Welcome to Fergus Falls! Are you an artist, creative, culture bearer, community leader, or traveler who wants to experience our local arts community? Through the Falls Community Arts Exchange, we invite you to Fergus Falls, Minnesota to engage in the community’s wide range of creative learning opportunities and experiences.
Stewarded by Springboard for the Arts, the Falls Community Arts Exchange is a collaboration of Fergus Falls-based arts and culture organizations interested in fostering artist-led community development and geographic exchange.
There are two tracks of the Falls Community Arts Exchange:
1. Artist Track: Create, learn, and collaborate
This career development track is for individual artists interested in deep exchange with rural creative ecosystems, and who are interested in completing a collaborative project that supports local community goals through creative engagement. Visiting artists receive a $4,500 stipend and spend 4 weeks living in Fergus Falls, where they receive support and coaching from Springboard staff, connect with local artists, and work on a modest collaborative project with a local organization. Applications are currently being accepted until March 21, 2024 for stays between July and December 2024. Learn more and apply.
2. Individual Track: Experience, connect, and learn (coming soon)
This self-designed exchange is for individuals of all backgrounds who are interested in learning from and experiencing the arts community in Fergus Falls. This is a non-competitive, sliding-scale program where visitors select their own dates and choose from a menu of creative experiences to participate in during their stay in Fergus Falls. Stay tuned for more information in summer 2024 for visits beginning in Fall 2024.
About Fergus Falls
Get answers to questions around the application, eligibility, Fergus Falls, community partners, and more.
Fergus Falls is a “micropolitan” town with a population of 14,000 in West Central Minnesota, located three hours north of the Twin Cities, and one hour south of Fargo, North Dakota. Fergus Falls is the county seat of Otter Tail County, which is home to two state parks, Glendalough and Maplewood, and more than 1,000 lakes.
As a regional hub for the arts, Fergus Falls is home to several arts and culture organizations, including A Center for the Arts, the Kaddatz Galleries, the Creation Shop, Lake Region Arts Council, Fergus Falls School of Dance, Minnesota State Community & Technical College, Otter Cove Children’s Museum, Lakes Area Precious Plastics Lab, Otter Tail County Historical Society, and Springboard for the Arts.
The community is also home to several beautiful parks and bike trails, including Prairie Wetlands Learning Center, and the Central Lakes bike trail. With a thriving artisan business climate that includes two breweries, a local bakery, chocolatier, coffee roasting, and more, Fergus Falls offers a unique blend of small town charm and forward-thinking creativity.
Like many rural communities in Minnesota where the dominant culture is white, conservative and Christian, Fergus Falls is increasing in diversity every year. Many of its residents are active in promoting equity and challenging the status quo. Since 2018, Fergus Falls has been home to “Ms Lexi D’s Catwalk Parties,” a series of popular drag shows. The local library hosts a social justice book club, there is an active Citizens Climate Lobby group, a Sexual and Gender Alliance Youth Group (SAGA Youth), and more. Those looking for perspective on social justice and equity in rural places will gain important perspective by spending time in Fergus Falls to learn about local efforts, successes, and barriers.
Watch the Info Session
About the Exchange
Selected artists are matched with a local arts and culture organization or business (host), and spend 4 consecutive weeks living in Fergus Falls. During that time they are immersed in community with and through their local host, and together collaborate on a local project they design together. Applications are due by 11:59pm, Thursday, March 21, 2024.
- 4-week lodging in a furnished, 1-bedroom apartment in downtown Fergus Falls
- Separate studio/Work space (After selection, we will work with artists to determine their studio/work space needs. Thanks to local partners, spaces are available for visual artists, ceramicists, dance and performing artists, and more)
- Artists are hosted by a local community organization or business, with whom they work collaboratively on a modest project
- Dedicated time in a rural community with collaborators to share learnings and develop work together
- Career and/or project coaching support from Springboard staff
- Storytelling and documentation support (photos, videos, etc of your project)
- Stipend of $4,500 ($3,500 for project and $1,000 for living expenses)
- Travel and/or Caregiver stipend of up to $2,000 to cover expenses associated with traveling to and from Fergus Falls and being away from caregiving responsibilities.
