AIR – Bellagio Center Application Guidelines

Overview

The Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Residency Program awards highly accomplished academics, practitioners and artists four weeks of residence at the Bellagio Center on Lake Como, Italy. Residents and their spouses receive free room and board as well as a space to work. They spend most of their time at Bellagio working on their own projects, but also have an unparalleled opportunity to interact with fellow residents from a stimulating array of disciplines and geographies. The combination of uninterrupted, individual time during the day and evenings spent with innovative leaders, policymakers, scientists, writers, and artists from a wide array of fields advances fellows’ current projects and stimulates creative approaches to future work.

The Bellagio Center Residency Program

The Bellagio residency program is intended to offer residents a serene setting conducive to focused, goal-oriented work as well as ample opportunities to interact with each other. The residency is for artists seeking time for disciplined work, reflection, and collegial engagement with a diverse community of academics, practitioners coming from a broad range of sectors, as well as other artists working in a broad range of disciplines.

• Residents are given a private room with a bath and study/studio. Internet access is available in all bedrooms and most studies. A small library includes basic reference books and online research tools. Spouses/partners may accompany the resident but accommodations are not available for other individuals, including children or pets. Room and board are provided to all residents at no cost.
• Studio space is available but certain types of artistic production are not suitable for Bellagio—e.g. the production of large-scale work, and work that requires specialized equipment that cannot be easily brought to the Center. Bellagio is often, though there are exceptions, best suited for early or near final stages of work—either when research and conceptualization are shaping early work or when the final touches or post-production documentation is taking place.
• Residents are highly encouraged to take meals together, with dinner being the main meal. Meal times are the focal point of interaction with other residents.
• Residents are invited to present their projects to the resident community over one evening and are expected to participate in presentations from other residents.
• Travel grants and modest stipends to offset incidental travel costs are available on a needs basis.

Further details about the accommodations and daily schedule are available by clicking here.

Please Note: Applicants may apply for a residency three times (inclusive of Academic Writing, Arts & Literary Arts, and Practitioner Residencies), and successful candidates have a lifetime limit of two residencies. Former residents applying for a second residency must wait at least five years since their first residency before submitting a new application, and must demonstrate significant professional achievement and/or project advancement since their first residency.

The Process to Apply

The Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Residency Program uses the online application system FluidReview to receive all Residency Program Applications.

KEY STEPS:

1. Applicants must first register in the system and set up a user ID and password at this link: https://bellagiocenter.fluidreview.com
2. Upon creating a user ID, send an email to wanjiruk@africacentre.net with your first name, last name and email address requesting to be given access to the application form specific to Africa Centre’s AIR applicants.
3. You will then receive an e-mail directly from the Africa Centre indicating that you can begin the application process. The first step is to complete a short eligibility form, after which you will be able to access all of the application questions and can complete all application tasks.

For a preview of the application click here: iie.box.com/s/bimcc5ml0z60w35wx3usj1grmh9wt7nu

Support during the application process is provided by The Institute of International Education. If you encounter technical difficulties, please contact Bellagio Residency administrators at Bellagio_res@iie.org.

**The application will be open in FluidReview for completion from October 16 to December 1, 2017**

Required Application Tasks and Materials

• Eligibility Form

Before starting an application, all applicants must answer questions to confirm their eligibility for a residency award.

• Applicant Details Form

Form captures personal details and contact information

• Application Questions

Application questions address an applicant’s background, an applicant’s project, and the suitability of the project for the Bellagio Center.

• Work Samples: The requirements for the work sample vary by artist field. Specific work sample requirements are listed in the appendix for Composers/Musicians, Interdisciplinary Artists, Literary Artists (including by not limited to Fiction, Non-Fiction, Playwright, Poet), Video/Filmmakers, Visual Artists and Architects. See work sample requirements here: https://bellagiocenter.fluidreview.com/res/p/ArtsandLiteraryArtsReside/
• Abbreviated CV: Artists submit a CV with career highlights, including publications and awards (up to 10 pages).
• Recommendations: Applicants will enter names and contact information for two people who will provide answers to a recommendation questionnaire and optionally submit letters of recommendation for the applicant. Recommenders will be contacted by email via the FluidReview site, provided with a link and instructions to create a log-in, and asked to answer a set of questions. Two completed recommendation questionnaires are required, a third is optional. A preview of the questionnaire is available in FluidReview.
• Published Reviews (optional but highly recommended): Artists may submit up to three published reviews of their work. They may combine them into one Word or PDF document. They should be full reviews with proper citation and in English.
• Project Plan/Outline: Artists are required to submit a brief description and project plan for the work they propose to work on at the Bellagio Center. Artists may also include a chapter, section, or draft of a work in progress.

Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Studio Specifications for Artist Residents

(In addition to living quarters, artists have access to the following studios)

Music studio:

4 meters x 2.70 meters total space

• Piano
• Desk
• Printer

Art studio:

4.20 meters x 5.20 meters total space

• Great light
• Two large, movable wood surfaces where artists may attach work,

3.50 meters x 2 meters wide.

• Faucet with running water
• Desk and printer