Overview and Studios
The Artist Studio Program was launched in 2000 in response to the crisis of available affordable space for artists living and working in New York City. The program provides six eligible artists working in all visual arts media a free private studio space accessible 24/7 and a fellowship (dependent on funding). The 2025-2026 program begins September 5, 2025 and ends August 5, 2026. The studios are located on the lower level of our building at 92 Plymouth Street in DUMBO, Brooklyn and range in size from 250 to 300 square feet. The program does not provide living space.
Eligibility
All applicants for the Studio Program should be NYC-based emerging or early career artists. We define an emerging artist as one who is at the beginning of their public artistic career and would greatly benefit from the opportunities we provide, such as regular studio visits with New York City curators, public open studio events, and free studio space. Artists may have some experience participating in group shows, solo shows at lesser-known art spaces, some press recognition, and/or are recent graduates of BFA or MFA programs. We do not consider artists emerging if they have had solo exhibitions at widely recognized galleries or institutions; already received consistent production opportunities, awards, and press; and/or if they have 10 years or more of consistent public experience as an artist. Age is not a determining factor.
Applicants must also be legal residents of NYC and file their taxes in NYC for a minimum of one year prior to the application deadline. Applicants must be residing in NYC at the time of the application process and for the term of the residency. If you become a finalist and are invited for an interview, you must be able to provide a tax return for proof of residency. All applicants must be United States citizens or legal Permanent Residents of the United States, 18 years or older, may not be enrolled in any degree program, and must be able to demonstrate need for a studio. Applicants may not be a resident artist in another studio program at the same time as the Smack Mellon residency. Note: Due to the program’s length, and because applications are due nearly two years in advance of the program’s completion, we require that artists be US citizens or legal Permanent Residents at the time of application.
All six of the artists selected for the studio program will receive a fellowship, and three will receive the New York Community Trust Van Lier Fellowship. The New York Community Trust’s Edward and Sally Van Lier Fund provides support for talented, culturally diverse, economically disadvantaged young people who are seriously dedicated to a career in the arts.
*Applicant Requirements for The New York Community Trust Van Lier Fellowship are to support artists who are seriously dedicated to a career in the arts, reside in New York City, identify racially and or culturally with a historically underrepresented community, age 30 or younger, and have a demonstrated need for financial assistance to advance their artistic career. If you feel you are qualified and would like to be considered for one of Smack Mellon’s three Van Lier funded studios, indicate your interest in the application form. Please note that if you have received a Van Lier Fellowship from another organization, you are not eligible for this.*
For those who are not eligible for the Van Lier Fellowship, the other three slots available in Smack Mellon’s Studio Program are for emerging artists of any age who are New York City residents.
Production Facilities
Artists have access to shared facilities that include: a digital production lab, including a set of 27″ iMac workstations professionally configured for video and graphics editing, calibrated monitors, HD projector, stereo monitor speakers, flatbed film scanners, a wide-format photo printer, a color laser printer, wireless internet access and a newly implemented reference library; a fabrication shop including table saw, bandsaw, drill press, and belt-sander. Our staff is on-hand to provide technical support and to respond to the studio needs of our resident artists.
Open Studios and Studio Visitors
Smack Mellon hosts two Open Studio events annually, as well as sponsored visits from curators, critics, and gallerists, which provide significant exposure and invaluable career-building opportunities.
In addition to monthly studio hours, artists are expected to help at Smack Mellon’s benefit the first weekend in May and make themselves available for studio visits with school groups and other tour groups outside of Open Studio event hours.
Special Notes
Artists who are accepted into the program must be prepared to actively use their studio a minimum of 50 hours a month or they will lose it. Not all studios have windows. Artists will not be permitted to choose their studio. Please also note that due to the possibility of flooding in our basement studios, we strongly recommend that artists keep anything valuable off the floor at all times; therefore artists accustomed to working on the floor should think carefully about whether our studios will meet their needs.
Application and Selection Process
To apply to the 2025-2026 season, visit our Submittable page.
Apply by November 24, 2024
Please review the eligibility and application guidelines carefully before beginning your application. Each year, Smack Mellon convenes a panel of arts professionals to select the artists from over 300 applicants. A group of finalists who are not selected for the Studio Program are featured on our Hot Picks page for one year. Notifications go out in late May 2025. Please do not call or email the office for selection results.
Image: 2023-24 Studio Artist Yuchen Chang, 2023-24 Studio Artist mujero, 2022-23 Studio Artist Kevin Quiles Bonilla, and 2022-23 Studio Artist Miatta Kawinzi. Photos courtesy of Smack Mellon. Photos by Etienne Frossard.