Arrowhead Healing Arts Residency Program
A new artist residency and holistic wellness mentorship program in the Oakland hills.
This residency allows low income East Bay-based emerging artists to create visual art surrounded by nature, while jumpstarting their art careers and getting support through their healing journeys. At the culmination of the residency, artists have the opportunity to exhibit work and connect with the local art-buying public during events geared toward fostering patronage and collective healing.
We’re accepting interest/applications on a rolling basis and then catering timing to the needs of the artist and other factors, such as opportunity and funding capabilities.
Participating artists receive…
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The art studio is located in a historic home in the Oakland hills, surrounded by nature, steps from hiking trails and yet less than 10 minutes from East Oakland. This allows for artists to have a local retreat space in nature while still working, attending school, or caring for loved ones nearby.
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We work with a growing collective of diverse wellness practitioners. The modalities range from licensed psychotherapy to meditation and yoga to life coaching and professional development. Each practitioner offers sliding scale rates to accommodate people with a variety of incomes and we are working on getting the funding so artists can have a stipend for the wellness journey that’s right for them, whether that’s with a practitioner in our network or elsewhere.
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Artists receive pro-bono marketing consulting and professional development support from Oakland Art Murmur and Amy Copperman, the residency leader, fellow artist, and professional marketer. This could include: support writing artist statements, web development, and social media consulting, as well as networking opportunities and classes through OAM. Artists also receive free marketing for the art show at the end of the program.
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The residency culminates in an art and wellness event coinciding with East Bay Open Studios weekend. Check out what we did the last Open Studios Event. Participation also includes a salon-style show in another venue and other free opportunities to exhibit or sell work.
About the location…
Arrowhead is located off Shepherd Canyon in Montclair on a quiet street surrounded by trees. The dedicated art studio is shared with Amy Copperman (and sometimes a friendly dog who likes to nap in the studio), but artists can have ample private time in the space as well. It has its own bathroom and storage closet. Artists can also spend time in the gardens and will have access to the kitchen and living room.
The details
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The residency is open to low-income emerging artists based in the East Bay, with preference for those who hold traditionally marginalized identities (BIPOC and/or LGBTQ+)
The space is best suited for painters, illustrators, mixed media, textile or jewelry artists who do not need elaborate equipment to make their art.
The selection process is based on a short Google form and a Zoom or in-person meeting.
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In 2023, we are running a 2-month trial of the program. The selected artists can start working in the space and receiving marketing/wellness support in October. The residency will end the weekend of December 2nd with East Bay Open Studios holiday show.
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Amy Copperman and her mother Helene Erwin live in and own the home where the residency takes place. While Amy & Helene provide the space, our partners and wellness practitioners in our network provide added value.
Amy Copperman is an artist, yoga teacher, and award-winning writer and marketer. She also creates work from the house and exhibits during East Bay Open Studios. She is the main point of contact.
Helene Erwin is an early childhood educator, masterful cook, seamstress/knitter, crafter and writer. She lives in the home and runs the house. -
There are no submission fees. The selected artist(s) will not have to pay rent or any fees to exhibit work. Artists are responsible for their own supplies and transportation to and from the space.
We are looking into securing funding so artists can have stipends to create work and spend on wellness support. Do you have ideas to offer here? Please reach out to Amy at amylcopperman@gmail.com -
Of course not! Everything is optional and at the discretion of the artist. We can make introductions and recommendations as needed. We and the practitioners in our network adhere to the strictest of confidentiality practices.
We occasionally host yoga and wellness events at the home and artists are welcome to join, but it is not required.
Partners & wellness practitioners
We couldn’t (and wouldn’t want to) do this alone. We work with a growing and diverse group of holistic wellness practitioners, which we can help connect artists with, if it’s of interest. We also rely on partnerships with organizations, such as Oakland Art Murmur, to provide resources to artists. Would you like to offer your services or resources? Please get in touch with Amy.
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Yael Haar
Yael is a Kundalini yoga teacher and embodiment coach. She is the founder of House of Healing, a wellness resource space focused on black, Latinx, indigenous, and all people of color, while open to everyone to connect with the intention of self-development, understanding, spiritual growth + self-evolution.
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Harnaam Kaur
Harnaam Kaur is Yoga Nidra teacher, massage therapist, and early childhood educator. She is an active member of the Salinan Tribe of San Luis Obispo and Monterey Counties and currently resides in Berkeley, CA. She specializes in helping people tap into the healing power of deep meditation through Yoga Nidra, “the yoga of dreams.”
Learn more about Harnaam. -
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Laurie Navarro Misra
Laurie is a licensed psychotherapist who rents space in Arrowhead’s in-law unit to see therapy clients. Her practice focuses on holistic, compassionate talk therapy.
Learn more about Laurie.
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Oakland Art Murmur
OAM is a nonprofit that brings together Oakland’s creative community through events, programming and opportunities for artists.
Thanks to OAM, we can offer artists participation in the biannual East Bay Open Studios event at no cost. This includes exhibition opportunities, networking, promotion, and professional development.
Learn more about OAM.
A little bit more about us and our home…
Arrowhead is located on the ancestral land of the Chochenyo-speaking Ohlone people, what is now known as Shepherd Canyon in Montclair. We count Redwood trees and a particularly chatty owl among our neighbors. Built in 1922, this Spanish-style home has been owned by women for its entire history. Betty Baxter, Jack London’s cousin, was the first owner. It also served as SF Jazz legend Anson Weeks’s Oakland crash pad.
Then it was “Grandma’s house” and the place of holidays, family gatherings, gardening and art projects for more than 60 years. Rooms were frequently made available or rented out to people who needed it and my mother, Helene, who grew up here, and I (Amy) continued that tradition when we took over the home in 2015.
Our mission is to sustain this historic home as a place of peaceful retreat, art, and nourishment for ourselves and our extended community, while being responsible stewards of our resources and members of the broader Oakland community.
We are starting with a 2-month pilot program with an artist who commutes to the studio, but we see this residency growing to accommodate live-in artists multiple times per year, in which grants and donations allow money and resources to flow to a diverse set of artists and healers.
Scenes from previous art & wellness events
