Arts Foundation of New Zealand - Harriet Friedlander Residency

Harriet Friedlander Residency

On 26 June 2008, the Harriet Friedlander Scholarship Trust and the Arts Foundation launched this new international residency. A dedicated supporter of the arts, Harriet Friedlander also loved the vibrant culture of New York. She believed that any young artist exposed to the city would learn and grow in unimaginable ways with the fruits of this borne out through his or her work. When Michael and Harriet Friedlander and their sons Jason and Daniel designed the residency, Harriet was clear that she did not want to place any expectations or responsibilities on the recipient. An artist was to be sent to New York to have an “experience”, all expenses paid, so that they could immerse themselves in the culture and process it in their own way.

One of the most generous residencies offered to a New Zealand artist, up to $80,000NZD is made available every two years for their travel and living expenses. This opportunity is available to an artist aged 30 to 40, practicing in any discipline. The recipient is selected without their knowing they are under consideration by a curator appointed by the Foundation. The inaugural curator was Gregory O’Brien and the inaugural recipient is filmmaker Florian Habicht, He took up the residency in 2009. Visual artist Seung Yul Oh was selected in 2010 by arts journalist Lynn Freeman. Seung Yul will take up the residency in 2011.