Professor Jillian Sokso, Associate Professor of Art, has recently returned from a two week residency at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts (VCCA). With the help of the faculty development committee Sokso was able to achieve the great honor of attending the VCCA.
For over forty years, the VCCA has supported the work of about 350 artists, painters, sculptors, photographers, filmmakers; composers and writers. Typically there are 23 fellows in residency at one time. This includes anyone from a renowned artist to an eager young artist at the beginning of their professional career. Sokso, ever so humbly, said “I am still baffled I was able to get in, it was gratifying being among that caliber of people” as she reminisced about her time at VCCA.
The VCCA provides artists with their own bedroom, three meals a day, and a private studio allowing for the artists to work for hours, days, or weeks completely uninterrupted. “My studio was 700 square feet, had large windows and a skylight,” said Sokso. The VCCA is also surrounded by 400 acres of rolling Blue Ridge farmland, a view Sokso was able to enjoy from her studio.
Artist who have done a residency at VCCA say they were able to accomplish more work there in a matter of weeks than they would have in a year at home. “Time. Time was the most precious commodity and richest blessing,” said Sokso. The VCCA provides a quiet and creative environment for the artists, allowing them to get away from everything as well as giving them the opportunity to be surrounded by more than 20 other highly talented artists which allows for in-depth discussions and new ideas for artists to ponder. “Writers would host readings in their studios and visual artists would invite the fellows to their studio for art critiques,” said Sokso. Along with completing sculptures, an artist book, and a series of 24 drawings, Sokso was also able to trade prints with a printmaker from Virginia.
Past fellows of VCCA include recipients of fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, the American Academy in Rome, the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, as well as winners of National Book Awards, Pulitzer Prizes, and MacArthur genius awards. Due to the great accomplishments of past fellows, VCCA has become a highly desired residency, making admissions extremely competitive. According to one of their fellows, the VCAA is “one of the most important sources of art in the world.”
Despite her talent and amazing accomplishment of being accepted into the VCCA, Sokso was nothing but humble throughout the interview. She continually expressed her gratitude to the faculty development committee who made it financially possible for her to attend, as well as the Dean’s office that helped provide a stand-in instructor for her students.
Sokso has now set her sights on VCCA’s satellite program in France which requires fellows to have first been to VCCA. “I would like to apply to the program in France, it’s more of a narrow pool and would be a challenge to get in.”