Call to Artists: Apply for the Gardiner Museum Artist Residency
Submission Deadline: November 14, 2025, 5:00pm ET
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The Gardiner Museum welcomes and inspires audiences of diverse backgrounds, abilities, and experiences through the rich history and storytelling power of clay.
The Gardiner Museum Artist Residency will offer public working space and access to Museum resources to a single artist or collective for the development of their work. The aim of the Residency is to offer a unique opportunity to an established or mid-career artist to pursue a larger-scale project; cultivate new directions in the field of ceramic art; elevate awareness of and appreciation for contemporary Canadian ceramics; and support diverse participation in the field of contemporary ceramics.
The Residency will provide the successful applicant with a paid opportunity that will last 8 – 12 weeks, between March 16 and June 14, 2026, during which time the Resident will have primary access to the Gardiner Museum’s new fully equipped Makerspace.
The Resident will be trained by Gardiner staff in object handling procedures and be granted access with supervision to the permanent collection.
The Residency will include a public-facing role, with Museum patrons able to visit the studio during designated hours. The Resident will also offer a public program at the Museum, either a talk on their project; a workshop; or a public engagement activity.
The Gardiner Museum Artist Residency is made possible through the generous support of Dr. Pamela Goodwin.
Rendering of the new Makerspace, opening November 2025. Photo: Gardiner Museum
Project Requirements
The outcome of the Artist Residency will be to complete a specific project that is considered a new body of work. Proposed projects should be ones that the applicant would find difficult or be unable to complete without the Residency, due to time, space, equipment, or other reasons. Projects will ideally include a research component that builds off the Gardiner Museum collections, archives, library, or other materials.
Eligibility
The Artist Residency is designed for established and mid-career artists with a demonstrated commitment to ceramics. That is, someone who can benefit from the opportunity of dedicated work time and space, as well as the further resources of the Museum, but not someone who is at the initial stages of their work as an artist. Mid-career in this context would typically mean more than eight (8) years of professional experience as an artist but less than thirty (30). Artists should have a clear interest in ceramics, although it does not need to be their exclusive medium.
Artists will be citizens or Permanent Residents of Canada, with a record of having presented original artwork in Canada. Applications will be solicited nationally. The Gardiner encourages applications from all qualified candidates, including those from visible and invisible minority groups such as Black and Indigenous people, people of colour, and those with disabilities.
Gardiner Museum. Photo: Tom Arban
Compensation
The Artist Resident, be they a single artist or collective, will receive a $15,000 stipend toward accommodation, travel, as well as all cost of living, salary, and outside research costs for the time spent in Toronto at the Gardiner Museum.
In addition to a stipend, the Gardiner will provide $5,000 towards materials, equipment, and firing costs.
Selection Process
Applications will be assessed based on merit; a demonstrated commitment to the field of ceramics; benefit to the candidate; feasibility and originality of the project; and ability of the candidate/project to engage the full resources of the Museum. Proposals will be measured also on their potential to be realized within the budget and time allotments.
We hope that any applicant would bring a fresh perspective on ceramics and Gardiner’s collection, while enriching the diverse dialogue that helps the Gardiner build community with clay.
Submission Requirements
Please read and download the full application
Interested applicants are required to please submit the following:
1. CV (up to 5 pages)
2. Letter of Intent (1 page) providing a narrative description of your practice, commitment to ceramics, and current career status, emphasizing how the Artist Residency will nurture development in these areas.
3. Project Proposal (4 pages maximum) describing what the applicant intends to make, why, and how being at the Gardiner would support the realization of the project. Proposals can include sketches, diagrams, and images as part of the 4-page maximum. Images of completed works by the artist should be included in the portfolio rather than proposal. Ceramics should be the dominant material of the project, but does not need to be the sole material. Not all elements of the project need to be completed at the Gardiner. Only one proposal per artist or artist team will be considered. Proposals should include a budget and timeline.
4. Portfolio (15 images total) of completed artworks by the artist or collective. Recent rather than retrospective images are preferred. Detail images are welcome, but they will contribute to the total which should not exceed 15.
How to Submit
Submit materials as a single digital PDF, marked as “(Name)_Artist Residency Application”, to [email protected].
Please reference “Artist Residency Application” in the subject line.
Only packets received electronically will be reviewed. Incomplete submissions will be subject to disqualification. All submission materials will be retained by the Gardiner Museum.
Finalists can expect to be contacted by late November for an interview.
Submission Deadline: November 14, 2025 at 5:00pm ET
For additional information or questions, please contact:
[email protected]