Louisiana musician Ian Frazier came to the inaugural 2016 Sedona Summer Colony to work on his first album. Before he left, he presented a new body of music to fellow residents (and the Seven Warriors in the distance) at the VSS Warren Chapel.

SEDONA SUMMER COLONY is a partnership started in the summer of 2016, between Sedona Arts Center and Verde Valley School, two community organizations with long histories in Arizona’s Verde Valley. We’ve combined our cultural and educational missions to establish this new residency program in support of 21st Century culture.

Sedona Summer Colony proceeds from the guest-host model established by the American Academy in Rome, Yaddo, MacDowell Colony, Hambidge Center for Arts and Sciences, and hundreds of other residency programs for artists and scholars. Many of the member organizations in the Alliance of Artists Communities have provided encouragement, advice, and support.

The Colony’s primary objective is to support the inspiration and early creation of new artistic work and cultural content by providing undisturbed time, temporary living space, regular meals, and studio or workspace.

Another main objective, proceeding from the collective nature of a group residency, is to foster new connections and dialogue amongst participants and instill new opportunities for cross-disciplinary interaction and thinking.

A final objective of the program is to connect cultural producers from around the world with our Sedona community—and link them with the unique and diverse heritage, community, environment, and influences found only in the Verde Valley and Northern Arizona.

CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT
Our program serves an opportunity to develop new work, explore collaborations, and discover Sedona’s unique red rock landscapes, local cultures, and modern-day sense of place.

FIND INSPIRATION
We believe in the power of interdisciplinary associations of artists, and co-mingling of cultural visionaries over meals, excursions, spontaneous interactions, and daily life.

SENSE OF PLACE
Get away from your familiar routine and find quiet contemplation and solitude in one of the most beautiful places on Earth. Discover Sedona’s sense of place, heritage, and community.

More information on the Colony and how to apply at  sedonasummercolony.org 

Carol Holyoake
Director of Legacy Programs
Verde Valley School
T:  928-284-2272
E:  cholyoake@vvsaz.org

Vince Fazio
Executive Director
Sedona Arts Center
T:928-282-3809
E: vfazio@sedonaartscenter.org