Free Illustration Residencies
23 residencies
Fully funded illustration residencies that cover both housing and a stipend. These programs remove financial barriers entirely, letting you focus on your art.
Free is the filter — fit is the question. Ask in your own words — drawn from 2,300+ residencies and live open calls, grounded in real reviews.

Art on the Block NYC
New York, United States
Art on the Block NYC offers a vibrant short-term residency program, transforming a New York City storefront into a dynamic space where art and community engagement intersect. This residency provides artists the opportunity to turn the space into both a working studio and a public gallery. Throughout their five-week stay, artists are expected to be on-site five days a week, facilitating various interactive programs for youth, families, and adults. The residency aims to support and advocate for artists while fostering community collaboration and hands-on engagement with art. Artists receive a stipend of $6000 for their participation, and have the opportunity to sell their artwork under a separate sales contract. This residency is only open to NYC artists and housing is not provided.

Dar Meso
Tunis, Tunisia
Dar Meso is an artist residency located in the heart of the Medina of Tunis, Tunisia, offering a unique environment that fosters creativity and cultural exchange. The residency is on an ongoing open call and hosts a variety of programs, including Writing Residencies and Babbasawt Sound Lab, which cater to different artistic disciplines such as writing, music, and sound art. The residency provides private workspaces, communal areas, and access to specialized workshops like ceramics and sound labs. Dar Meso emphasizes collaboration, intercultural exchange, and the development of innovative artistic projects. The residency helps artists get fundings but is generally working with artists contributions. Dar Meso supports artists by offering a tranquil space to focus on their work while encouraging cultural interaction within a vibrant, historic setting.

Helene Wurlitzer Foundation (HWF)
Taos, United States
The Helene Wurlitzer Foundation (HWF) is a private, non-profit organization that has been supporting the arts since 1954. Located on a fifteen-acre campus in Taos, New Mexico, HWF offers one of the oldest artist residency programs in the USA. The Foundation provides three months of rent-free and utility-paid housing to visual artists, literary artists, and music composers from around the world. The campus consists of eleven fully furnished casitas, each tailored to the specific needs of different types of artists. The Foundation’s mission is to support the artist and the creative process, offering a peaceful setting for artists to pursue their work without imposed expectations or quotas. Applications are reviewed by a committee of professionals in various artistic disciplines, ensuring a diverse and enriching residency experience.

Artémed
Paris, France
Artist residency in Paris for Mediterranean artists (except French nationals) working in painting, drawing, illustration, photography, and installation.

Casa Taller El Boga Mompox
Mompox, Colombia
Cultural foundation and artist residency in a restored colonial house, offering accommodation, community exchange, workshops, and access to shared creative spaces.

Culture Moves Europe Residency
O Savinao, Spain
Culture Moves Europe residency support in Spain for legal entities hosting artists and cultural professionals; projects can include accommodation, workspaces, mentoring, and cross-border collaboration.
Culture Moves Salone Mobility Fund Grants for Sierra Leonean Artists
Brussels, Belgium
Organizer Information Kɔlchɔ de muv Salone / Culture Moves Salone is an EU-funded programme dedicated to supporting the development of Sierra Leone’s cultural and creative sectors. The initiative strengthens professional skills, networks, and market access for local artists, cultural organisations, and creative businesses through structured mobility and learning opportunities. The programme prioritises decentralisation beyond Freetown,

Galerie Stihl Waiblingen
Waiblingen, Germany
Municipal gallery specializing in works on or made of paper, including classical drawings, prints, comics, and design drawings. Hosts three temporary exhibitions annually with focus on drawing and paper art.

Institut français Cité Arts Residency
Paris, France
Organizer Information This programme is jointly run by the Institut français and the Cité internationale des arts. The Institut français supports French culture internationally, helping to promote the French language, the circulation of works and ideas, and the mobility of artists throughout the world, while working to promote cultural diversity and contribute to the hosting

Labó Bosa Art Residency
Bosa, Italy
Organizer Information Labó Bosa is a contemporary art gallery, artist residency, and printmaking studio based in a historic tannery on the river Temo in Bosa, Sardinia. The organisation is led by founder and director Marco Sebastianelli, and its programming combines exhibitions, workshops, and residencies that bring artists into close contact with the local community and

Les Ateliers du Plessix-Madeuc
Saint-Jacut-de-la-Mer, France
Les Ateliers du Plessix-Madeuc, based in Saint-Jacut-de-la-Mer, France, supports young visual artists, particularly painters and illustrators under 35, through three-month residency programs offering individual studios, accommodation, a stipend, and art equipment. Residents engage in research and production, participate in public events like open days, conferences, and workshops, and exhibit their work at the end, leaving one piece for the organization's collection for five years. The program, running since and in its current location since , fosters interactions between artists and diverse local publics in a coastal setting.

