“The relation between what we see and what we know is never settled.” —John Berger
Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve embraced waking up before sunrise. It seems like a precursor to the shorter days yet to come, even though clocks will turn back this weekend. Rather than being summarily bummed about the lack of light (I can get S.A.D. in varying degrees, which may be one reason why the dark—though mild—Scottish winters didn’t suit so well either—I really need that sunshine) I’ve inadvertently begun focusing more on the light itself: the sunrises, sunsets, the way it hits a fuzzy, erupting milkweed plant or filters through orange leaves.
I’m really careful about the light in my home, too. As I walk around the neighborhood, especially at dawn or dusk when I can see the lights from other houses, I’m intrigued by the range of colors and brightnesses that emanate from other windows. One house is almost entirely cool blue LEDs, in every room. A couple of kitchens have what look like old-school fluorescent lights, and often, especially in the evening, there is the vaguely cinematic flickering of a television and nothing else.
Unsurprisingly, lighting choices can deeply impact your mood. Personally, I need warmth and softness—if an LED comes into a room, it’s as close to an incandescent as I can possibly find. A close second is a bulb that mimics natural light. There’s a dimmer switch on the big light. A candle is sometimes good, too.
Warmth, especially here in the Upper Midwest, is something we take pretty seriously. It’s a feeling but also a visual sensation, and the two go hand-in-hand. In a little room overlooking a garden that I sometimes work in, at home, there are three mismatched, shaded strings of lights hanging from the ceiling, which illuminate the russet color of the woodwork on the ceiling. I live for that warming glow. As the nights grow longer, these little details become more important.
In general, I feel like noticing, more broadly, becomes more important come the winter. Consciously tuning in is what helps to propel time and prevent sinking (too far, at least) into the doldrums. I would hazard there’s an element of blasé that is actually held over from the pandemic. But it’s also a welcome time for rest, rejuvenation, and planning for when things start to lighten up again.
To combat this, I’ve already started by picking up some old research—I was chin-deep in Black Mountain College scholarship for a few years, and I’m diving back in—and I’ve been noting more books to read and podcasts to tune into. When I need to get extra cozy, it’s Midsomer Murders for me (yep), and I plan trips that I may or may not take in Wanderlog.
I also really like Katherine May’s reflection on how to light the dark months. It’s better to get ahead.
See you next week!
—Kate
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What you’ll find below:
Featured artist: Y. Malik Jalal
Four exhibitions to see in London, Paris, and Venice
Fifteen opportunities for artists with deadlines coming up soon
Featured Artist: Y. Malik Jalal
Combining sculpture, photography, and assemblage in a multi-disciplinary practice, Y. Malik Jalal merges traditional approaches to craft and collage to “expand dialogues on Black history, power, and humanity,” he says in a statement. Steel and bronze mesh with collaged magazine cuttings, Inkjet prints, and other ephemera, converging industries, religion, cultures, inequalities, and craft traditions.
A new exhibition of Jalal’s work, BREAK NECK SPEEDS, opens tomorrow at MARCH in New York City.
Exhibitions
LONDON | FRESTONIAN GALLERY
Minami Kobayashi: The Song of Jujubes
Glowing color and layered narratives characterize Kobayashi’s ten canvases at Frestonian Gallery, created over the past year and drawn from a wide range of places and memories.
Runs through November 2
LONDON | SIM SMITH
Daisy Parris: Back to the Sky
I’ve long been a fan of Parris’s work, incidentally also penning the text for their 2020 solo with Sim Smith. It’s such a joy to see the work evolve, taking on further chromatic depth, with the poetic text additions becoming more totem-like over time.
Runs through November 9
PARIS | SEMIOSE
Moffat Takadiwa: The Reverse Deal
Takadiwa’s sprawling tapestries, using discarded computer keys, toothbrushes, pens, bottle caps, and other repurposed materials, connect the present to the past while addressing the nature of interdependent communities around the world. (I wrote about this show on Colossal, too.)
Runs through November 16
VENICE | MARE KARINA
Billy Crosby: Airplane Mode
Crosby is fresh out of the Royal College of Art, the final year during which the paintings in Airplane Mode were made using materials like puff paint, collage, and stencil techniques.
Runs through November 16
Artist Opportunities
Young Space emphasizes fully-funded opportunities with low or no entry fees and programs that focus on creative and professional development for visual artists. Deadlines are coming up soon to apply for these grants, fellowships, residencies, and more.
Paid subscribers, check out the whole list anytime at yngspc.com/opportunities and enter the password you received in your signup email. Can’t find it? Just shoot me a note. Thank your for your support!
Vocatio Foundation Project Grants (Belgium)
Deadline: November 3
Vocatio scholarships are open to all young people who are citizens of and based in Belgium. The foundation's mission is to support the achievement of a life without any elitism. The Scholarship award currently amounts to between €7,500 and €10,000 each.
Submission fee: none
VIA Art Fund Artistic Production Grant — Spring 2025 Cycle
Letter of inquiry deadline: November 4
Artistic Production grants fund the production and exhibition of new artistic commissions, in amounts ranging from $25,000 to $100,000. Often exhibited beyond museum walls in public space, these projects feature high levels of thought leadership, artistic production, and public engagement. VIA Art Fund accepts Letters of Inquiry (LOIs) on a semiannual basis for their Fall and Spring award cycles.
Submission fee: none
Saguaro National Park Residency
Deadline: November 7 (extended from earlier date)
Spanning two distinct districts, to the west and east of Tucson, the park showcases the iconic saguaro cactus, a symbol of the American West, against a backdrop of rugged landscapes and magical, vibrant sunsets. Artists are housed outside the park in a good-sized, 3-bedroom, 1-bath house, with air conditioning, a patio, and plenty of parking. A stipend of $3,000 is provided. This residency is not affiliated directly with the NPS.
