The Kentucky Foundation for Women (KFW) is excited to announce the recipients of this inaugural partnership between Sisters of Loretto and KFW, the 2022 Loretto Residency Program. Residencies will span one to three weeks and take place in June, July, and August 2022 at the Loretto Motherhouse in Nerinx, Kentucky. Residents will be provided with housing, a food stipend, and the option of studio space, which includes the use of an art studio, tools, and equipment.
Each participant will lead a public outreach/educational activity with the local community upon completion of the residency. They may choose to give an artist talk, a reading, or an exhibition of their work in the Loretto gallery. Attendees will include the residents and community of the Loretto Motherhouse.
Residencies are for literary and visual artists who have demonstrated achievement in creating work high in artistic merit that is based on social justice issues/concerns. KFW partnered with the Sisters of Loretto, whose mission centers on working for justice and acting for peace.
The 2022 Loretto Residency program was open to feminist social change artists and writers who reside in Kentucky. Writers and visual artists with varied backgrounds, worldviews, cultural heritages, and sexual orientations were encouraged to apply. KFW is committed to making the residency program accessible to a wide range of women regardless of age, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, educational level, economic condition, or geographic origin.
Amy Richardson an Olive Hill writer is among the 2022 participants. She plans to work on the first draft of her novel in progress, tentatively titled Sweet Turned Earth that addresses issues of environmental justice, emphasizes the importance of our relationship to the land, and explores the often-unrecognized work of women throughout Appalachia spanning the generations.
“This joint endeavor strengthens our connection with an organization that shares our vision of a more just, peaceful world. It offers a unique opportunity for feminist artists who need time, space, and funds to create and work on their art, to advance their artistic development, and participate in building community. Residents will share ideas, exchange work, and make connections that yield an impact that will be felt long after the residency is over,” said Sharon LaRue, executive director of the Kentucky Foundation for Women.
“The Loretto Community is delighted to collaborate with the Kentucky Foundation for Women on a program that combines the arts and social justice, two aspects of our work that we have practiced for the last 200 years,” said SR. Cathy Smith, Sisters of Loretto.
The Kentucky Foundation for Women is a private foundation formed in 1985 by Louisville writer Sallie Bingham. Its mission is to promote positive social change by supporting varied feminist expression in the arts