The Imaginary Residency is a three-week, artist-led residency that unfolds entirely from your own home or studio. Drawn from my practice of re-imagining everyday cities through the lens of the surreal, it responds directly to conversations with other artist-mothers about the steep decline in residency opportunities once caregiving enters the picture. Instead of travelling away, we will come together online to cultivate a sense of focus, community, and creative renewal while staying embedded in our own lives—committing to sustained but realistic periods of making, supported by online check-ins, shared prompts, and reflective sessions. Running in January, when work slows and summer already holds the qualities of travel and lightness, The Imaginary Residency invites participants to treat their own surroundings as fertile ground for new work, new perspectives, and creative possibility. Together, let’s build community, creativity, and cultural participation for those whose opportunities are otherwise limited.

You don’t have to be an artist-parent to join - this is designed for anyone needing a creative reset while feeling resource-constrained, whether that resource is time, energy, community, money — we don’t discriminate.

We are reserving 2 free places for participants who are currently unwaged/underemployed. Please email natalie.mather@gmail.com to express your interest in one of these places: it’s first in, best dressed.

The residency is generously supported by the City of Yarra.