January 19, 2024—The Miller Art Museum today announced that applications are open for its 2024 Dome House Al & Mickey Quinlan Artist Residency program. After three successful years of welcoming four visual artists from across the Midwest, the Museum, in partnership with the Quinlan/Wagner family, is thrilled to once again open the doors of the iconic Dome House to a new artist in 2024. The deadline to apply is Friday, April 5, 2024.
The Dome House Al & Mickey Quinlan Artist Residency was established in 2021 and has served four Midwest artists in its inaugural years. If selected for the 2024 program, one artist will be provided with an 8-week opportunity to reside at the Dome House, a twin-lobed (one side for a residence, the other for a studio) domed concrete structure built into sand dunes abutting Whitefish Dunes State Park and situated on the shores of Lake Michigan. The experience offers artists a unique respite from day-to-day life and the sights and sounds of nature provide a haven for the development of creative work, given the proximity to the parks and surrounding natural areas. The program is also a conduit for community engagement with a diverse offering of programming and events throughout the residency period. The resident artist is required to actively engage the public through outreach for a minimum of 5 hours per week, on or off-site. Midwest artists residing in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin can apply online at https://www.domehouseart.org/apply. The 2024 program is scheduled to run from August 4 - September 29, 2024.
“We are thrilled to announce our acceptance of applications for the 2024 program,” says Miller Art Museum Executive Director Elizabeth Meissner-Gigstead. “The continued involvement and success of our first four resident artists speaks volumes to the immeasurable impact this program has had on their artistic practice and careers.”
“The Dome House Residency was the most unique and productive of the five international residencies I have attended,” says 2023 resident artist Christopher T. Wood of Milwaukee. “The house itself was designed to be an artist’s living and working space, and it certainly serves that purpose well. The setting was inspiring and allowed me 
to pause my anxious and distracted city brain and focus on my job as an artist in a way I have not been able to for years. My time in the Dome House was a gift and served to reinvigorate my practice and my psyche. Impressively, the residency program serves to give the artist ample solitude in the studio and the surrounding natural area, while simultaneously serving as what felt like a major hub of connection for the community. I had visitors from all over the county as well as travelers who were passing through the area.”
“We’ve realized Al’s vision in bringing the Dome House to life and in tandem, are carrying on the legacy of museum founder Gerhard Miller––a mentor, cultivator of community, and a supporter of artists through and through––in such a beautiful way through this program. To be witness to, in my role directing the program in partnership with the Quinlan’s, the tremendous influence it’s having on the artistic landscape and development and growth of artists in Sturgeon Bay is gratifying,” Gigstead continued.
For guidelines or more information about the residency program or the Dome House, visit https://bit.ly/317vwCo. Applications for the 2024 residency will be accepted through Friday, April 5, 2024.