Studio Facilities

• Technical assistance isn’t provided, this residency is not a skills development workshop but instead an opportunity for technically competent artists to engage in experimentation.
• Access for the artist is available 24/7 however guests must be approved prior to visits.
• Full high-speed Wi-Fi capable of video calls, streaming and downloading
• Tables provided
• Additional equipment may be provided with prior conversation.
• Parking available
• Artists are likely to be working alone however the house is unlikely to everbe empty. The is possibility that the studio space will be shared depending on number of resident artists however that is confirmed prior to artists committing to a stay at Colstoun.

Costs

• Accommodation at Colstoun is heavily subsidised from £150 per night down to £250 per week. This covers food (Monday-Saturday) and board 7 days a week or the length of stay, contribution to internet, water, electricity (which accounts for a possible subsidy of £6,400 for accommodation)
• Additional materials can be purchased through the venue prior to starting your residency program.
• As part of the residency program a work chosen by the artist should be donated to the Colstoun Residency Collection which will be going on public display free for the public once it has reached an adequate volume costs associated with this work should be factored into the artists budget. All works produced on residencies part funded by the RSA will be labelled and promoted as such.

Minimum Period

• We expect resident artist to be present at Colstoun for at least a month out of the two month window allocated to them
• Where possible we like artists to spend a minimum of a consecutive week at Colstoun to ensure a prolonged period of work and progress can be achieved frequently artists spend 7 (4 and 3) weeks with a one week break in the middle
• Artists from the RSA residency program will need to work with the Colstoun residency team to ensure their desired window is free.

Maximum Period

• Artists can spend a maximum of 2 months at Colstoun
• Artists with permission of the residency team can return for an additional stay.

Other facilities

Until 2023 Colstoun House was open to the public as such there is:

• commercial level kitchens
• laundry
• bathrooms
• showers
• a library for clean work and entertainment
• a dining room
• office space
• a choice of bedrooms
• a gallery space for potential shows
• a walled garden
• 2000 acres of landscape to discover
• forests woodlands
• no computers are offered

The local town is Haddington which has car hire facilities, public library, hospital, shops

Support offered

• Colstoun becomes your home whilst you are in our residency program, as such your meals, except for weekends, are catered by ‘mum’ you become part of our family which can range from actual family (of 6) up to 16 in summer with volunteer workers coming from all around the world.
• We have created a community with other artists that have taken part in the residency program whom you can reach out to.
• Critical review can be provided by a number of sources including a number of external art advisors and gallerists with senior experience at Pace, Sprüth Magers, Timothy Taylor, Victoria Miro as well as director Jack Trodd from BWG gallery and Mackie who has worked with over 30 contemporary artists on projects as diverse as developing shows concepts, through to producing 45,000kg sculpture for exhibition in England in 2021.you get as little or as much guidance as you like during your stay from Mackie, Jack, through to our network of gallerists, buyers, advisors and collectors.
• We hold an annual dinner for resident artists where they bring a patron/curator/collector to the house and stay sometimes for the weekend, that they wish to cultivate a relationship with. We curate an exhibition and talk. It works as an opportunity to build your networks and those other artists taking part in the program. This is a private event and generally includes museum curators and gallery directors.
• Artists are welcome to have an open studio whilst staying at Colstoun or host their own dinners for potential patrons or curators (this must be arranged in advance)
• Staff available for advice/support/mentoring include gallerists based in London & New York as well as potential links with other artists in the Colstoun Collection.

Promotional support offered

• Promotion currently runs through BWG gallery and Social Media from both Colstoun and BWG.
• In 2024 as Colstoun starts to have its own solo shows, residency artists will benefit from additional promotional activities including mailouts, PR campaigns and advertising.
• Artists benefit by being shown directly to the network developed by the residency team at Galleries in the UK, USA and India.

Exhibition or other opportunities

• Annually there is a Colstoun Artist Residency Exhibition held at Colstoun House in The Coach House Gallery.
• We host between 1-2 private experiences for museum curators/collectors/patrons at Colstoun House
• Residency artists are also given a show in conjunction with BWG in their London Gallery space.
• Former residency artists have also gone on to be offered full solo shows with BWG (including Suhayla, Joe Grieve and James Dearlove.
• Artists from the residency programme have also gone on to feature in group exhibitions at other galleries predominantly in London through the nomination of the Colstoun Residency team.

Requirements

• We prefer to work with mid-career and established artists.
• Artists must produce work that is in response to landscape and nature.
• Artists must be contemporary, original and sufficiently unique to be considered distinctive.
• Self-starters are a must, the process of entering into an unknown environment and disconnecting from the outside world is incredibly challenging for artists, if you are a sociable worker then this residency might not be for you! Although there is lots of socialising available outside of the work day
• We require strong focused individuals that are able to work in isolation with limited direction.

Accommodation offered

• Colstoun is a 900 year old house in the heart of East Lothian

• Artists are given one of the main bedrooms in the house for them to call home

• Single occupancy bedrooms with 4 posters, king or single bed… you
  choose!

• Included: bedding, studio space, bathroom, access to office space

• Communal spaces include a library, numerous sitting rooms, a breakfast room and a library as well as full access to the grounds and other facilities. 

• Parking

• Family accommodation available but terms would have to be agreed with
  us prior to accepting a family

Alternative accommodation

Example accommodation in East Lothian.

Travel

• A car is required
• There is a bus stop 500m from the front gate of Colstoun however servicesare sporadic
• Haddington is a 45 minute walk
• There are opportunities for lifts but this is not assured.

Accessibility

• Colstoun is an historic building with limited access for people with mobility issues
• Studio is upstairs with no lift access

Insurance

• Artists are expected to have all of their own insurances
• Colstoun has their own insurances including public liability etc. however we request that all artists partaking in the residency programme provide their own insurance.

For further information pleae visit www.colstoun.co.uk

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