open call for 2026 nyc-based artist residency

Residency Unlimited (RU) is excited to announce an open call for the 2026 NYC-Based Artist Residency (NYCBAR) Program.

This program is dedicated to supporting NYC-based artists traditionally underrepresented in the arts. RU encourages applications from artists who self-identify as part of underserved communities, including but not limited to BIPOC and LGBTQ+ individuals. 

The 2026 NYCBAR Program will run from March 1 – May 31, 2026, and culminate with the group exhibition “Working Conditions” curated by Phil Zheng Cai at Westbeth Gallery. 

Realized in collaboration with RU Guest Curator Phil Zheng Cai, the 2026 NYCBAR Program will be shaped by the following curatorial concept: 

A common screening question asked by curators and gallerists is: “Do you plan on being a professional artist for the rest of your life?” This arrogant request for proof of dedication undermines the hardship of treating art as a profession, especially in a city like New York. More often than not, artists in the City have other jobs and find a balance between their art and non-art practices. To some, their “day jobs” are a soulless exchange for material cost, and to others, these occupations inspire and inform, providing for their art practices in the form of subject matters, methodologies, habits, constraints, or guidelines.

Taking its title from Hans Haacke’s collected writings, Working Conditions seeks to dissect the notion of the “artist” into two intertwined identities: the one who makes art, and the one who performs “artist” as a profession. By acknowledging their indivisibility, the project invites artists who maintain other jobs to reflect on how those experiences inform their practice, while encouraging full-time artists to examine the relationship between their creative agency and their professional position as practitioners.

To be considered for this program, applications should reflect the curatorial concept outlined above.