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Eutopia Artist Residency Application.
Home.
Bio.
CV.
Exhibitions + Residencies.
Structures Gallery.
Figures Gallery.
Eutopia Artist Residency Application.
Some supporting information to consider when reviewing my application
While at Can Silvestre, I worked on the project “Prometheus in the Dark,” following the myth of Prometheus from the stories told from your country in ancient times. Prometheus in this story was an ungendered human being in current history. They made the ascent from the mess of humanity’s unguided confusions about life to the peak of Mount Olympus, seeking a massive change in their life: one of belief in themself, where they found others could not.
The story led Prometheus to the gates, where they faced an unavoidable reluctance and an eventual acceptance of entry. The fire, which was not a fire but something unfathomable, spoke in many voices of differing emotions and differing severity. They were all something that could be felt but not described at the time. This fire enveloped their body and coupled with their soul.
Upon their exit and descent down the mountain at night is where the bulk of this story took place. A new way of existing had just been bestowed upon them, and they had to make sense of it. What is the fire? What was stopping me from entering? Who was it that was speaking to me? The description of the visions that were placed upon Prometheus’s mind and many more questions were to be answered on this long walk down the mountain.
This story during this residency resonated most with the soul.
Then comes my second residency at Byrdcliffe. This was a continuation of the story, but now with other people. During my time at Can Silvestre, there were two other people at the residency, the host and another artist, which made it a quiet, mostly solitary experience. Byrdcliffe was the opposite: there were nearly 25 other artists sharing the space together, which helped with the next leg of the journey, the mind. The origins of confidence come from how you were raised and the environment that you have around you. This can be observed by interacting with other people; by observing how people act in their daily lives, you can see how they feel about themselves. The easiest tell is how they speak about themselves. I spent the majority of the time with the other artists. We would work alongside each other, painting, doing photography, writing, or doing things unrelated to art, like helping each other with car troubles, going to the grocery store, or even taking trips to the local riverside to cool off from the summer heat. The connection formed through this was immensely helpful in understanding Prometheus’s next moves as they interact with other people outside of their cellphone.
This section was heavily focused on the mind.
The synthesis of the information from the gods and from humanity is where I would like to continue the story at Eutopia. Now has come the time for Prometheus to embody the things they have learned, not within a silent, unspoken world, but a present, capable world where they can reach out and touch what it is that they want to be.
This story has not been fully written, and that is what I would like to do at Eutopia. I feel that coincidentally writing it in Greece, with the real Mount Olympus being only a bus or train ride away, is a funny little bit of fate, urging me to embody myself and see if I can reach that.
If you are able to provide for that, I would be absolutely eager to participate.
Thank you so much,
Shane Armstrong
Shanearmstrongphotography@gmail.com
Shazeart.com