The Grand Canyon Artist-in-Residence (AiR) program requires that participants present three programs while in residency at the canyon and one program in their home communities upon completion of their experience. There are many options and opportunities to fulfill this requirement.

When developing your outreach proposal for your application, please consult the Interpretative Themes page on our website. Many programs presented by visiting artists may fall under the “inspiration” theme, but you may find your own inspiration in the theme descriptions that will help you in your program development. You will be expected to present a minimum of three programs (35-45 minutes for hands-on day programs, up to 1 hour for evening programs or performances) of your own design to park visitors while you are in-residence.

In-park programs

Your program proposal(s) should address your intended audience, type of program it will be (hands-on, lecture, etc.), duration of the program, the venue needed, and other details. Please know that we would welcome a variety of offerings from each artist, however with the ever-changing park visitor audience, you are also welcome to present the same program 3 times. For example, a poet could present a reading, a poetry walk, and a school outreach workshop during their residency OR could present 3 readings. This is entirely up to each individual artist.

Outreach program opportunities might include, but are not limited to:

• lectures
• slide shows
• computer presentations (please consult with program coordinators if you are selected to participate in the program for complete information on available equipment)
• hands-on workshops - rim walks and/or talks in your genre reflecting how the canyon influences or inspires your work
• pleine air demonstrations
• performances, readings, recitals, video or film screenings

South Rim presentation venues include

  - The Shrine of the Ages (a somewhat formal inside space for slide shows, power point presentations, film and video screenings, performances, readings, etc. The Shrine is good for evening programs)

  - Grand Canyon School (K-12)

  - Miles of paved rim trails and other dirt trails into the canyon

  - Park Headquarters including a large indoor lobby and an outdoor patio

  - Porch of Verkamp’s Visitor Center

  - Grand Canyon Visitor Center

  - McKee outdoor amphitheater (seasonal and as weather permits)

  - Mather Point rock amphitheater, overlooking the Canyon

North Rim presentation venues include

     - North Rim Lodge auditorium (good for formal evening program presentions and set-up for power-point programs)
  - Campfire Program at the campground amphitheater
  - Along the Rim: Various daytime 'special programs' including:  demonstrations, workshops, etc.

There is potential opportunity for artists to present a program, performance, reading or workshop in the Inner Canyon if you are a hiker and wish to take on an ambitious project! All inner Canyon programs take some time to set-up and will only be done in advance of your residency. Please note that all inner Canyon programs need to have a strong relevancy to the hikers and rafters who will be the audience due to the intense and amazing shared experience of being in the Canyon. If this is something that interests you and you are a selected artist, please discuss the various options with your rim's coordinator.

Home Community presentations

Upon completion of your residency, all artists are required to provide one outreach program in their home community in support of Grand Canyon’s AiR program. This could be a hands-on workshop, a lecture, reading, or performance. Presentations should focus on the personal enrichment that you experienced while in residence.

These programs will serve to spread the word about NPS AiR opportunities at Grand Canyon and other national park areas. The NPS can provide brochures and other park information in support of your program.

We expect that your experience here will inspire your home community outreach program, so you do not need to provide a fully-developed program in this application; a general idea will suffice. (e.g. “Present a slide lecture on my AiR experience at our local community art center.”)

AiR participants must provide documentation concerning your community presentation (e.g. newspaper articles, fliers) and a short evaluation of this experience within a year of completing your residency.

Be creative in your outreach program development, but please be brief! All your program details can be honed with assistance from René or Robin should you be selected as a participating artist.

Outreach program proposal check-list (5 copies of one-page proposal):

• General description of proposed in-park program(s)
• Preferred location and time of programs (e.g. “inside night program with power point lecture”)
• Mention of intended audience
• Home community outreach program outline