Zaratan

Benefits: Zaratan was a great experience for me that continues to live in my imagination several years later. Lisbon offers many lenses through which to look at and think about the world: cultural crossroads, post colonialism, post fascism, tourism, landscape (rivers, mountains, tides, oceans), infrastructures of the past & present, the new & shiny vs the old & crumbling, foodways, etc etc. The community of artists who run and support Zaratan are international in their backgrounds and perspectives, and they enhance this sense of a greatly widened perspective. Their suggestions during our weekly meetings and casual chats about both my work and things of interest in Lisbon were useful and insightful. Living closely with another artist and his partner was also eye opening and wonderful, and I really enjoyed our many evening exchanges. Challenges: Zaratan is run on a shoe string budget. The lodgings and workspaces are not luxurious, but they were clean and well maintained when I was there. There are not a lot of extras (equipment, space, etc.). If your work requires specialized tools or materials, come with a plan to sort those out on your own. Practical Advice: Push to have your “open studio” work presented in one of the downstairs spaces, either the hallway next to the gallery or the black box/performance space in back, or the courtyard. I ended up with a video installation in the performance space, something I had not done before and learned a lot from. I benefited from arriving with an open mind about what I might make and not too much stuff (art related or otherwise). This helped me think differently and make new work. If you are a light sleeper, earplugs and a white noise app will be useful. The streets outside are quite busy. Costs vs Gains: it was not cheap, but not out of line with the costs of other residencies. Living expenses were affordable once I got there. I grew my practice and way of thinking about my practice by leaps and bounds.