June 2016 Sedona Summer Artist-in Resident 

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Artist In Resident Performance

Sedona Summer Colony for Artists and Cultural Managers 
a new American residency program established in 2016 by Sedona Arts Center and Verde Valley School 

I am honored to announce hot off the press that from June 19-July 6, I will be one of over 100 Artists chosen to congregate in Sedona from all across the Globe- in a cultural celebration of all art forms. I hope to collaborate with Artists and share my passion for the violin through performances, workshops, masterclasses and lectures, or just informally in an impromptu serenade under the stars and scenery of this wild landscape!
Thank you to Eric Holowacz, Executive Director of Sedona Arts Centre for my
Artist-in-Residence Invitation. 
Click below to see more details about this exciting new Residency in the stunning American Southwest- land of rugged landscapes and endless red sunsets, mesas, mountains, and majesty.....all in one of the
spiritual homelands of Indians and Pioneers
Sedona, Arizona Arts Festival Summer Artist-in-Residence 

 Dawn of the Sedona Summer Colony
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 Sedona Arts Center and Verde Valley School Partner to Establish a 
New American Residency Program for Artists and Cultural Managers

The Verde Valley School and Sedona Arts Center boards of directors are excited to announce the establishment of a new American residency program for artists and cultural managers. The inaugural Sedona Summer Colony will begin on June 19, when over 125 creative people begin arriving to will inhabit the campus and become part of our high elevation desert community.

"They are musicians, ceramic artists, choreographers, poets, film-makers, organization directors, and documentarians," said Eric Holowacz, Executive Director of Sedona Arts Center who co-founded the program with the Head of Verde Valley School, Paul Amadio. "Our summer guests come representing significant 21st century cultural production—from as far away as Hobart, Tasmania; Helsinki, Finland; Auckland, New Zealand; andManitoba, Canada. While here, Sedona will be their host and summertime home." 

The idea for Sedona Summer Colony was inspired by the original artist retreats, likeYaddo, MacDowell, Hambidge Center, Villa Montalvo in California, and the American Academy in Rome. Those organizations—emerging from the early 20th century—were built upon a strong belief in the power of interdisciplinary associations of artists. They built communities based on the regular gathering of cultural visionaries, the provision of creative resources, and the sharing of meals, excursions, spontaneous interaction, and daily life.

"Our goal is to do something similar in Sedona, and build a 21st century model for the most interesting creative people we can find—," said Amadio. 

While in residence this summer, visiting artists will be provided with opportunities to explore the unique red rock landscapes, connect with Southwest heritage, engage with our active creative community, and become immersed in Sedona's modern-day sense of place.

"At the very heart of the idea is a guest-host relationship providing time and space—and ready support for the creative process—here in our village-like desert environment," said Amadio. "Sedona Summer Colony residents will also have the simple opportunity to get away from their familiar home routines, and find quiet contemplation and solitude in one of the most beautiful places on Earth." 

When asked why build a major new residency program for artists and cultural managers in Sedona, Amadio and Holowacz answer in unison: Because artists and producers are active ingredients in 21st century American culture—they reveal who and what we are, in endlessly magical and challenging ways. What they do, in essence, is advance our humanity. And because Sedona deserves an entity and legacy like the MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire, Aspen Institute, Yaddo in Upstate New York, Hambidge Center in Georgia, and Chautauqua. Those legacies can be cultivated here

The seed for the Sedona Summer Colony was first planted in November 2015 with the first meeting between Holowacz and Amadio. Both had arrived in Sedona a few months before, taking over well-established, but staid organizations. Both came with a vision for change and community-building—and both had boards and trustees that were ready for big ideas.

Holowacz, with a background in festival production, arts facilities, and cultural engineering, proposed the idea of using the vacant summer campus to invite and house creative people from all over the world. Amadio, who also had experience with summer residency programs and an earlier career as a stage performer, saw a ready partnership that would enhance local identity and build new relationships.

"By playing generous host, we saw the opportunity to offer our Sedona Summer Colony residents a life-long relationship with our community and its unique environment," said Holowacz. "If we get it right, they'll go home with new discoveries, unimagined inspiration, and a deeper knowledge of the Verde Valley's undeniable sense of place. That is the underlying spiritual goal and the basis for this partnership."