2026 Stevie Wilson DIY Young Artists Residency Application

Young artists (ages 16-24) who have been directly impacted by criminalization, policing, or punishment, are invited to apply for the Stevie Wilson DIY Young Artists Residency. 14 artists will receive $2,500 grants to work on creative projects or ideas. Re-launching after its inaugural year in 2022, the residency is named after Stevie Wilson, a Black, queer, formerly incarcerated abolitionist writing, organizing, and building study groups and community in Pennsylvania. His work interrogates the meanings of identity, belonging, freedom, and community.

In 2022, 18 young artists from across the country were awarded residency grants. They painted, danced, sketched, wrote poems, took photographs, designed coloring books, worked with clay, fabric, film, and designed public sculptures and street art. Artists submitted their own project budgets and used the residency grants to cover expenses like monthly rent, groceries, transportation, cell phone bills, and art supplies. Read more about the artists and their projects in the 2022 report.

The year’s residency is a program of Interrupting Criminalization, a movement resource hub offering information, cross-movement networks, learning, and practice for organizers, practitioners, and advocates on the cutting edge of efforts to build a world free of criminalization, policing, punishment, and violence.

Creative projects can take place between July to December, 2026. Completed applications are due by May 11 at 11:59 pm EST.

Full Name*

First NameLast Name

Artist Name *

Enter the name you'd like shared in public announcements.

Pronouns

Please share your pronouns (examples: she/her, they/them, he/him)

Date of Birth*

Enter your date of birth

Email Address*

Enter your email address

Phone Number*

Please enter your phone number, including the area codeFormat: (000) 000-0000.

Where are you located?*

Street Address

Street Address Line 2

CityState

Who can we contact if we can’t reach you?*

YesNo

Tell us more about yourself and your art. *

What would you like us to know about your life and your identity? What inspires you? What type of art do you create? (minimum 200 words)0/0

Please share examples of your art.*

Include links to your creative work (such as public social media posts or shared documents with examples). Or, share a link to a short (1-2 minute) video about you. If you are not able to provide links, you can email diyresidency@proton.me.

What would you like to create during your DIY residency? *

Tell us more about your vision: what medium(s) or materials will you use? Will your project require travel for interviews or to engage cultural sites? Will you need library or archive resources? Be as specific as you can (minimum 200 words) .0/0

How will you use a grant of $2,500 to support your residency? *

What is your timeline for your DIY residency? *

Yes, I commit to submitting a report by 12/5/26.No, I cannot commit to submitting a report by 12/5/26.

How did you find out about this opportunity?*

Is there anything else you would like to share?

You can also email us at diyresidency@proton.me.