Artists for this year's Grand Canyon Artist-in-Residence program announced

Free events offered on both North and South rims

GRAND CANYON, Ariz. - Grand Canyon National Park's Artist-in-Residence program is pleased to announce its South Rim Artist-in-Residence (SR AiR) selections for the 2012 season, and the North Rim Artist-in-Residence (NR AiR) selections for the May-October 2012 season.

Grand Canyon's artist-in-residence program welcomes not only artists who work in the long-honored traditions of representational landscape photography and painting, but also encourages the involvement of artists working in new or experimental mediums, and whose art is in direct advocacy of the Park's environmental, cultural and historical values.

While in-residence, the South Rim artists have the opportunity to live in the historic upstairs apartment of the Verkamp's Visitor Center, perched on the rim. The North Rim artist space is in an historic and rustic two-room cabin in the cool shade of the ponderosa pines.

A panel of professional artists and administrators along with National Park Service representatives selected this year's artists from a pool of 98 applicants on the South Rim, and 70 applicants on the North Rim.

The SR AiR program is honored to be hosting the following artists for the 2012 season -

• Feb. 1-29 - Jeweler Georgia Orme - Bath, England.

• March marks the inaugural year of a Master Artist residency, inviting well-established artists to spend one to two weeks at the South Rim working on their art, gaining inspiration from the Canyon and presenting one public program. Pete Fromm, award-winning Montana outdoor/fiction writer, will be in-residence March 14-18, and will read from his work in an evening program at 7 p.m. on March 17 at Shrine of the Ages.

• Shonto Begay, renowned contemporary Native American painter, will be in-residence March 19-31, with an evening artist talk at 7 p.m. on March 24 at Shrine of the Ages. This will be the keynote presentation for the annual Archeology Day celebration, and will focus on Begay's work in-context with his strong ties to Navajo tradition, art and culture.

• April 8-30 - New media, digital photography and designer Jing Zhou - Ocean, N.J.

• May 1-31 - Paper and ice sculptor/photographer Deborah Bird - Leicester, England.

• June 1-21 - Composer James Romig - Macomb, Ill.

• June 22-July 15 - Painter Melinda S. Esparza - Tucson, Ariz.

• July 16-Aug. 7 - Sound/music artist Eric Deluca - Charlottesville, Va.

8 Aug. 8-31 - Composer Linda J. Chase - Arlington, Mass.

• Sept. 1-30 - Fabric artist Bobbie Sullivan - Scituate, Mass.

The NR AiR program is honored to be hosting the following artists for the

May-October 2012 season -

• May 21-June 11 - Painter Elizabeth Black and photographer Chris Brown - Boulder, Colo.

• June 12-July 2 - Painter Dennis Farris - Fort Worth, Texas.

• July 16-Aug. 6 - Silk painter Nancy McKay - Ann Arbor, Mich.

• Aug. 13-Sept. 3 - Encaustic painter Rodney Thompson - Redding, Calif.

• Sept. 4-24 - Textile artist Bobbie Sullivan - Scituate, Mass.

While in-residence, each artist will present a minimum of three public outreach programs, presentations or performances that are free, family-friendly and open to the public. For information on these programs, please check at a visitor center information desk or contact the AiR coordinators - Rene Westbrook@nps.gov (SR AiR program coordinator), (928) 638-7324 or Robin Tellis@nps.gov (NR AiR program coordinator), (928) 638-7739.

Grand Canyon's NR AiR program began in 2003 and invites up to six artists each May-October. The SR AiR program began as a winter-seasonal program in 2006 and has been hosting artists year-round since 2009, inviting 12 artists (or collaborative groups) per year.

Both programs will be accepting new artist proposals between Feb. 1 and April 1. For complete application process details, information on this year's selected artists (including biographies, work samples and links to their websites), or more on Grand Canyon's AiR program, visit the park's website at http://www.nps.gov/grca/supportyourpark/air.htm.