Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Awards 2012-2013 'Workspace' Artist/Writer Residencies

Redefining what it means to "work" in Lower Manhattan, 26 emerging artists and writers have been awarded studio residencies in LMCC's Workspace program, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC) announced today. Each artist will be granted free studio space in minimally adapted, temporarily vacant office space donated by Goldman Sachs, Co in Lower Manhattan at One Liberty Plaza, and will have access to talks and seminars, public programs, access to a network of peers and new audiences, a financial stipend and other professional development opportunities.

The 2012-2013 Workspace participants include 18 visual artists and 8 writers working in a range of media and genres including sculpture, video, performance art, playwriting and poetry. The nine-month residency culminates in the early summer of 2013 with Workspace: Open Studio Weekend, an opportunity for the public to meet the artists- and writers-in-residence and see what they've been working on for the past nine months. See below for artist details.

"By giving space, time and opportunities, as well as introducing new audiences to some of the most exciting emerging artists in New York City, LMCC and its partners and supporters are fostering the next generation of New York City's cultural producers," said Sam Miller, President of LMCC. "The resources provided by programs like Workspace allow artists to improve their practice, discover new avenues for their own creative production and generate positive and sustained impacts in the daily lives of all New Yorkers."

LMCC is deeply committed to fostering the relationship between art, culture and quality of life, and has a 40-year history of nurturing the arts in order to develop and sustain Lower Manhattan. Through innovative partnerships with generous property owners as well as public and private supporters, LMCC addresses the critical need for studio, rehearsal, and performance space for artists in all disciplines and brings cultural activity to Lower Manhattan.

LMCC is able to realize its goal to activate temporarily vacant office spaces with free workspace studios for exceptional up-and-coming artists and cultural producers thanks to the visionary support of space donor Goldman Sachs, Co. working in tandem with public agencies National Endowment for the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts and New York City Department of Cultural Affairs as well as individual donors and private foundations such as the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and the Jerome Foundation to support the Workspace 2012-13 program. Together we ensure that Lower Manhattan continues to be recognized as a thriving center of cultural activity-both locally and globally-catalyzing a dynamic and creative ecosystem and making the neighborhood an exciting and unique place to work, live, learn and play.

The 2012-2013 Workspace residents are:

Visual Artists
Guy Ben-Ari
Alberto Borea
Liene Bosquê
Grayson Cox
Oasa DuVerney
Alejandro Guzman
Stuart Hawkins
David Kennedy-CutlerDavid Kennedy-Cutler
Alexandra Sasha Lerman
Dana Levy
Yijun (Pixy) Liao
Rachel Mason
Mina Minov
Leah Raintree
Carlos Reyes
Farideh Sakhaeifar
Claire Sherman
Luke Stettner

Writers
Mia Alvar
LaShea Delaney
Betsy Fagin
Benjamin Lasman
Daniel Machlin
Christine Malvasi
Pia Wilson
Jenny Zhang