Host a Project

From the inside of a handmade wooden boat still under construction the ribs curve up as it moves away to the bow or stern, it's unclear. Overlaid the wooden arches is the logo watermarked slightly transparent in white.

Residencies & Field-Based Programs with Shawndel N. Fraser

Shawndel N. Fraser offers site-responsive residencies and field-based programs rooted in environmental psychology, interdisciplinary art practice, and long-term relationship-building with craftsmen, tradesmen, and rural working men.

These projects center devotion, responsibility, and social belonging as they are expressed through labor, land-based practice, and everyday forms of skilled work. Rather than extracting stories or staging performances, Shawndel’s work develops slowly through repeated presence, shared activity, and sustained attention to the social environments in which people live and work.

Each residency is shaped in collaboration with local partners to reflect the specific histories, economies, landscapes, and craft traditions of the host community.

  • Residencies typically range from several days to multiple weeks and may include:

    • Field observation and relationship-building with local craftsmen, tradespeople, farmers, builders, or land-based workers

    • Site visits to workshops, farms, worksites, schools, or community spaces

    • Sculptural, photographic, and/or multimedia documentation of skilled labor and hand-based practices

    • Informal conversations and listening sessions rooted in shared activity rather than formal interviews

    • Public talks, exhibitions, or community gatherings that reflect back what has been witnessed

    Projects may culminate in:

    • Exhibitions or installations

    • Artist talks and facilitated discussions

    • Educational programming with students or apprentices

    • Documentation for host organizations’ archives or publications

    All outcomes are developed in dialogue with host partners and remain grounded in local context rather than imposed formats.

  • Residencies and field programs are well suited for:

    • Arts organizations and cultural centers

    • Craft schools and apprenticeship programs

    • Community colleges and vocational programs

    • Rural arts councils and heritage initiatives

    • Land trusts and conservation organizations

    • Museums focused on labor, industry, or regional history

    • Community development and rural resilience programs

    • Towns and Villages seeking to preserve their trade and craft culture

    Projects are especially meaningful in communities where trades, land-based work, and interdependence remain central to daily life, and where men’s labor is often highly visible but culturally under-recognized.

    Hands That Nurture is developed through site-responsive iterations, which may include programming, witnessing, and exhibition formats shaped in dialogue with local contexts. For inquiries about hosting or collaborating on a site-specific iteration of this project, please get in touch.

  • Item descriptionMuch public conversation about men focuses on crisis, ideology, or individual behavior. Shawndel’s work approaches masculinity differently: as a set of relational practices shaped by economic structures, physical environments, cultural narratives, and opportunities for contribution.

    By focusing on what already exists — skill, care, patience, responsibility, pride in good work — these projects offer an alternative cultural lens that affirms dignity while also opening space for reflection about change, adaptation, and community well-being.

    Seeing and naming devotion in everyday labor is, in itself, a cultural intervention

  • Host organizations typically provide:

    • Housing and basic workspace

    • Introductions to local tradespeople, craft practitioners, or community partners

    • Access to relevant sites and institutions

    • Logistical coordination for public programs or exhibitions

    • Modest production support when applicable

    Funding structures vary and may include:

    • Artist residency stipends

    • Grant-supported partnerships

    • Institutional hosting budgets

    • Collaborative funding applications

    Shawndel is experienced working within funded, institutional, and grassroots contexts and is open to exploring structures that align with host capacity and community needs.

  • Many site-responsive projects form the groundwork for longer-term collaborations, including:

    • Repeat visits and follow-up projects

    • Regional exhibitions or publications

    • Field School partnerships focused on craft, land-based skills, and masculine social development

    • Inter-community exchanges between participants in different regions

    Hosts who are interested in building sustained programming rather than one-time events are encouraged to discuss long-term possibilities.

  • To explore hosting a site-responsive project, please include:

    • Information about your organization or community

    • Why this work feels relevant to your context

    • The kinds of trades, crafts, or land-based practices present in your area

    • Possible timeframes and scale of engagement

    • Any existing funding or partnership structures

    Shawndel prioritizes projects where there is strong local relationship support and a genuine interest in reflective, respectful engagement with working men and community life.

Work With Me
“Chisel 2” photographed by Shawndel N. Fraser. All rights reserved.
“Goofballs 3” photographed by Shawndel N. Fraser. All rights reserved.
“Planing” photographed by Shawndel N. Fraser. All rights reserved.
“Weaving” photographed by Shawndel N. Fraser. All rights reserved.