Spelman College | Summer Art Colony
May 16 to June 6, 2005

OVERVIEW | PROGRAMS | ACCOMMODATIONS | ABOUT PORTOBELO | APPLICATION | GALLERY

 

       
       
 
 

Spelman College Summer Art Colony


Overview
The Spelman College Summer Art Colony was founded in 1997 by Dr. Arturo Lindsay to provide students from colleges and universities in the United States an opportunity to live, work and study in an idyllic Caribbean setting. Lindsay is a Panamanian born artist and Professor of Art and Art History at Spelman College in Atlanta. The Art Colony is housed at Taller Portobelo, an artist cooperative, in the village of Portobelo on the Caribbean coast of the Republic of Panama. From its inception, the Art Colony has attracted students from various colleges and universities, emerging artists and students interested in ethnographic research, Spanish, Latin American Studies, and the African Diaspora, resulting in a very diverse and interesting group of residents. In 2003 Opal Moore, poet/fiction writer and Chairperson of the English Department at Spelman College, joined the faculty at the Art Colony and designed a creative writing program. Lindsay and Moore, the principal instructors of the Art Colony, are assisted by the Ahijada/o Fellows. Ahijada/o Fellows are young artists and arts professionals who function as Teaching and Administrative Assistants.

Objectives of the Art Colony
The primary objective of the Spelman College Summer Art Colony is to provide residents with an opportunity to spend three weeks in uninterrupted communion with their muse. Instruction in art and in creative writing is guided in daily workshops by each student’s needs and interests. Portobelo, located near the Equator, offers an idyllic Caribbean setting. Artists will not fail to appreciate the immense difference in the intensities of light and color here beside the bay. The emerald green waters and cerulean blue skies will call upon artists to reinvent their palette; the history and traditions of the place and the people of Portobelo, along with the architecture, flora and fauna of this rainforest region will offer a new vision and voice of America beyond the United States.

Fee
The fee for the three-week residency at the Spelman College Summer Art Colony is $2500 per person.

This fee includes:

  • Instruction in the visual arts & workshops in creative writing & poetry
  • Room & board at Taller Portobelo
  • Round trip airport service
  • Insurance
  • Water taxi to beaches near Portobelo
  • Guided nature walk in the rainforest
  • Tour of historic Portobelo
  • Tour of Panama City
  • Visit Mi Pueblito - a living museum featuring the cultures of Panama.
  • Visit the Panama Canal at the Miraflores locks ($8.00 admission fee extra)
  • Visit the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo - The Contemporary Art Museum and contemporary art galleries in Panama City
  • Visits with Latin American artists and writers in their studios
  • Interaction with professional artists and writers
  • Shopping in Panama City
  • Shopping in Colon's Free Zone
  • Swim and snorkel at the beaches near Portobelo
  • Participation in the Ferias de Portobelo 2005-The Portobelo Fair 2005

Not Included:

  • Airfare. Residents must secure their airline reservations separately. Airfare from Atlanta to Panama on Delta airlines is generally between $450 and $525.
  • Meals outside of Taller Portobelo.

Fellowships
There are a limited number of fellowships available to Spelman students. For more information, please call Ms. Marlene McDew, Administrative Assistant, Department of Art, Spelman College – 404.270.5455

Payment Schedule
A $250 non-refundable deposit is due with the Application form, Statement of Purpose, Applicant's Health Statement, Academic recommendations, Physician’s Medical Statement, and a photocopy of a valid US passport can follow later, but must be at Spelman no later than May 1st, 2005.

The balance can be paid in full once the student is accepted to the Art Colony or thorough a payment plan. The $250 deposit will be refunded to applicants who are not accepted or could not attend due to a medical emergency.

Students requiring a payment plan may follow the following schedule:
$250 non-refundable deposit due with the application.
$500 payment due by March 15th .
$500 payment due by April 1st
$500 payment due by April 15th
$750 balance payment is due by May 1st

Major credit cards are accepted.

Checks should be made payable to Spelman College and submitted to:
Spelman College
Department of Art
350 Spelman Lane, S.W.
Atlanta, Georgia 30314-4399
404.270.5455