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Six Unique Artist Residencies Across the Midwest 

by Amy "frankie" Felegy

A lakeshore with dunes.
Photo Credit: Glen Arbor Arts Center Facebook
The Suzanne Wilson Artist-in-Resident program at The Glen Arbor Arts Center is near Lake Michigan, wooded hills, and a river.

Cemeteries, farms, hotels—check out these artist havens for a creative supercharge.

Great art happens with great inspiration. Across the Midwest, that can (and does) look like off-the-beaten-path artist residencies.  

We’ve brought you stories of an artist residency at a cemetery in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and farm-adjacent creative cohorts in Illinois and Wisconsin. Here are a few more of our favorite artist residencies—with a twist.

Home Away from Home

A woman with light skin raising her arms and singing for a small audience.
Photo Credit: The Parlor Hotel
A residency performance in action at the Parlor Hotel in Princeton, Wisconsin.

With no shortage of places for artists to crash for a night (or 14), these two spots meld residency with transitory places.

The Parlor Hotel in Princeton, Wisconsin, asks artists to “take over the hotel” with performances and public engagement in the hotel’s lobby. The shows are intimate and often dimly lit. 

Over in Michigan is the Detroit Exchange Artist Residency at Hostel Detroit. New this year, folks can visit the gallery by staying at the hostel (or booking an appointment). Last summer’s artist-in-residence was Detroit’s Danya Ensing, who engages in film photography and printmaking.

Stepping Outdoors 

In Glen Arbor, Michigan, a studio welcomes artists to  a historic farmstead in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The Suzanne Wilson Artist-in-Resident program at The Glen Arbor Arts Center is near Lake Michigan, wooded hills, and a river. Can you say “inspiring”? 

From Studio to Mansion 

Longing for a larger studio? Maybe a mansion will do. The historic Bryn Du Mansion in Granville, Ohio, houses artists in its several-thousand-square-foot estate on over 50 acres. This year’s cohort includes a fiber artist, a dancer, and an author. 

Canvases and easels set up outside a mansion.
Photo Credit: Bryn Du Mansion Facebook
Art in action at the historic Bryn Du Mansion in Granville, Ohio.
A woman with a cowboy hat and paintbrush outside a red barn.
Photo Credit: Glen Arbor Arts Center Facebook
An artist paints near a barn at the historic farmstead Thoreson Farm in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.
A person creating blown glass.
Photo Credit: Toledo Museum of Art Facebook
The Sara Jane DeHoff Guest Artist Pavilion Project (GAPP) for glass artists is in Toledo, Ohio, where the studio glass movement all began.
People standing with cameras next to a red carpet in a perking lot.
Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts Facebook
The Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts is ready for its new artists-in-residence in Warsaw, Indiana.
A building with a mural on its side.
Photo Credit: Hostel Detroit Facebook
The new Detroit Exchange Artist Residency at Hostel Detroit.
A person on stage with large feathers and a costume.
Photo Credit: Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts Facebook
Actors in Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts’ 2019 performance of the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Two images of an old mansion.
Photo Credit: Bryn Du Mansion Facebook
A then-and-now look at the Bryn Du Mansion, which has a major focus on bringing arts programming to its large campus.

Niche Practices 

Past performers with Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts can apply to its new Artist-in-Residence program. Located in Warsaw, Indiana, the actors teach conservatory classes and out in the community during their stay. This year’s resident is also helping create new curricula for the art center. 

At Ohio’s Toledo Museum of Art, it’s all things glass for resident artists. The Sara Jane DeHoff Guest Artist Pavilion Project (GAPP) invites glass artists—and artists willing to use glass in their work—to the museum. Toledo is said to be where the studio glass movement all began. 

Want more? Check out Artist Communities Alliance’s more comprehensive list of artist residencies across the Midwest, the country, and the world.