In the Clouds – Artist Residency Application

The residency takes place June 22-26, 2026. During this time you will meet your cohort, Cactus+ staff, tour Cactus Club, and participate in optional studio visits and field trips. You will meet with the residency coordinator May 26 to answer questions and plan your week’s optional studio visits/field trips.

Given the centrality of developing a public-facing event for ITC 2026, the residency would be a good fit for artists who are looking to explore arts education, expand skills in event development and public speaking, and make connections with other artists and curators in the city.

Participating in the residency can involve moving from place to place. While Cactus Club (CC) can be a hub for you during your residency, studio visits, field trips, and visits to community partners will involve traveling throughout the city. ITC community partners are located in different parts of Milwaukee, some several miles from CC. 

While Cactus Club is wheelchair-accessible now (accessibility ramp installed summer 2025), the bathrooms are not yet accessible to wheelchair users. The apartment and office at Cactus Club are located up a long set of stairs with no elevator or chairlift option. Read more about accessibility at Cactus Club here: cactusclubmilwaukee.com/accessibility/

No, there is no application fee.

No, there is no thematic requirement for your creative work.

Yes. This year the stipend is $1,500 per resident. It will be up to you how you spend your stipend. This could include residency-related travel expenses, living expenses, costs for development of your event or artist talk, materials, fees for facilities/equipment use, etc.

If income restrictions are a concern for stipend disbursements, we will work out a payment method to best suit your needs.

The residency will take place June 22-26, 2026. ITC will ask selected residents to set aside 1 hour on May 26 to meet with the residency coordinator and June 22 10am-4pm to meet with the cohort and Cactus+ staff. The rest of the week of June 23-26 will be available to do optional studio visits or field trips, based on the selected resident’s needs. Outside of this week of support from Cactus, the resident will be responsible for structuring their own time in the development of their community event and artist talk. The community events and artist talks will be scheduled throughout July and August, concluding no later than Sept. 1, 2026.

There will be two in-person and one virtual ITC artists-in-residence simultaneously. We encourage the three residents to engage with one another and connect about each other’s practice and plans.

ITC will only require you to: 1.) meet (online or on-site) with the residency coordinator May 26 to plan their residency week and schedule event dates; 2.) meet with your cohort and Cactus+ staff on June 22 10am-4pm. You can also participate in optional studio visits and/or field trips during the remainder of the week that will be arranged in collaboration with the residency coordinator based on your needs; 3.) develop a scheduled community event at Cactus Club (this could be a workshop, an interactive event, a screening, a panel discussion – it is open for creative interpretation). The event will require an outlined proposal; 4.) participate in an artist talk at Cactus Club. The event and artist talk will be scheduled no later than Sept. 1, 2026.

On-site you will have access to: the main room, the 600 sq ft room which hosts our live music and community-led public events, to use as a workspace when the room is not in use (typically anytime before 5pm on weekdays); the driveway and backyard for projects that might require outdoor ventilation; the upstairs (not wheelchair accessible) which offers access to a Mac desktop computer and deskspace in a shared office where Cactus staff are often present. The kitchen (stove, oven, microwave, refrigerator) and green room is also available for you to make a snack or relax in. 

While we are primarily a music venue*, we have equipment and tools available for your use: 

• Desktop computer
  • Mac Mini
    • Apple M4 Pro chip with 14-core CPU, 20-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine, 48GB unified memory, 1TB SSD storage
    • LG 27” Ultrafine 4K Monitor
    • Apple Magic Trackpad / Keyboard
  • Applications: Full Adobe Suite (Photoshop/Illustrator/Premiere/After Effects/etc.) Final Cut Pro, Logic, Ableton
  • Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 interface
  • TAPCO S5 powered studio monitors
• Projector and 2 different size projector screens
• Tascam Portacapture X8 audio recorder
• 4-color 1 station screen-printing equipment and heat press
• Power tools like drill driver, saw, sander
• Hand tools like hammers, screwdrivers, wrenches, pliers, measuring tape

Residents will also have access to a risograph printer that BearBear Print Studio hosts at Cactus Club. Guidance for basics to the risograph process will be available.

*Because we are a live music venue, the environment can often include sounds that could be disruptive to people who are sensitive to audio stimuli. Soundchecks often begin at 5pm. The building is quietest before 5pm.

You will meet with the residency coordinator May 26 to designate if there are specific equipment needs for the development of your community event or for exploration of your creative practice. Following this conversation, the residency coordinator will do their best to connect you with an organization or artist that fits your needs. This connection can be included in the studio visits or field trip opportunities during the week of June 22-26. ITC has worked with a number of community partners whose specialties range from ceramics/clay, audio production, woodworking, printmaking, metals and electronics, and other visual and performance arts.

The residents will be responsible for arranging or scheduling their own housing during their residencies.

The apartment at Cactus Club will be available as an option free of charge on nights that it is not rented by touring artists. If the resident is interested in lodging options at Cactus Club, we will provide lodging availability one month prior to the start of the residency.

Please reach out to itc@cactusplus.org with questions about housing.

