaging other creative communities and disciplines with a characteristically inclusive spirit.
Shary Boyle has received the Gershon Iskowitz Prize, 2009, the Hnatyshan Award, 2010, and represented Canada at the Venice Biennial in 2013. Her solo exhibition Outside the Palace of Me organized by Toronto’s Gardiner Museum travelled to The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (2022), the Vancouver Art Gallery (2023) and the Museum of Art and Design in NYC (2023/24).
sharyboyle.com
Howie Tsui (徐浩恩, b. 1978, Hong Kong) is based on unceded Coast Salish territories. His multi-disciplinary practice spans ink brush painting, sound sculpture, lenticular lightbox and installation. Tsui constructs tense, fictive environments that undermine revered art forms and narrative genres, often stemming from the Chinese literati tradition. He employs a stylized form of derisive and exaggerated imagery as a way to satirize and disarm broadening regimes and their programs of cultural hegemony. The most notable branch of his practice involves the use of algorithmic animation sequences to raise questions around order, chaos and the potential of social harmony through self-organized societies. Tsui synthesizes diverging socio-cultural anxieties around superstition, trauma, surveillance and otherness through a distinctly outsider lens to cast light onto liminal and diasporic experiences.
Recent solo exhibitions include: Hanart TZ (Hong Kong, 2024), Glenbow Museum (2023), The Power Plant (2020); with group exhibitions at the Macao International Art Biennale, Tai Kwun (Hong Kong), Art Gallery of New South Wales. Public collections include: National Gallery of Canada, Vancouver Art Gallery, McMichael Art Collection. Tsui was awarded the Joseph Stauffer Prize (2005), and long-listed for the Sobey Award (2018). He holds a BFA from the University of Waterloo.
howietsui.com
Your program fee includes a single bedroom on the Banff Centre campus for the duration of your program.
Get connected with other artists on campus and focus on your projects in a creative environment while we take care of the day-to-day essentials.
Using a credit-based system to dine on campus, our flexible meal plans allow you to select meals according to your own needs during your stay. Banff Centre can accommodate most dietary requests.
The Full Flex meal plan is calculated at $70 credit per day, equivalent to breakfast, lunch and dinner at our Buffet service.
The Paul D. Fleck Library and Archives - Current Services
The Library is delighted to support Banff Centre Participants, Artists, and Faculty with the following services:
Please email library@banffcentre.ca or archives@banffcentre.ca for more information or assistance.
Your program fee includes free access to the swimming pool, climbing gym and fitness suite as well as discounted rates for classes at the Sally Borden Fitness and Recreation Centre.
Create in one of our specialized studios and utilize shared production facilities in printmaking, ceramics, sculpture, photography, digital media and more (subject to additional fees) Collaborative groups share studio space.
Enrich your experience and get to know other artists on campus by taking advantage of the activities and support provided by our Participant Resources team.
This program offers opportunities to showcase your work-in-progress in an open studios event in Glyde Hall.
Enjoy special artist rates for ticketed performances or complimentary access to events.
Join in group seminars/workshops.
Application Fee: $65 for individuals or groups ($35 for applicants who identify as Indigenous).
Application fees are non-refundable.
Individual group members must pay an additional registration fee of $35 on acceptance.
*Scholarship of 100% is available and will be applied to cover tuition, and 50% is available to offset meals and accommodation costs.
Scholarship of 100% is available to Canadian Indigenous participants and will be applied to cover tuition, meals and accommodation costs.
If you would like to be considered, please complete the Financial Aid section when uploading your supporting materials.
Banff Centre will issue official tax receipts for eligible tuition fees and financial assistance and awards as required by the Income Tax Act. You will receive a T2202 (Tuition and Enrolment Certificate) for eligible tuition fees paid and a T4A (Statement of Pension, Retirement, Annuity, and Other Income) for applicable financial assistance and awards.
Help fund your experience at Banff Centre. View a compiled list of national and international opportunities here.
Learn more about the steps to Complete Your Application.
A one-page resume describing your academic, artistic, professional, and other relevant artistic experience.
A 500 word description of why you wish to attend this program, what you hope to learn or achieve and what impact it could have on your artistic practice.
In 500 words, describe the conceptual framework of your proposed project, your weekly execution plan, details of the mediums you propose to use and your level of knowledge in the processes required, and outline any specific technical or support requirements.
Outline all studio, equipment, software, facility, or staff support requested in our upload tool. Final resource allocation is at the discretion of the department.
Provide 10 samples of your artistic work. Curators and researchers must submit three samples of written work. File sizes and specifications are available in our upload tool.
Additional Information
Collaborative groups of no more than two are welcome to apply.
Participants are selected by impartial adjudicators based on their submitted material. In addition to artistic merit, consideration will be given to the likelihood that the artist's work and career will benefit from the program. Feasibility, scope, and the capacity of Banff Centre to help realize the project are also considered. Banff Centre’s values and strategic directions are reflected in program development and delivery.
Banff Centre respects the need for artists to plan ahead for their visit; applicants will be notified of their status as soon as adjudication is complete.
Priority will be given to applicants who have not attended a Visual Arts Program at Banff Centre within the last three years.
Applicants must be ages 18+ at the time of the program start date.
Banff Centre welcomes domestic and international applicants for this program. Please note, Banff Centre programs do not meet Canadian Student Visa eligibility requirements, you must obtain a Visitor Visa to enter Canada. Accepted individuals are responsible for identifying and complying with the immigration requirements to enter Canada as a visitor from their country of origin. Current wait times to receive a visa are much longer than normal, so applicants who require a Visitor Visa should check the current expected processing times prior to applying.
All programs, faculty, dates, fees, and offers of financial assistance are subject to change. Program fee is subject to applicable taxes. Non-refundable fees and deposits will be retained upon cancellation. Any other fees are refunded at the discretion of the Banff Centre. The application deadline is 11:59 p.m. Mountain Standard Time.
For questions on preparing your application, please contact Admissions:
