Le Moulin à Nef

historique visite les peintres américains la fresque english  Firstlight 2007   2005 2006 2007 Artist in Residence Program The CECA was created in 2000 but its history begins in the early 1990's with a first experimental Artist in Residence program. During the summer of 1994, a group of American artists spent several weeks in Auvillar. Since then, every summer groups have continued this experience, assembled first by the Alliance Française, then by the Art Students League of Denver and most recently by the Pont Aven School of Art. The program remains the cornerstone of the CECA's activities. The success of this program now makes up a tradition which we can use to define a concept of artists' residency in more detail and to distinguish it from other kinds of programs (education, exchange…) we hope to host. APPLICATION In general, applications can be submitted any time. Participating artists (painters, sculptors, ceramists, photographers, musicians, writers, etc.) are selected and proposed by an organization outside the CECA (school of art, college, university…). However, occasionally a candidacy may be submitted directly to the Center. The length of stay is between two weeks and two months. Longer periods may be considered. For the summer period, artist are invited to respect the following deadlines: * For applications received before March 1st, with a deposit of $100 (check reimbursable), the CECA will help find a place to stay and secure reservation (See hosting). * For the use of the studio and other Moulin à Nef facilities, applications must be submitted before May 1st. STUDIOS AND FACILITIES In collaboration with local associations in France and official organizations such as the Municipality of Auvillar, the Tourist Office, etc., the CECA seeks to create for each artist conditions favorable to a pleasant and productive stay, taking full advantage of numerous sources of inspiration in and around the village. Artists working on site have found the surroundings richly picturesque. In order to encourage creativity and creation, the CECA offers the use of the facilities of the Moulin à Nef. These include: 3 large studios for painting and sculpture, 3 studios appropriate for small format work, a new ceramics studio, a center for documentation including a small library and access to computers, an evolving garden completed with a newly planted vineyard. Modest studio fees will help to cover costs. CULTURAL EXCHANGE Above all, the Moulin à Nef was established as a center of cultural exchange. For this reason, the CECA places great emphasis on the integration of the resident artists in the life of the village as much as possible, ideally sharing of work and expertise in some form. Some successful examples in past years include: * -preparation and execution of a mural assisted by local volunteers * -organization of a workshop in watercolor or sculpture * -a concert, slideshow or exhibition * -creation of a work to be donated to a local organization * -participation in the jury of the annual Auvillar painting competition * -a conference or lecture The residents of Auvillar have come to look forward to these events, and support them according to their interests. With your request for residence or studio space, please inform the CECA in writing of your chosen form of community outreach so that we may have adequate time to organize and advertise the event. HOUSING 1. The Hotel de L'Horloge is the only hotel in Auvillar. See description and terms on the town website. ( app.39Euros/day) 2. Château de Lastours is one mile away from the village.App. 50Euros/day; breakfast: 4Euros;lunch/dinner: 19Euros Address: Château de Lastours, 82400 Espalais Tel: 05 63 39 67 69 Site : http://www.lastours.net 3. "Gites": A number of lodgings are available in and near the village. They vary in size from a bedroom and bathroom in someone's home to independant units or houses with several rooms and kitchen facilities. An official list can be found on the Auvillar website. Prices vary. Other similar lodgings may exist that do not appear on this list. Check with the Tourist Office. (app.300Euros/week for 2-7 people) 4. Host families: Some Auvillar residents are willing to house one or two people. The degree of privacy is variable. There may or may not be a small charge. Generally the French people offer a continental breakfast. 5. The Maison Vielhescazes: This house belongs to the town of Auvillar. In a calm and pleasant setting, it is rustic, simple and adequately comfortable. There is a full kitchen and a common room where group meals, meetings and small exhibitions could be organized, as well as a garden in the back. The Moulin à Nef studios are next door and the people of Auvillar have come to consider the house as a place to meet with resident artists. Four bedrooms share a bathroom. Requests for reservations should be addressed to the CECA. The hosting situation evolves and changes every year. Ask the CECA for latest update on the matter. The Artist in Residence program is in evolution and experience will lead it to adapt as time goes on. Thank you for your understanding. An attempt to refine the definition of the Exchange Programs at the Moulin a Nef : Above all, the Cultural Exchange Center of Auvillar - the Moulin a Nef - should be just that, a center where exchange takes place. Its first calling was the promotion of encounters between people from different cultural backgrounds, American on the one hand, French on the other. In the ongoing effort to clarify certain guidelines and philosophies, it is important to continue to refine the definition of the programs as determined by the founders of the Moulin a Nef . At the same time, in designating the activities of the Center, we must not lose sight of the precarious situation of the present management and its role in the interim prior to the selection of a new owner for the Center. Since this is not a simple task, perhaps we should begin by looking back at past experience in the years since the programs began in 1994. The Exchange Programs between 1994 and 1999 As a complete list of programs during these early years already exists elsewhere (see the Chronological List of Auvill'Art Programs), we need only say here that the Artist in Residence program (PAER) was the basis of most of our activities at that time. Generally, it took place in the following manner: - a group of American artists (painters, sculptors) was constituted - the group spent 2 or 3 weeks in Auvillar in the summer - the artists worked on their own, preferably on site - they participated in one way or another in the cultural life of the village - after their return to the US, a show of their work was organized in Colorado - French artists visited them in the US - another group was organized for the following summer Programs more or less according to this model took place every year until 1999. Their strong point was always the encounters between French and American cultures which often gave rise to remarkable projects of cooperation between people eager to meet and to explore their differences and similarities in a common undertaking: mural painting, class in sculpture, painting or language, dinners etc. The fact that some artists chose to pursue long term exchange by buying homes in the village is one measure of the success of these experiences.. These early programs had four fundamental characteristics: - They were organized by an American school or association - The group of artists was relatively homogenous - The dates of the program were fixed and the same for all participants - The stay was linked to a particular cultural event in the village The Exchange Programs after 2000 The year 2000 was one of transition, marked by the purchase and construction of the Moulin a Nef. In addition, the structure and content of the Auvill'art programs began to change. The PAER, the cornerstone of the Moulin a Nef, continued with the participation of the Pont Aven School of Art. At the same time, new kinds of activities emerged through partners in various fields (music, sculpture, adult continuing education, cinema…) which we will refer to, for the time being, as Exchange Programs (PE) to distinguish them from the PAER. As a group, these more diverse exchange programs share the following characteristics: - the group of artists is not homogenous, coming to the program from various sources - several groups are invited to participate - the periods these groups spend in the village are spread out in time. Even the PAER dates are spread out through the summer - the calendar of cultural events in the village is not taken into account As with the earlier programs, the results of these programs have been satisfactory. The difference lies in the impact they have on the community. For example, the assistance of local volunteers is harder to come by and, in addition, it is more difficult to place the activities of the MAN in the already dense calendar of the village during the summer months. In any event, this brief look at the organization of past programs should help in the present attempt to clarify what we understand by Auvill'Art programs. AUVILL'ART PROGRAMS: pilot programs The PAER has been and will remain, for the time being, the cornerstone of the activities at the Moulin a Nef. All other programs are classified as PE (exchange programs), whatever form they may take. 1. PAER: An artist or group of artists, foreign and preferably American, request a residency, either on their own behalf or through a school or association. Their intention is to take advantage of their stay to gain a better understanding of French and/or Occitan culture and to make use of sources of inspiration available locally and regionally. (See note on PAER). 2. PE: In general, these programs are expected to center in some fashion on cultural exchange between non-French participants and one or more French partners. The difficulty lies in the sense given to the word exchange. Among the possible activities in this category are: - classes and workshops - conferences and lectures - performances: theater, cinema, music - participation in village associations - the valorization of local traditions and patrimony It would be unwise to try to box in the future owner/manager of the MAN with a framework of rules and procedures which might not correspond to his vocation. Nevertheless, it is the responsibility of the CECA and the AAA to define the guidelines a future owner could use in order to pursue the mission on which the Moulin a Nef was built. This includes indicating directions, encouraging reflexes and defining goals which all tend toward a specific target: the promotion of international cultural exchange. The ingredient of exchange should be the primary characteristic of qualifying programs and yet this ingredient will be the most difficult to define. For this reason, it is of no use to try to pinpoint a "typical" program. On the one hand, activities related to the valorization of the patrimony and the local traditions may not fulfill the cultural exchange requirements, e.g. grape harvest. Yet, this activity is firmly anchored in local history and rooted in traditions of the village and the region. On the other hand, performances (concerts, chorales, theater, etc.) are not, strictly speaking, appropriate for the MAN. They are acceptable, however, when combined with a sufficient dose of the magic ingredient, exchange. Once again, we must remind ourselves that any attempt at definition must take into account the instructions of the Donnell Kay Foundation (30 April 2001) which lists certain imperatives applying to pilot programs: "Any activity undertaken at the MAN: assignment of various buildings and spaces, construction of new elements, choice of partners, choice and organization of programs, organization of cultural manifestations, search for aid or support and whatever else may result from the above, are seen in the perspective of the selection of those who will own and direct the MAN in the future." The desire to get to know a potential future owner might constitute a criteria justifying the choice of an exchange program. In some cases, it will fall to the Bureau of the CECA and the AAA to make a decision.