Artist in Residence Program

Spring 2024/Fall 2024 Artist in Residence application deadline October 31, 2023 - Application will be available in July 2023.

The Artist in Residence (AIR) program offers professional artists of the Austin area an inspirational environment in which to pursue various mediums and to further creative development in a natural setting. Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve is a uniquely situated urban natural area reflecting the personality of Austin — at once wild and modern, natural and technologically advanced, protected and developing.

Wild Basin hosts two artists per year: in spring and in fall. Artists of all disciplines in the greater Austin area are encouraged to apply. Artists are provided a small budget for materials, supplies, and equipment, and given access to the Wild Basin Creative Research Center and the trail system for inspiration.

Spring 2023 Artist in Residence, Leila Ali, a Colombian-born visual artist based in Austin. Her work moves between modes of production that employ photography, collage, painting, and drawing.  She studied her Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts at the Academia Superior de Artes de Bogotá (1997). She completed two master's degrees, one in Cultural Studies (2010) at the National University of Colombia, where she graduated with a Mention of Distinction awarded by the Faculty of Human Sciences; and another, in Aesthetics and Art History (2014) at the University of São Paulo in Brazil. Her work has been included in numerous group exhibitions in Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Australia, South Korea and the United States.  Leila will be working on her art most Wednesdays in March-May (morning and early afternoon) so stop by and say hello if you see her!

Leila's practice aims to invite the public to look closely and appreciate the rich botanical environment, which can sometimes be invisible and taken for granted. 

During her residency at Wild Basin, she will be researching and photographing various plants to create botanical art as a lens to reflect on common wild plants that are often overlooked and neglected, a phenomenon that has been described as "plant blindness".  The hope is that visitors connect with Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve in a new way that deepens their appreciation of nature.  Sign up for our newsletter on the homepage to be informed of her upcoming children and adult workshops!

Application Process

Submit application materials by email to the Environmental Education Coordinator for consideration by the selection committee. The application must include a brief statement with goals for the residency, the preferred residency period, a resume, digital samples of work, and the signed application form. The award will be made based on merit and on an understanding of the mission of Wild Basin. Selections will be made without regard to race, religion, sex, disability, marital status, age or national origin. The deadline for Spring and Fall 2024 applications is October 31, 2023. Awards will be announced one month before the start of residency.  Application will be available July 2023.

Current Artist in Residence

Spring 2023.   Leila Ali is a Colombian-born visual artist based in Austin. Her work moves between modes of production that employ photography, collage, painting, and drawing. Her most recent project uses botanical art and landscape photography as a lens to reflect on common wild plants that are often overlooked and neglected, a phenomenon that has been described as "plant blindness". Leila's practice aims to invite the public to look closely and appreciate the rich botanical environment, which can sometimes be invisible and taken for granted.

Past Artists in Residence

Fall 2022. Ania Safko. Ania is a Ukrainian-American visual artist working in film, poetry, and photography, and a '21 graduate from the UT Austin MFA Studio Art program. Her artistic practice deals with the human impact on the landscape of the American West and the changing nature of Americans' relationship with wilderness.

Spring 2022. Juliet Whitsett. Juliet is an Art Educator with a Master’s Degree in Community-Based Arts Education from the University of Texas-Austin and Undergraduate in Art Education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has designed arts and environmental education programs for public institutions such as the High Line, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, the Thinkery, Austin Discovery School and private organizations domestically and internationally.

Fall 2021 - Danika Ostrowski. Ostrowski is based in Austin and is a dedicated advocate for the preservation of public lands. She paints both en-plein-air and creates in-studio work based on photographs, sketches and memories. Ostrowski began painting on the porch at Wild Basin every Friday morning until Wild Basin closed due to COVID-19 in March 2020. She restarted her residency and served as Wild Basin's Fall 2021 Artist in Residence.

Fall 2019 – Precious Parker. As a visual artist, storyteller and photographer, Parker explores "the relational connection between subjects and space with subtle elements of emotion". During her residency at Wild Basin, Parker examined how humans and nature live in tandem and hopes her artwork will encourage people to reflect on their connection to nature and the spaces they occupy. In November 2019, Parker guided 14 children and adults in the technique of cyanotype nature printing.

Spring 2019 – Bethany Johnson. Johnson is based in Austin and her art explores the intersection between art and science: between the poetic experience of nature and the more objective study thereof. She works mostly in the medium of drawing, intermingling the aesthetic approaches and media associated with landscape art traditions with data-oriented, informational components, such as seismic imaging, geologic surveys, and others.

Fall 2018 – Jaime McCormick. McCormick’s work highlights the connection between people and the environment primarily using acrylic, gouache, and collage techniques.  Passionate about conservation and preservation, McCormick hopes to create art that connects visitors to Wild Basin and sparks exploration of our natural spaces. 

Fall 2017/Spring 2018 – Heidi Miller Lowell.  Lowell has over 9 years of experience as an art teacher and a keen appreciation for nature from her childhood in Colorado.  Using 3D modeling and watercolors, the artist aims to celebrate the flora and fauna at Wild Basin, bringing attention to the importance of caring for our wild spaces.

Spring 2017 – Andrea Wolf.  Wolf’s work focuses on contemporary portraits of regional wildlife. The artist painted at the preserve weekly and conducting two events open to the public at the Wild Basin Creative Research Center during her time with us. An event geared to an adult audience explored the influence of local wildlife with a painting demonstration. A second event for children focused on incorporating nature in art.