The Mystic River Watershed Association (MyRWA) is extending a call for artists for our PAID 2025-2026 Mystic Artist in Residence Program. At MyRWA and The Massachusetts Bays National Estuary Partnership, we believe that creative projects offer unique opportunities to help people connect with and learn about the natural world, making outdoor spaces more accessible and welcoming, and empowering communities to work together to protect and restore the natural resources around us.
The Mystic River Artist-in-Residence Program is part of the nationwide U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Inaugural Artist-In-Residence Program in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The EPA Artist in Residence Program supports a broad range of local artists and culture bearers in six geographic areas within National Estuary Programs (NEP) and Urban Waters Federal Partnership (UWFP) locations, including the Mystic River Watershed Urban Waters Federal Partnership: Massachusetts Bays National Estuary Partnership.
Mystic River Watershed Mural by Yetti Frenkel. Photo: Erica Wood
The Mystic River Artist in Residence Program is an exciting opportunity to emphasize the vital connection between the arts and our environment. Through our work with the Artist-in-Residence, MyRWA hopes to increase community engagement, deepen relationships, and highlight the diverse communities in the Mystic River watershed and how they intersect with our work.
The program will take place between January 2025 and spring 2026, beginning with an exploratory phase during which the artist will be embedded in MyRWA’s organization to get to know our work, our watershed, and our communities. The artist will then work to implement the creative project within the watershed. Throughout the residency, MyRWA and the artist will work to involve the community in the creative process.
The RFQ is found here, including all the instructions. Deadline for applications is October 9, 2024.
Mystic Mural Project by David Fichter. Photo: Daria Clark
