FIRE ISLAND ARTIST RESIDENCY INCORPORATED

Offers free live/work spaces on Fire Island for emerging and practicing LGBTQ visual artists through an annual summer residency program, including studio space, outdoor work areas, and engagement with visiting artists and scholars via studio visits, meals, and discussions. The residency duration ranges from two to four weeks and is hosted in rented beach houses in Cherry Grove.

Provides financial and logistical support to resident artists, including a monthly grocery stipend via pre-paid credit card with groceries delivered by boat from the mainland, and funding for one artist’s full participation including live/work space, meals, and a stipend.

Implements anti-racist policies and protocols across the organization, including mandatory DEI training, incident reporting systems, conflict resolution practices, and an Alumnx Liaison Committee to ensure accountability and support for residents among staff, board, and stakeholders.

Organizes and hosts year-round public programming including free exhibitions, film screenings, readings, panel discussions, social justice initiatives, and open houses such as “HERE WE ARE” and “The Lesbian House,” as well as free public lectures featuring visiting artists and scholars, open to the Fire Island and New York City communities.

Leads the Fire Island Histories Project—an ongoing research initiative launched in 2021—commissioning artists, historians, scholars, and writers to document and explore the complex histories of Fire Island, including Indigenous, lesbian, Black, and trans communities, through artistic commissions, scholarly essays, and oral histories.

Commissions prominent and resident artists to create exclusive multiples, unique works, and annual benefit art editions, and uses proceeds from their sale to fund operating costs, support participating artists, and sustain new programming and organizational growth. A new series of monoprints by Robin F. Williams is scheduled for January 2026.