SPACE On Ryder Farm Announces 2020 CSArt Featured Artists

This week SPACE on Ryder Farm, the non profit residency program and organic farm, has announced eight 2020 CSArt Featured Artists; Lindsey Bailey (Lindsey Swop Art & Illustration), Rachel Bonds (Sundown, Yellow Moon), Amyra León (WITNESS, Concrete Kids), Kylie Manning (Every Woman Biennial at La Mama Gallery), David McDevitt (Iowa Writers' Workshop), Natalia Nakazawa (MASS MoCA Artists Residency), korde arrington tuttle (graveyard shift) and Andy Van Dinh (Semi-Permeable at Live at the Archway).

SPACE's second annual CSArt program commissions alumni of SPACE's artist residency programs to create a piece of home-grown art that will be distributed to the organization's 130 CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) member households. Due to COVID-19 and the financial losses to artists associated with it, in 2020, each commissioned CSArt Featured Artists receives a $1000 honorarium and has their work reproduced for SPACE's local CSA community. The CSArt Shares feature a wide range of artistic offerings including audio recordings, guided meditations, short stories, visual art prints and music samplers.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, SPACE is proud to announce that they have increased the grants awarded to CSArt Featured Artists by 85% with the intention of providing substantial financial relief. When reviewing Featured Artists, SPACE's selection committee prioritized applicants who demonstrated both artistic merit and a strong need for financial assistance.

"While SPACE has traditionally provided time and space to artists and innovators, the organization saw an opportunity this year to more directly support its community through commissions. Unsurprisingly, all applicants demonstrated a significant need for financial support due to COVID-19 related loss of income and benefits. And although SPACE is based in New York, we were encouraged to see applications come in from all across the country, from Mississippi to Iowa to Texas. We were blown away by the thoughtful, powerful work that the SPACE community proposed, and the decisions were very difficult." says Co-Founder and Executive Director Emily Simoness.

The centerpiece of SPACE on Ryder Farm's agricultural offerings, the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture + Art), is a reciprocal relationship between farmers and their community. The CSA member purchases a share of the farmer's harvest at the beginning of the season, providing up-front revenue when it is needed most. In return, the CSA member receives a weekly share of certified-organic produce harvested at peak freshness throughout the season. One of the unique elements of SPACE's CSA is that members receive locally grown-art created by alumni of SPACE's artist residency in addition to their fresh produce. In 2020, members will receive three art deliveries over the course of the 18 week season. Similar to the seasonal harvest in each week's CSA share, each CSArt installment will include several pieces of art so the pieces may speak to each other.

Additionally, each year SPACE commissions an artist to design a reusable tote bag made from recycled plastic which is distributed to each CSA member at the beginning of the season. This year SPACE commissioned artist Kylie Manning to create the 2020 CSA Tote bag print. Kylie's print is from her '7pm' series and features a dynamic sketch of two figures cheering on a city rooftop.

Kylie says, "The 7pm Series is a collection of sketches I was creating during quarantine as people began applauding essential workers. The series attempted to embody the unity and gratitude one could feel in New York City during that time. As the applause faded, my goal was to create something archival, as the workers are always essential. The original drawings have been donated directly to hospitals around New York, as well as to fundraise for the mnfreedomfund."

In addition to the eight selected artists, SPACE is proud to name the following artists as Honorable Mentions, so that their art may be amplified as well; France-Luce Benson, Crystal Boyd, Dominic D'Andrea, Kate Douglas, Christopher Vu Gandin Le, Janelle Lawrence and Shakina Nayfack.

For more details about the 2020 CSArt Featured Artists and Honorable Mentions, please visit https://www.spaceonryderfarm.org/csartists.