ITC will provide digital access to audiences through Cactus Club’s social media channels (Instagram, TikTok, Vimeo, Youtube) and opportunities for installation and exhibition. The residency coordinator will assist you in gathering images, videos, or written materials for posts on these platforms. Your community event and artist talk will be promoted via our Instagram, Facebook, website, and other marketing.

There is a Whirlpool WPPRO2000B Whispure True Hepa Air Purifier in the live room. Depending on time of day, residents may have the space to themselves or share the building with administrative and bar staff. For events, organizers can make the terms that they desire for masking and staff will do their best to ensure attendees honor that. Cactus Plus and Cactus Club staff are receptive and desire to make residents as safe and comfortable as possible. During weekdays, artists can largely have the live room to themselves. There are two exterior doors on that room and doors can be propped open to maximize airflow. The backyard and driveway are also spaces that can be utilized. There’s a floor plan on this page for context: cactusclubmilwaukee.com/accessibility/

Learn more about accessibility at Cactus Club on our Accessibility Initiative page.

The residency takes place June 22-26, 2026. During this time you will virtually meet your cohort, Cactus+ staff, and participate in optional studio visits and field trips. You will meet with the residency coordinator May 26 to answer questions and plan your week’s optional studio visits/connections.

Given the centrality of developing a public-facing event for ITC 2026, the residency would be a good fit for artists who are looking to explore arts education, expand skills in virtual event development and public speaking, and make connections with other artists and curators in Milwaukee.

The virtual residency might be a good option for someone who prefers digital environments, lives with chronic illness and/or mobility limitations, and/or sensory sensitivities that might make the in-person residency experience challenging or impossible.

The virtual residency will make the most sense for someone whose creative practice format allows CC’s internet presence to showcase the AiR’s creative work, welcoming engagement, circulating disabled, chronically ill, and neurodivergent practices. From the AiR’s space(s) of creative practice, the work can be hosted via our TikTok, Youtube, Vimeo and/or Instagram platforms, as collaboratively determined. 

You are welcome to visit Cactus Club during your virtual residency. While Cactus Club is wheelchair-accessible (accessibility ramp installed summer 2025), the bathrooms are not yet accessible to wheelchair users. The apartment and office at Cactus Club are located up a long set of stairs with no elevator or chairlift option. Read more about accessibility at Cactus Club here: cactusclubmilwaukee.com/accessibility/

No, there is no application fee. 

No, there is no thematic requirement for your creative work.

Yes. This year the stipend is $1,500 per resident. It will be up to you how you spend your stipend. This could include living expenses, costs for development of your public event or artist talk, materials, fees for facilities/equipment use. 

If income restrictions are a concern for stipend disbursements, we will work out a payment method to best suit your needs.

The residency will take place June 22-26, 2026. ITC will ask selected residents to set aside 1 hour on May 26 to meet with the residency coordinator and June 22 10am-4pm to meet with the cohort and Cactus+ staff. The rest of the week of June 23-26 will be available to do optional studio visits or field trips, based on the selected resident’s needs. Outside of this week of support from Cactus, the resident will be responsible for structuring their own time in the development of their community event and artist talk. The community events and artist talks will be scheduled throughout July and August, concluding no later than Sept. 1, 2026.

ITC will require you to: 1.) meet virtually with the residency coordinator May 26 to plan their residency week and schedule event dates; 2.) meet with your cohort and Cactus+ staff on June 22 10am-4pm. You can also participate in optional studio visits and/or field trips during the remainder of the week that will be arranged in collaboration with the residency coordinator based on your needs; 3.) develop a scheduled online community event at Cactus Club (this could be a workshop, an interactive event, a screening, a panel discussion – it is open for creative interpretation). The event will require an outlined proposal; 4.) participate in an online artist talk at Cactus Club. The event and artist talk will be scheduled no later than Sept. 1, 2026.

The virtual resident is required to have internet access, which the ITC stipend can help obtain, and a means to document and share their practice or works-in-progress online (phone camera will work just fine, but other methods are welcome too!).

There will be one virtual resident and two in-person residents simultaneously. ITC residents are encouraged to connect and collaborate.

The virtual resident is welcome to spend some of their residency time in-person to access community partners facilities. If spending time in Milwaukee for a studio visit or meeting in person would be beneficial to you, you’re welcome to consider that as an option. The residency coordinator will be your point-of-contact for making these connections for you to make arrangements with. 

You will meet with the residency coordinator May 26 to designate if there are specific equipment needs for the development of your public event or for exploration of your creative practice. Following this conversation, the residency coordinator will do their best to connect you with an organization or artist that fits your needs. This connection can be included in the studio visits or field trip opportunities during the week of June 22-26. ITC has worked with a number of community partners whose specialties range from ceramics/clay, audio production, woodworking, printmaking, metals and electronics, and other visual and performance arts.

ITC will provide digital access to audiences through Cactus Club’s social media channels (Instagram, TikTok, Vimeo, Youtube). The residency coordinator will assist you in gathering images, videos, or written materials for posts on these platforms. Your online community event will be promoted via our Instagram, Facebook, website, and other marketing.