SHIFT x MOMUS Residency
MOMUS x EFA SHIFT RESIDENCY
The Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts (EFA) is launching a new iteration of its SHIFT Residency in partnership with Momus, focused on the productive intersections between artistic practice and critical writing. The six-month program will bring together four New York–based practitioners whose practices move between visual art and art criticism—artists who write, or writers who make art—to explore the ways these disciplines can inform and challenge one another.
The cohort will convene at EFA Studios under the mentorship of Ajay Kurian, a New York–based multidisciplinary artist, writer, and founder of NewCrits. Through studio access, seminars, and conversations with visiting professionals, residents will foster cross-disciplinary exchange and develop new critical frameworks that privilege dialogue and exchange over evaluation, and experimentation over fixed definitions. At its core, the residency creates space for reflection, mutual support, and the collective development of language around artistic and critical practices.
Residency Schedule
NOVEMBER 1, 2026 Application opens
DECEMBER 15, 2026 Application deadline
MARCH 2027 Finalists notified & interviewed
JULY–DECEMBER, 2027 Residency Period
DECEMBER 2027 Culminating Project
ELIGIBILITY
Artists who write, or writers who make art.
Applicants must be based in New York and able to commit to being in person over the course of the residency.
Applicants must also commit to participating in all public programming related to the Residency. Applicants must not be enrolled in a degree-granting program during the residency period.
Must be 24 years or older at the beginning of the residency.
About Momus
Momus is an independent platform for art writing and criticism, headquartered in Montreal with an international network of contributors. Since 2014, it has published over 1,000 texts, including exhibition reviews, and produces a podcast, residencies, fellowships, talks, and events. Momus champions diverse perspectives, supports emerging and established writers, and advocates for fair compensation and a stronger infrastructure for art criticism.
About EFA Studios
Founded in 1998, the EFA Studio Program provides affordable private studio spaces, career development opportunities, and public exposure for professional artists. The program fosters a cooperative community that encourages exchange among artists, curators, critics, and the public. Members work across diverse visual media and artistic practices, contributing to a vibrant community of peers in the heart of Manhattan.