LIBITUM
Brussels, Belgium
A Belgian non-profit residency network supporting research, experimentation, and artistic creation across disciplines, including writing residencies in Brussels.
Martin Roth Initiative Temporary relocation for Artists and cultural actors at risk
Berlin, Germany
Organizer Information The Martin Roth-Initiative is a joint project of ifa – Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen and the Goethe-Institut, founded in response to the global shrinking of civic spaces. It was established in in response to the global decline in pre-political freedoms, named after Martin Roth, the museum director and cultural scientist who served as
Oak Spring Garden Foundation — Botanical Art Residency
Upperville, United States
Oak Spring Garden Foundation’s Botanical Artist in Residence programme gives established botanical artists three weeks in Upperville, Virginia, to make scientifically accurate work from direct observation of the foundation’s plants and landscapes. Residents are housed in appointed homes with a private bedroom and bathroom, sharing a living room and kitchen with one to three other artists, and have dedicated studio space nearby, with roughly three shared meals a week alongside other residents. Each artist receives a $1,000 grant, and the foundation offers a further $1,000 to acquire one finished work for its collection.

OASis Art Residency
Naples, Italy
During autumn , Fondazione Campania Welfare (FCW) is launching the first round of art residency as part of the OASis project. The residency will take place at Parco San Laise , a former NATO base in Naples being transformed into a public cultural hub, hosting dozens of NGOs working in music, theatre, cinema,

Pépinières Européennes de Création
Paris, France
Pépinières Européennes de Création is a European network supporting artistic residencies and creation programs for emerging artists across various disciplines, including multidisciplinary and visual arts projects. It partners with organizations to launch open calls for residencies in locations such as France, Poland, Italy, and Belgium, often providing grants like €10,000 plus accommodation. Recent calls include residencies focused on themes like the Art of Remembrance and illustration/graphic literature.
Platform Dalí
Barcelona, Spain
Organizer Information Platform Dalí is a new international art-and-science programme launched by the Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation, based in Barcelona and anchored in the city's scientific ecosystem, established through collaborations with five leading science centers: the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC), the Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO), the Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM-CSIC), the Institute for High

Power Institute Paris Art
Paris, France
Organizer Information The Power Institute is a long-established Australian research and cultural institution affiliated with the University of Sydney. For more than fifty years, it has supported artists, curators, and researchers through international residency and fellowship programs, with a strong focus on facilitating research-based artistic practice in global cultural centers. One of its most significant

Prairie Residency
Vicksburg, United States
Organizer Information Prairie is an artist‑centered residency program based in rural Advance, North Carolina (USA), designed to support creative development through focused, uninterrupted studio time close to nature. Set on one acre of land and housed within a historic 1870 country home surrounded by oak trees, Prairie fosters a slow, contemplative environment that encourages sustained

Residency Skagen AiR - (Denmark)
Skagen, Denmark
Organizer Information: Skagen’s Museum focuses on the Scandinavian artists’ colony, the Skagen painters, active since the late 19th century. Skagen AiR revitalizes the historical studios located in the museum's beautiful gardens, aiming to build new relations between resident artists and the cultural history, community, and people of Skagen. Title & Description: Applications are open for

Science Museum of Minnesota Artist at Pine Needles
Marine on St. Croix, United States
Brief Description & Theme:The Artist at Pine Needles Residency is a program by the St. Croix Watershed Research Station that aims to enhance scientific understanding through art. It provides artists and writers with an opportunity to immerse themselves in nature, interact with research scientists, and explore the intersection of art and science. Since , over

Volland Residency
Alma, United States
A rural residency offering quiet time, living and studio space, and exchange for creatives across many disciplines in Kansas’s Flint Hills.

White Buffalo Land Trust's Artist in Residence
Lompoc, United States
Artists live and work at Jalama Canyon Ranch, creating place-based work that engages ecology, regenerative agriculture, and community through educational and participatory offerings.
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Frequently asked questions
Are there really free illustration residencies?
Yes. Fully funded residencies provide both accommodation and a stipend at no cost to the artist. These programs are typically supported by government arts funding, private foundations, or institutional endowments.
How do I find free illustration residencies?
Browse our curated list above, each with real reviews from artists who attended. You can also filter by country or check each program's website for current application details and deadlines.
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