Yaddo Application Guidelines

Please note: Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Yaddo is temporarily closed. We have suspended our application cycles through January 2021. The next application deadline will be August 1, 2021. The portal for that cycle opens June 1, 2021.

Application Deadlines 

The January 5 deadline is for residencies starting May of the same year, through February of the following year. Our application portal opens November 1. Notification of results is sent via email by March 15.

The August 1 deadline is for residencies starting November of the same year through May of the following year. Our application portal opens June 1. Notification of results is sent via email by October 1.

Late applications will not be accepted. All applications must be submitted electronically – no paper applications are accepted. Artists working in all genres should go to yaddo.slideroom.com for specific instructions on completing an application for residency. Please read all information on the Yaddo website before beginning your SlideRoom application, including Frequently Asked Questions.

Eligibility

Artists in all disciplines who are enrolled in graduate or undergraduate programs, or are engaged in completing work toward an academic degree at the time of application, are not eligible to apply to Yaddo.

Artists may apply once every other calendar year. For example, if you applied in 2019 (January or August deadline), you will be eligible to apply again in either January or August of 2021.

Reapplication

All artists seeking residency at Yaddo must submit a complete application, including recent work samples. The criterion for repeat visit requests is the same as for first visits – the quality of the artist’s work. However, preference is normally given to persons who have not recently visited Yaddo.

Fees

Yaddo’s nonrefundable application fee is $30, to which is added a fee for media uploads ranging from $5 to $10, depending on the discipline. Application fees must be paid by credit card.

Length of Stay 

Residencies vary in length – the average stay is five weeks. The minimum stay is two weeks; the maximum is eight weeks.

Financial Aid

Funds exist to provide limited financial aid to artists, based on need. Only individuals who have already been invited for visits may apply for financial assistance. Specific instructions and an application form are included with each letter of invitation.

Admissions Panels

Applications are considered by five independent admissions committees in the artistic disciplines represented at Yaddo: Literature, Visual Art, Music Composition, Performance, and Film & Video. Membership in these committees rotates frequently and the members are artists whose work is recognized and esteemed by their peers. Collaborative applications are considered by appropriate cross-disciplinary panelists.

Artistic Disciplines

Five admissions panels consider applications to Yaddo in the following disciplines:

1. Literature, including fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, translation, librettos, and graphic novels.
2. Visual Art, including painting, drawing, sculpture, printmaking, photography, mixed media, and installation art
3. Music Composition, including instrumental forms, vocal forms, electronic music, music for film, and sound art
4. Performance, including choreography, performance art, multi-media and/or collaborative works incorporating live performance
5. Film & Video, including narrative, documentary and experimental films, animation, and screenplays

Applicants should apply to the Admissions Panel that best represents the project they wish to undertake should they be invited for a residency. Applicants may apply to only one admissions panel, and in one genre, at a time. Artists working in new disciplines or on projects that do not fit easily into the above disciplinary categories are encouraged to contact the Program Manager about which category is most appropriate for their project.

Collaborations

Small groups (2 to 3 individuals) of artists wishing to work collaboratively are encouraged to apply. Each member of the group will need to submit an individual application under “Collaborative Teams.” Work samples should give a clear and precise representation of the nature of the collaboration, preferably via previous work the applicants have undertaken together as a collaborative team. Support personnel or interpretative artists, such as computer programmers, instrumentalists, set and lighting designers, and dancers, cannot be included in a residency as part of a collaborative team.

Artists who do not have a collaborative history but who wish to be in residence at the same time should apply to the admissions panel most closely connected to their individual artistic discipline, rather than Collaborative Teams. Concurrent dates of residence may be requested.

Specific questions should be directed to the Program Manager before submitting an application.

References

Artists are required to have one current reference on file for each application. In selecting a reference request, please choose among individuals who have known you for at least five years and can speak knowledgeably about your work. Jurors evaluating your application give more consideration to references from peers in your field. Your reference must be completed no later than 14 days after the application deadline. Yaddo does not accept letters of reference on paper or from Interfolio or other reference services. All references must come through SlideRoom.

Sending a Reference Request
Provide an accurate e-mail address for your reference provider within your SlideRoom application. Reference requests must be made before submitting your application. There is space to request up to two references – only one is required. Once you have sent the request, SlideRoom sends an e-mail message directly to your reference provider with a link to your application. Alert your reference provider to look for an e-mail from SlideRoom, not Yaddo. They should check junk or spam folders if the email does not appear in their inbox. Please follow this detailed support guide if your reference provider is not receiving SlideRoom’s email requests.

Previously Submitted References
References are considered current for a five-year cycle, starting from the application deadline for which the references were initially submitted. Please confirm with the Yaddo admissions staff by sending an email to admissions@yaddo.org before you submit your application to ensure that your reference is current.

Artists who have been in residence at Yaddo within the past five years (including the year of residency) need not submit new references.

International Artists

Yaddo has a strong tradition of internationalism, and welcomes artists working in all disciplines from around the world. Writers who work in languages other than English should supply samples of work in translation as well as in the original. A working knowledge of English is helpful for international artists. Yaddo does not provide an interpreter for artists who speak little or no English.

Continue to Application Instructions