Applications must be completed online in English and submitted by the published deadline. Applicants who have trouble accessing the online form may contact bellagio_res@iie.org to discuss alternative ways to submit the application.
Online Application Overview
- All applications are completed online. If you have difficulty accessing or submitting an online application, please contact the competition administrators at bellagio_res@iie.org.
- After you start your application, a unique application number and link will be sent to your e-mail address. Please be sure to check your spam box in case it is not delivered to your inbox. Applications do not need to be finished in one session; the online form allows you to save it and return to revise, edit, or add additional information later.
- Each page of the application form must be completed before you move on to the next page.
- Choose the most appropriate artistic field(s) for your project (you may choose up to two). Applications in each category are reviewed by professionals in that field. Choreographers, performance artists, and artists doing experimental work combining more than one genere or art form should select either video/filmmaker or multi-media artist so that you will be prompted to submit work samples appropriate to your discipline.
- Prepare a project summary of no more than 250 words for literary artists, poets, and playrights. All other artists must write a 500 word summary. Summaries should be written for a general audience that describes the purpose and gloals of your time at Bellagio as well as the artistic and global context of your work. It should also indicate the specific output of your residency, the planned outcome, the target audience, and the planned means of dissemnation. The project summary will be a text field in the online application.
- Provide the names of three recommenders and their e-mail addresses. Your recommenders will be contacted immediately after you submit your application. You will also receive a copy of the e-mail sent to the recommenders. Please notify your recommenders before you submit your application so that they can expect your request. Oftentimes, messages are caught in e-mail spamguards. Please note that it is the applicant's responsbility to ensure that the recommenders submit the letters within two weeks of the application deadline.
Application Materials
In addition to the application form, applicants must submit the following documents as PDF (preferred) or Word attachments where indicated. These documents should be double-spaced, in 12-point type and have 1" margins. There are five required components for all applications plus one additional for former Bellagio Center residents. The requirements are as follows:
Project Summary
Prepare a project summary of no more than 250 words for literary artists, poets, and playrights. All other artists must write a 500 word summary. The project summary will be a text field in the online application. Summaries should be written for a general audience that describes the purpose and goals of your time at Bellagio as well as how your work is inspired by or relates to global social issues or the Foundation's mission of promoting the well-being of humankind. It should also indicate the specific output of your residency, the planned outcome, the target audience, and the planned means of dissemination.
Project Proposal
Applicants in the literary arts (fiction and non-fiction writers, poets, and playwrights) will need to submit a project proposal not to exceed 1,250 words with a clear and concise description of the following:
- Overall description of your project with particular attention to the phase of the project you will be working on during the proposed Bellagio Center residency;
- More detailed information on the artistic and global context of your work and how your project is innovative or distinct from other work in your field and how it is inspired by or related to global social issues or the Foundation's mission of promoting the well-being of humankind;
- Importance and potential impact of your project within your field and/or impact on the well-being of humankind;
- Short-term outputs and/or intended outcomes of your project;
- Details on the target audience and the planned means of dissemenation;
- Specific and clear outline of your work plan for the time at Bellagio; and
- If relevant, a chapter outline of your work, book, or publication. Please note that this will count towards the 1,250 word limit.
Please Note: Visual artists, composers, and video/filmmakers are not required to submit a project proposal. However, you are welcome to submit a shorter version of a project proposal if you think it will help the review committee better understand your proposal especially when describing how your work is inspired by or related to global social issues or the Foundation's pioneering mission to promote the well-being of humankind.
Abbreviated CV
Document of no more than four single-space pages with career highlights, including publications and awards. Please do not submit a professional biography.
Work Sample(s)
Applicants in specific art fields will have different requirements for work samples. The following will outline the work samples for each artistic discipline. Please note that work samples will not be returned. Fiction, Non-fiction, Poets, and Playwrights: If none of your previous work is published in English, please provide either an English translation or summary of the work sample.
Composers: Work samples consists of a music score and an audio file copy completed in the last five years. There are a few ways to submit both the music score and audio file:
Audio samples can be either uploaded onto YouSendIt or DropBox. Alternatively, audio samples can be sent via post on three separate CDs. Applicants who would like the reviewers to listen to something other than the first ten minutes of the sample should clearly mark the start and end point of the excerpt.
Music scores can be a) uploaded to the online application in PDF format; b) uploaded to YouSendIt or DropBox; or c) sent via post on unbound 8.5" x 11" (A-4) paper.
Fiction and Non-Fiction Writers and Poets: A selection from a book published within the last five years (maximum of 20 pages) for which you are the main author. It must be submitted online as either a PDF (preferred) or Word document.
Multi-Media Artists: There are three options for submitting the required materials:
Upload to the Online Application: You may upload ten images created within the last five years (maximum height/width of 1240 pixels in .jpg or .gif format with a 300 dpi resolution and should not exceed 1.2MB each). Please indicate a list with image number, title, size, medium, and date of work.
Upload via YouSendIt or DropBox: You may upload ten images created within the last five years (maximum height/width of 1240 pixels in .jpg or .gif format with a 300 dpi resolution and should not exceed 1.2MB each). Please include a list with image number, title, size, medium, and date of work. Instructions on how to upload via YouSendIt or DropBox can be found on the Application Resource Center website.
By Post: Three copies of a universally read CD or DVD (for Mac and PC) with ten images created in the last five years (maximum height/width of 1240 pixels in .jpg or .gif format with a 300 dpi resolution and should not exceed 1.2MB). Please include a list with image number, title, size, medium, and date of work.
Playwrights: A selection from a play produced in the last five years (maximum 20 pages). It must be submitted online as either a PDF (preferred) or Word document.
For more information see the web site.