Special Projects Incubator

A Little History...

In the past there was something that ran parallel to AIR called PAI (Public Art Incubator) meant for residencies that culminated in public art projects. PAI encountered logistical, community-based problems in its operation. One year its staff made a proposal to stop residencies for a time to study these problems and make recommendations for a revamping of PAI. MMATT was the name of this research project. SPI is the result of it. So what's the answer? All three are separate projects, but somehow the first two are the history of the 3rd and the 2nd two are the trajectory of the first!

View the MMATT and archived PAI projects on the Main Projects Archive page.

As new SPI projects happen, the older ones will be archived here...

We are excited to announce the appointment of Daniel DeLuca and Ryan Sciaino as Coordinators of the Berwick's Special Projects Incubator.

Daniel DeLuca is a curator, organizer, and performance artist who received his BFA with honors from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design where he majored in the Studio for Interrelated Media. As an undergraduate he curated and organized collaborative multi-media performance events with students, faculty, and practicing artists. He co-directed and co-curated the 2007 Eventworks festival, an annual festival of experimental artwork in all media. DeLuca was president of the Student Government Association at MassArt where he founded a $5000 grant program for MassArt students. Last spring he was awarded a grant from the Center for Arts and Community Partnership at MassArt for an installation project that addressed issues related to nature and art. In addition to working with the Berwick as a program coordinator, he maintains a studio in Waltham, MA.

Ryan Sciaino graduated with a dual degree in Music Technology and Multimedia Studies from Northeastern University. He has worked as Technical Director for exhibitions in galleries throughout Boston including Art Interactive, Axiom Gallery, and the Huret and Spector Gallery at Emerson College. He also piloted a web video series for WGBH and Public Radio International's "The World." He is currently a teaching artist at the Institute of Contemporary Art where he runs audio and video editing workshops for high school students as part of their Teen New Media program. He also produces his own music, DJ's locally and abroad, and does freelance audio and video work.

Program History:

The Special Projects Incubator evolved out of the Meet Me at the Table series, an 18-month research-based project through the Public Art Incubator. Moving away from the term "public art" SPI frees the Berwick to work with artworks that activate its artists and audiences as social beings, whether through interactive, dialogic or interventionist temporary public projects. The Special Projects Incubator supports work and processes that lie between genre categories and official states of recognition.

Under the SPI program, a project can receive one or all three levels of support:

Level A. Two featured projects will be selected by the board, with priority given to projects that meet the Berwick’s working definition of public art as "art work in temporary social spaces, with an emphasis on creating public dialogue.” The Special Projects Coordinator will help these projects set and achieve specific goals within the fostering period. These projects are eligible for up to $1,000 each in support of materials needed.

2009 Level A Projects included:

Present Tense Archive Project - An on-line and physical archive of performance art from 2003 up until the present, compiled by The Present Tense, a Boston-based performance art collective.

Level B. Berwick co-sponsorship, co-presentation or co-hosting support will be offered to an additional three or four projects through promotion, mailing list notices, in-kind support & potential mini-grants (up to $100) from our budget.

Level C. The Berwick will continue to serve as a fiscal agent for grant applications, and provide advising and/or connections to resources in support of a project that fits within the scope of our mission.

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We welcome submissions for SPI support on a rolling basis.  Please submit no more then 500 words articulating your proposed project and include any images or links you think will help illustrate your goals.

We accept ideas for work of any media, but encourage event based projects that engage public and social interaction.  Works in progress are acceptable to submit and will be considered based on their content, with consideration of how SPI can help develop their logistics.

We highly recomend viewing our current and past projects before submitting your proposal.  Proposals should be sent to Daniel and Ryan.

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This project has been generously funded in part by the LEF Foundation.