UCROSS ANNOUNCES FALL 2020 ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE

Nathan Gunn, Shaun Leonardo, and Ottessa Moshfegh amongst 28 artists selected for residencies in Wyoming’s majestic High Plains
 
Ucross, WY (October 26, 2020) — Ucross, a prestigious artist residency program and creative laboratory for the arts, today announced the Fall 2020 roster of artists in residence. Twenty-eight artists, working in a variety of disciplines, including visual art, writing, music, and performance art, were selected from nearly 300 applicants to receive uninterrupted time, studio space, and living accommodations on Ucross’s 20,000-acre ranch at the foothills of the Bighorn Mountains.
 
Performer Nathan Gunn, multidisciplinary artist Shaun Leonardo, and writer Ottessa Moshfegh are among the artists scheduled for a Ucross residency this fall season. After a brief interruption in Spring 2020 due to the pandemic, Ucross welcomed back artists with new procedures and protocols in place to safeguard the health of the artists and Ucross staff. Ucross is a place that invites, and celebrates, distance and space for its fellows to let their work grow.
 
“In this year of great turmoil, Ucross knows how important it is for artists to keep working,” said Ucross President Sharon Dynak. “First and foremost, we continue to support those efforts through the gift of uninterrupted time to concentrate on creative work and thinking. By providing this crucial time and space, in an environment of safety and natural beauty, we hope to be a small part of the healing process and the exceptional work that artists are creating in 2020.”
 
The Fall 2020 list includes artists across the U.S., as well as artists coming to Ucross through partnerships such as the recently launched programs with The University of Houston’s Creative Writing Program and Cave Canem. Additional fellowship partnerships include the PEN/Hemingway Award, Ford Family Foundation, and Herb Alpert Award. The list also includes the most recent recipients of the Ucross Fellowships for Native American Visual Artists and Writers, which awards fellowships to Native American artists and writers at all stages of their professional careers.
 
"I’m in deep anticipation for this residency named for a beloved mentor, Toi Derricotte, whose love has nurtured my being and my creative voice for the entire fullness of my adult life, ever since hers were the wide open arms to welcome 25-year-old me to my first Cave Canem Retreat for Black poets,” said Karma Mayet Johnson, the Fall 2020 Cave Canem Fellow at Ucross.
 
Please find the full list of Fall 2020 artists in residence below:

• Literature: Brendan Basham, David Cote, Alyson Hagy, J.C. Hallman, Nell Hanley, Onyinye Ihezukwu, Karma Mayet Johnson, Rainey Knudson, Ottessa Moshfegh, Anna Paige, Misha Rai, Ben Sáenz, Austin Segrest, Michel Stone
• Visual Arts:  James Drake, Elizabeth Duffy, Nina Elder, Leila Hamidi, Shaun Leonardo, Nicole Sara Simpkins, Kerry Skarbakka, Patricia Sonnino, Kirsten Stolle
• Music/Dance: Andy Akiho, Michael Harrison, Jessica Pavone
• Theatre/Performance: Nathan Gunn, Anthony Hudson

 
At Ucross, artists in residence experience an inspiring combination of solitude and community, with expansive time for private work, as well as lively exchanges at group dinners with fellow artists. Facilities include four visual arts studios, four writers’ studios, and two composers’ studios, and a large loft space suitable for dance and theatre collaborations.
 
Ucross was founded in 1981 by Raymond Plank. Since its founding, Ucross has provided more than 2,500 residencies to established and emerging artists. Ucross provides a platform that nurtures and supports artists, many on the eve of major career breakouts. Ucross has been home to 10 Pulitzer Prize winners, eight MacArthur “genius” grantees, seven Tony Award winners, six National Book Award winners, and two Academy Award winners. Alumni include Billy Porter, Colson Whitehead, Yaa Gyasi, Annie Proulx, Terry Tempest Williams, Elizabeth Gilbert, Ann Patchett, Ricky Ian Gordon, and Adam Guettel.