- Connecting community members across generations, race, culture, etc.
- Affirming and supporting LGBTQIA+ youth
- Supporting young children and their parents/caregivers’ mental health and wellbeing
- Exploring space use and design to create more welcoming and inclusive spaces
- Testing new markets and audiences for creative businesses
- Attracting and welcoming new residents to the region
- Artists, creatives, culture bearers and/or artist organizers of all disciplines and career levels who are passionate about using their creative practice for community engagement, specifically to address economic and social topics related to rural communities.
- Preference given to artists who have experience successfully implementing at least 1-2 projects (formal or informal) in a rural community, and who are passionate about the concept of starting small in order to lay groundwork for lasting change.
- February 2, 2024 Applications open (for July - December 2024 exchanges)
- February 16, 2024 Info session, 12 - 1pm CST
- March 21, 2024 Applications due
- Mid-April, 2024 Artists notified
- July - December, 2024 Exchanges take place over a 4-week period
We will open up a second round for this program in July for exchanges taking place January - June 2025. First round applicants who are not selected will have the option to include their application in both rounds without reapplying. We will award 4 exchanges for the first round and 4 exchanges for the second round.
- Only individuals may apply.
- Must be at least 21 years of age.
- Live in the United States.
- Live at least 40 miles away from Fergus Falls, MN.
- Not be a current Rural Regenerator Fellow with Springboard.
- Not be an employee or board member of Springboard for the Arts (independent contractors, including current Artist Career Consultants, are eligible to apply).
- Not be an immediate family member of Springboard staff or board members.
Our selection process is about identifying community-centered artists who are poised to use this opportunity to its fullest extent to nurture their own community-focused work, as well as benefit the Fergus Falls community through their engagement and participation in the residency. We are not making judgment on the value, quality, or quantity of applicants’ creative work as much as looking for potential artist/organization partnerships that stand to be mutually beneficial and impactful. Here is what we consider when selecting artists for this program:
- Artists should show a clear passion for using their creative practice for creative community engagement and problem solving, specifically to address economic and social topics related to rural communities.
- We strongly prefer artists with experience leading 1-2 rural-based community projects, and who can provide references speaking to those projects.
- Applicants should demonstrate a commitment to exchange with the community of Fergus Falls, both by being willing to share their knowledge and experiences, and being curious about local community knowledge and experiences.
- People who are Black, Indigenous, Native, People of Color, LGBTQIA+, people who live in rural communities, and/or People with disabilities will be prioritized in the selection process.
Our selection process consists of the following steps:
- Eligibility screening: Springboard staff will review applicants for eligibility (see above for eligibility requirements). If eligibility is unclear, staff will follow up with the applicant to determine eligibility. If an application is eliminated due to ineligibility, the applicant will be notified at this stage.
- Community Review: A group of local community members and artists review the applications, and rank them according to the selection criteria listed above, then meet to determine a group of finalists (roughly 20-30% of the entire pool) to move on for further consideration.
- Finalist interviews: Finalists will be invited to a 30 minute interview with Community partners and Springboard staff via zoom or phone.
- Artist Selection: Community partners and Springboard staff make the final selection, taking special consideration into representation of different art mediums, Springboard’s priority groups, and geographic representation.
General Information:
- Contact info
- Accommodation/accessibility needs
- Date preferences
- Would you like us to automatically resubmit your application for January - June 2025? (Y/N)
Application Details:
- We welcome either a video or written responses to each application question. You can mix up your response types (write some answers, record a video for others). Please be clear at the beginning of the response which question(s) you are responding to.
- Written responses should be approximately 1 - 3 paragraphs (or ~250 - 500 total words) per question.
- Video submissions should be approximately 1-2 minutes per question, and can be informal (filmed on cell phone camera, zoom, etc). You MUST upload your video to YouTube or Vimeo. Be sure to make the videos Public, or Unlisted, on YouTube or Vimeo.