Submission fee: $60 (single artist), $120 (couple or duo), or $160 group (up to 5 persons)
The Studios at MASS MoCA Residencies
Deadline: November 8
The Studios is MASS MoCA’s artist and writers residency program situated within the museum’s factory campus and surrounded by the beautiful Berkshire Mountains. Operated by MASS MoCA’s Assets for Artists department, the residency runs year-round and hosts up to 10 artists at a time. Artists of any nationality can apply for stays of 2 or 4 weeks. The program offers many full-ride fellowships (no residency fee charged to the artist), often in specific donor-identified categories, but there are always multiple general fellowships available. As an equity commitment, MASS MoCA gives priority for fellowships to first-time attendees.
Submission fee: none
Huntington Arts Council Community Impact Micro Grant
Deadline: November 8
The $1,000 bi-monthly Community Impact Micro Grant funds artists and non-profit organizations providing arts and cultural programming in Nassau and Suffolk counties.
Submission fee: none
Brooklyn Arts Council Arts Fund and Local Arts Support Grants
Deadline: November 8
Brooklyn-based nonprofit organizations or NYC-based artists working in partnership with Brooklyn-based nonprofit organizations are invited to apply for grants ranging from $2,000 to $5,000.
Submission fee: none
Bronx Council on the Arts Grants
Deadline: November 8
Bronx Council on the Arts currently offers three opportunities:
New Work supports individual Bronx-based artists through a commissioning grant in the amount of $3,000 for the creation of a new work in a community setting. Projects must engage a segment of the community through a public program, such as an exhibition or performance that is open to the public, and/or the inclusion of community involvement in the development and creative process of the artist’s project.
Arts Fund develops Bronx artists and small arts organizations through its support of high-quality arts projects that engage Bronx audiences in a diverse array of artistic works in all disciplines, genres, and styles. Bronx-based individual artists, artist collectives and 501c3 arts organizations with an organizational budget below $100,000 may apply for grants of up to $5,000 that contribute to the cultural life of the borough. Individual Bronx residents and artist collectives do not need a fiscal sponsor; they may apply directly to this program.
Community Arts supports local arts projects and activities that enable Bronx communities to experience and engage with the performing, literary, media, and visual arts. All projects must be community-based and open to the general public. Local nonprofit organizations may apply directly to this program; individual artists or collectives must apply either through a Bronx-based fiscal sponsor or in partnership with a community-based nonprofit organization based in the Bronx. Grants range from $1,000 t0 $5,000.
Submission fee: none
Department of Transformation Residency for Southwest Minnesota Artists
Deadline: November 10
Department of Public Transformation (DoPT) and The YES! House announce a call for the self-directed 2025 River Valley Ripple (RVR) Artist Residency, a program focused on uplifting and supporting emerging and established Southwest Minnesota rural artists. Each participating artist will spend two weeks at The YES! House in Granite Falls, MN, where they will be provided with a living space, studio space, a welcome-to-town meal at a local establishment, and more. In addition, each participating artist will receive a $1,000 stipend to support their cost of living during their two-week residency and up to $250 for supplies and materials.
Submission fee: none
Wherewithal Grants for Artists in Washington, D.C.
Deadline: November 12
These $7,500 grants support ongoing or new projects that embrace unconventional or DIY values and will be presented publicly in the D.C. area during the grant period (January to December 2025). Project & Presentation grants are intended to directly support artists presenting work in spaces beyond commercial galleries, museums, or established non-profit art spaces.
Submission fee: none
Wassaic Project Summer 2025 Residency
Deadline: November 12
Summer residents work out of 200–300 square foot studios in the Luther Barn: a historic livestock barn (built in 1875) in the heart of Wassaic, NY. They have 24-hour access to their studios, our print shop, our wood shop, and our ceramics studio. All residents live just a short walk away in one of our three residency houses, the Schoolhouse, the Lodge, and the HVA, where accommodations include a private bedroom, shared living room, dining room, kitchen, and bathrooms.
The Summer Residency is offered on a sliding fee scale, from $0–900. Grants and donations subsidize the majority of costs, but Wassaic recommends a contribution of $900 per month per person from artists who are able to contribute. The organization also offers 10+ fellowships per year, which include a no-fee residency plus an honorarium.
Submission fee: $25
Skowhegan 2025 Programs
Deadline: November 15
Skowhegan runs for 9 weeks from mid-June to mid-August. Exact residency dates to be announced.
Submission fee: $50 from October 17 to November 12, and $80 from November 13 to 15.
Artist-run
PADA International 2025 Residencies Open Call
Deadline: November 15
PADA's International Residency Program welcomes artists from different disciplines to stay for 1 or 2 months in Barreiro, Portugal, a suburb of Lisbon. PADA prioritizes artists who research and propose projects suitable to the residency and the surrounding environment. The cost of the residency, which includes studio space, accommodations, a wood shop, a small dark room, and an exhibition in PADA Gallery, is €1,550 per month.
Submission fee: none
Craft Futures Fund - WNC Emergency Relief Mini Grants
Rolling applications through November 17
Craft Futures Fund - WNC Emergency Relief takes the form of one-time, unrestricted $500 grants to a broad range of craft-based artists, makers, creative manufacturers, and culture bearers in Western North Carolina who have been impacted by Hurricane Helene. Grants are reviewed and distributed weekly.
Submission fee: none
See all opportunities
Paid subscribers can access a full list of all current opportunities anytime—updated at least a couple of times each week.
Whether you’re a free or paid subscriber, you can also browse through listings in earlier digests in the archive.
If you are part of an organization or art business that offers opportunities or services you think artists should know about, consider a featured listing or post. Email me at kate@young-space.com or just reply to this email for more info.
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