Ibura Art and Reserach Residency

Ibura

/E-boo’rah/

Ibura is a Swahili word of Arabic origin meaning “something wonderful, a miracle, a very rare occurrence.”

Ibura Art & Research Residency honors the work, practice, long time mentorship, deep love and friendship between Kenya Miles and K. Ibura. From the spark of an idea that grew Blue Light Junction, K. Ibura has played many roles in supporting and furthering the work and mission of BLJ. K. Ibura has been an integral part in the writing of multiple grants for BLJ including The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant that will fund the inaugural year of this residency.

Ibura Art & Research Residency provides 2 months of studio space, financial support and thought partners for you  to explore a question or line of inquiry that is related to your work and our work at Blue Light Junction. It is also a space to paint, record, experiment with dyes, and to follow any other artistic musings. Your participation as a resident in this inaugural year will help shape the future of this program.

Blue Light Junction has partnered with VisArts Center to make the application available to prospective residents without an application fee. Learn more about the Ibura Art and Research Residency and apply at https://bit.ly/IburaResidency.

What does the residency provide?

Ibura Art & Research Residency is a two month long research residency at Blue Light Junction.

Residents will receive:

• a 10 ft  x 10 ft  studio space which can be furnished with a table, chair and flammables cabinet upon request.
• 24 hour access to the “annex” dye Garden and Studio Blue
• A $2000 stipend (for the duration of the residency) which will be paid in biweekly installments. The first installment will be paid two weeks into the residency and the last two weeks after the residency has ended.
• support from an actively engaged community of artists, researchers, and farmers.
• opportunities to participate in on-site workshops

Who is this residency for?

Ibura is an opportunity for a researcher to embed themselves into our community of people, our spaces and our ongoing work. We welcome researchers from all backgrounds. We define a researcher as someone who is curious, questioning and actively pursuing a line of inquiry. If you are a person who asks questions and undertakes actions to answer those questions then you research! You may also identify as an artist, organizer, scientist, architect, designer, healer, archivist, curator, dancer, performer, etc. We privilege research practices that focus on learning through doing and hands-on experimentation. We love research that produces more questions and deepens existing knowledge.

What do we expect from researchers in residence?

We are interested in supporting people who will immerse themselves in the Blue Light Junction community, be a regular presence in the studio and make use of the many offerings of our spaces. In more concrete terms we would love to host someone who will spend a minimum of 15 - 20 hours per week on site (part of this time being dedicated to community engagement).

There are no restrictions or expectations of what form your work takes. The resident is required to host one offering for our community. Our two requirements are that the offering be in some way related to the research that took place during the residency and that it be something that community members are invited to participate in.

Offerings might take the form of:

• a sound bath made from sounds collected in the neighborhood and/ or on BLJ and BLJ partner sites
• a walking tour of plant ancestors growing within a mile radius of BLJ
• a workshop that teaches introduces a skill, materials, or way of working
• an archive of stories, images, or objects from in and around BLJ
• a physical enhancement to the space ( in collaboration and with approval from BLJ director)
• a thought framework
• a performance piece
• a notebook of drawings made in the garden everyday at noon

If you have questions or would like support in developing a community offering, you can speak with Residency staff during office hours.

Visit https://visarts.submittable.com/submit for more information.