Application Questions:
- Tell us about yourself. Describe your background, your art practice, and other relevant experience
- Tell us about a time you led an arts and culture project in a rural place. What did you do, and where? Who was involved? What did you learn, and what was the overall impact?
- What excites you about this program? What do you hope to gain by spending time in Fergus Falls and collaborating with a local partner on a project?
- Is there anything else you would like us to know?
Community Interests:
- What type of audience are you most interested in working with in Fergus Falls? (drop down of options)
- What interests you about working with the communities you selected above?
- What types of rural issues are you most interested in exploring with partners in Fergus Falls? (drop down of options)
- What interests you about working with the issues you selected above?
Work Samples: please provide 2-3 work samples so we can get an idea of the work you do. These can be images, videos, websites, news articles, letters of recommendation, etc.
References: please provide 2 references, including 1 who can speak to a rural community project you were involved in.
Frequently Asked Questions
We will select 4 artists for this application period. While this is a new program, past applicant pools for similar programs have ranged from 80 to 150 applicants per round.
No, we do not accept applications on behalf of teams or collectives, only individuals.
The stipend will only be distributed to individuals.
Yes, it is taxable income. If you are selected, you will want to make sure to budget for paying taxes on it when you file each year, as well as save receipts related to your residency so that you can write them off (usually on your Schedule C form) when you file for taxes. Please note that Springboard staff cannot give direct tax or finance advice for specific situations. We recommend that you find a CPA in your community that can give you advice if you are awarded a residency.
Nope! This residency is structured around a collaboration that will occur between the artists and a local organization that they are paired with. This collaboration will not begin until an artist is accepted for the opportunity and introduced to their partner organization. We do encourage you to highlight past projects and partnerships in your application to give us an understanding of how you would potentially approach this opportunity.
Upon acceptance into the residency program, we will share the organization(s) that we feel is a good fit for your residency, based on your interests and experiences, as well as availability. We will then connect you to your host organization for an initial meet and greet and planning meeting so that you can begin scoping your residency plans.
Yes, we do allow partners, spouses and children, with prior approval. Please keep in mind that our exchange lodging is a modestly sized one-bedroom apartment (with a double bed and couch) when considering bringing visitors.
No. Aside from service animals, we are not able to accommodate animal friends in lodging space or studio spaces.
Springboard’s scope is to provide infrastructure, ecosystem and support to artists and communities across Minnesota, the Upper Midwest and the nation. Springboard is for everyone. We know that to be truly “for everyone” means we need to address the recurring inequities that exist in the arts, nonprofit sector and broader economic systems that have prevented “everyone” from equitable access and opportunities.
Across all our programs at Springboard for the Arts, our goal is to increase accessibility and to prioritize communities that are under-resourced. As a baseline all of Springboard’s programs prioritize: People who are BIPOC and Native, People who are LGBTQIA+, People in rural places, and People with disabilities because of the systemic extraction and marginalization these communities have experienced related to the specific resources Springboard offers.
We, of course, acknowledge that there are additional communities that experience discrimination, and we do our best to make decisions about where our resources will have the most impact, knowing that this is always imperfect. It is still possible to be selected as an artist in residence even if you’re not in one of the priority groups.
The Americans with Disabilities Act defines disabled as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a person who has a history or record of such an impairment, or a person who is perceived by others as having such an impairment.
While it’s hard to put an exact number on because of people’s work styles, we estimate that time commitment for collaborating with the community partner will be roughly 15-20 hours per week, and that those hours will be important to have available during the work day so you can interact with partners and the community.
The Falls Community Arts Exchange is supported by the Blandin Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.
more from springboard
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Rural ProgramsDiscover even more rural programming created and led by Springboard for the Arts
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Rural Regenerator FellowshipLearn more about another Springboard rural program, the Rural Regenerator Fellowship
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Stories on Creative ExchangeRead about current and past Rural Regenerator Fellows on Creative Exchange