Visiting Critic-in-Residence at First People’s Fund
Application Period: March 9-23, 2026 (Deadline: March 23, 2026 11:59pm CST)
Virtual Info Session: March 11, 2026, 4:30pm CST
Application questions are available here.
About First People’s Fund
First People’s Fund honors and supports the Collective Spirit of First Peoples artists and culture bearers. By supporting artists and culture bearers, First Peoples Fund helps Native communities heal and thrive. Collectively, they approach their work with rootedness, intuition, listening, humility and deep relationships.
About the Residency at First People’s Fund
This residency draws inspiration from First People’s Fund’s dedication to supporting Oceti Sakowin (Sioux) artists and culture bearers whose practices reflect and expand the past, present, and future of Lakota art and culture. In alignment with their Oglala Lakota Artspace Artist-in-Residence (AiR) Program, this residency will provide space for Lakota and Sioux writers to develop their practice, connect with local artists and community, and ask thoughtful questions about place. This opportunity is especially good for writers with a history of interest in visual arts, music, and unconventional arts infrastructures.
While writers from anywhere can apply for a residency co-hosted by First Peoples Fund at the Oglala Lakota Artspace, this residency opportunity is reserved for Indigenous writers, with priority given to Sioux and Lakota writers. The Visiting Critic will stay at Lakota Prairie Ranch Resort in Kyle, SD (1hr 15min from Rapid City). **YOU MUST HAVE A VALID DRIVER’S LICENSE and be comfortable moving between cities by car in order to take full advantage of this residency.
Following the residency, the critic will shape and write a piece on a topic of their choice with the support of a dedicated editor at Sixty Inches From Center who is working across the entire program to spin threads of connection between writers across all of Sixty’s residencies.
**YOU MUST COMPLETE A BACKGROUND CHECK**
Additional Information
Residency Focus + Guiding Themes
First People’s Fund and Sixty are seeking residents whose work and interests are aligned with the following themes and inquiries. Please note that these are starting points for your areas of interest and to help guide your time in Rapid City and Kyle, SD. When you begin to shape your writing, you can explore these ideas through a topic, artist(s), artistic practice(s), or cultural element(s) of your choice:
- The overlaps and intersections of visual art and music
- Community-based artist infrastructures and unconventional art infrastructures
- Challenging the idea that certain art spaces and artists are centered. What does it look like to decenter institutionalized art spaces and instead center community centers as sites for cultural production and creative experimentation?
- How can critical writing in Rapid City, Kyle, and beyond expand and complicate our definition of the Midwest? How can we talk about the Midwest in a way that allows its borders to be porous?
What the residency includes
- $1000 honorarium
- An $800 stipend for travel
- A $250 honorarium for the finished piece of writing
- Housing for the residency period, which includes space at the Oglala Lakota Artspace in Kyle, SD
- Access to First People’s Fund’s facilities and staff
- Introductions to artists, organizers, and cultural workers in the area
- Publication opportunities with Sixty Inches From Center
Residency Length + Dates
TBD
Residency Timeline
- Internal Call Application Period: March 9-23, 2026
- Application Review: March 23-31, 2026
- Participant notified: April 23, 2026
- Residency Period: Summer 2026 (Resident chooses the exact dates)
Who Should Apply + Eligibility
This residency opportunity is reserved for Indigenous writers, with priority given to Sioux and Lakota writers. Critics who fit this criteria and who are interested in spending time in deep conversation with the artists, people and cultures of Rapid City and Kyle, SD are encouraged to apply.
Accessibility
TBD
Selection Process
Sixty Inches From Center is inviting writers, cultural workers, artists, and other collaborators who have worked with us in the past to apply by submitting an application. The critic-in-residence program team will be reviewing the applications.
FAQs
Q: Why do I need to have a driver’s license for the First Peoples Fund residency?
A: Because this residency takes place in multiple locations in South Dakota (i.e. Rapid City and Kyle), a car is required for traveling between the two. Because Kyle is somewhat remote, a car is also needed to access grocery stores, restaurants, etc.
Q: Why is a background check required for the First Peoples Fund residency?
A: For the safety of their community, First Peoples Fund requires background checks for anyone staying at Oglala Lakota Artspace. Sixty believes it is important to respect and support all of our partners’ safety procedures.
This program is part of a larger network of Critic-in-Residence Programs happening across the Midwest as part of Midwest Satellites, a Sixty Inches From Center initiative focused on co-created projects between Sixty and aligned collaborators across multiple regional cities. Learn more about the Critic-in-Residence Programs here.