Residencies

From rotating biennials to annual community gatherings, join the MAH for a series of innovative, multi-day events to celebrate the creativity, history, and traditions of Santa Cruz County.

Understanding our history is vital to moving forward. Together, contemporary art, heritage, and cultural expression have the capacity to help us better comprehend our current moment by creating portals—visual, textual, or experiential— that connect the past, present, and future.

To do this, practitioners need access to research, materials, time, space, and financial support. The MAH’s residency program empowers interdisciplinary thinkers and makers—visual artists, writers, historians, ethnographers, folklorists, cultural anthropologists, and more—to pursue current or new projects of their design during a 3-6 month residency.

During their time with the museum, residents can make full use of the MAH’s resources, personnel, and exhibition platforms—whether indoors, outdoors, or online—with opportunities to share out, prototype, and solicit feedback. Our aim is to support research-based process via a non-transactional residency that contributes to the development of a concept or body of work connecting local history to broader themes of contemporary significance.

The program is currently invitation only. To learn more or express your interest in consideration for future residency opportunities, please contact Marla Novo at marla@santacruzmah.org.

Visit the MAH Archives

Search historical documents, photographs, images, and other artifacts related to Santa Cruz County.