MacDowell Colony

History

MacDowell is an artist's residency program in Peterborough, New Hampshire. The program was founded in 1907 by composer Edward MacDowell and his wife, pianist and philanthropist Marian MacDowell. Prior to July 2020, it was known as the MacDowell Colony or "The Colony", but its board of directors shortened the name to remove "terminology with oppressive overtones".

After Edward MacDowell died in 1908, Marian MacDowell established the artists' residency program through a nonprofit association in honor of her husband, raising funds to transform her farm into a quiet retreat for creative artists to work. She led the organization for almost 25 years.

Over the years, an estimated 9,000 artists have been supported in residence with nearly 16,000 fellowships, including the winners of at least 102 Pulitzer Prizes, 33 National Book Awards, 31 Tony Awards, 34 MacArthur Fellowships, 18 Grammys, 9 Oscars, 969 Guggenheim Fellowships, and 122 Rome Prizes. The artists' residency program has accepted visual and interdisciplinary artists, architects, filmmakers, composers, playwrights, poets, and writers, both well-known and unknown. Since January 2020, Nell Painter has served as chair of MacDowell, the first woman to hold the position. In February 2023, Chiwoniso Kaitano was appointed MacDowell's executive director, the first Black person to serve in the role.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. The official nomination form is linked under Sources.