Ragdale and Lake Forest College are excited to announce the HUMAN Residency, a groundbreaking, multi-year collaboration that invites artists from diverse disciplines to explore the intersection of the humanities, artificial intelligence, and social justice.
This interdisciplinary residency seeks proposals from emerging, midcareer, and established writers, dancers, architects, musicians, composers, and visual artists. Proposals will be evaluated based on prior work samples, and how an individual’s creative practice relates to evolving questions around technology and demonstrate how becoming a HUMAN Resident will bolster their exploration of ethics, social justice, and equity in relation to AI.
The HUMAN Residency and Ragdale partnership consist of three key components, spanning multiple years. Applicants accepted into the residency will take part in all three components:
- A six-day thematic residency at Ragdale in 2025, with a cohort whose work collectively engages with questions of AI and its relationship to the humanities.
- An individual 18-day residency, at Ragdale in 2026 to provide time and space for individuals to continue their work within an interdisciplinary cohort of artists.
- A culminating event at Lake Forest College in 2027 as part of the capstone HUMAN Symposium, showcasing the work created by participants in the HUMAN residency.
Throughout these residencies, artists will actively engage with various aspects of the HUMAN grant at Lake Forest College, serving as guest lecturers, artists, and/or performers. This collaboration will foster a dynamic exchange of ideas and provide students with valuable insights into the creative process and the real-world applications of the humanities in the age of AI.
About Ragdale
Ragdale is an artist residency program located in Lake Forest, Illinois, that provides time and space for writers, dancers, architects, musicians, composers, and visual artists to develop new works. Individuals apply through a competitive review process, and we award over 150 residencies annually, making Ragdale one of the largest residency programs in the United States. Ragdale also provides ways for people from broad backgrounds to participate in themed residencies, creative sabbaticals, outreach programs for teens and public programs that connect Ragdale with the local community.
Each year Ragdale awards a series of Fellowships to artists of exceptional ability, underscoring an organizational commitment to social justice, environmental stewardship, and access for artists with disabilities. Situated on the grounds of the former summer home of noted Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, Ragdale is a stunning example of Arts and Crafts Architecture, and listed on the National Register. Comprising a series of historic homes, purpose-built studios, and access to 50 acres of protected prairie land, Ragdale provides artists with a remarkable environment to explore their work.
Regin Igloria
Artistic Director, Ragdale
Regin Igloria is the Artistic Director at Ragdale and is a practicing multi-disciplinary studio artist. His drawings, artists’ books, sculptures, and performances portray the human condition as it relates to the natural environment and inhabited spaces. He has over 25 years of arts administration and teaching experience and founded North Branch Projects, an organization that builds connections through the book arts. He works with various communities to create crossover between disparate populations and cultures, aiming to broaden the roles of both artists and non-artists. Igloria has taught at places such as Marwen, RISD, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Snow City Arts, and Carthage College. He received a 3Arts Individual Artist Award as well as local, national, and international grants, support through artist residencies, and has exhibited internationally. He received his MFA from Rhode Island School of Design.