Over the past three years, DVCAI Artist-in-Residence (AIR) has been housed in an apartment at the rear of the Nahar home in Paramaribo, Suriname. This house became the home of more than seven artists and practitioners who participated in its various programs or used it as a space to exchange practice ideas and present work. That space was integral for shaping our international community and it will continue to inform the ways we come together in the future. As of October 2022, we are embarking on a whole new chapter. DVCAI AIR will continue to offer a one-month residency in Suriname as well as an opportunity to apply for the AIR Studio program in Miami, Florida. Artist-in-Residence in Paramaribo will have 24-hour access to a private residence studio. Participation in the programs well attended “open studios” at Readytex Art Gallery, meetings with visiting critics, opportunities to speak about the art-making process and research and development in a DVCAI Public talk, and field trips alongside artist peers, looking at creating internal critiques, gallery walks, and studio visits. Artists are provided space and a platform to share their work. After leaving the residency, the AIR will join an even broader network of DVCAI Alumni in over fifteen countries, Miami, and a growing cohort of DVCAI recipients.

DVCAI AIR grounds its mission in the ongoing support of artistic research and practice. Since we opened our doors in August 1996, we have experimented with various formats of thinking and practicing together—from individual research programs to fostering a thematic collective research study with artists—always adapting our programs based on the needs of a growing community of peers. In the aftermath of the pandemic and of the major social and political changes happening in the world, we ask ourselves: how do we stay relevant to the needs of our artistic community? Between October 2022 and September 2023, DVCAI AIR is awarding 7 DVCAI AIR awards and Catalyst Awards. These are individual research fellowships that adopt an open-ended form. Through professional development workshops and seminars, feedback and skill sharing sessions, site visits and field trips, as well as through an exchange with other local institutions and members of the art community, these fellowships are tailored to the participant's own research needs.