2024 Artist in the Lookout Applications Being Accepted Now
The Plumas National Forest and Plumas Arts are excited to partner together on the 8th annual collaboration to select and showcase artists for the 2024 Artist in Residence program at the Black Mountain Lookout.
The Artist in Residence program provides a unique opportunity for artists to spend three nights at Black Mountain Lookout and draw inspiration from the breathtaking landscapes of the Plumas National Forest. In return, the program asks that the artist donate an original piece of framed artwork and/or body of work from this experience and work with Plumas Arts to make a public presentation of the work in November 2024.
The Artist in Residence seeks to use art and artists to explore the many ways in which people relate to the Plumas National Forest. The program goals include:
- Capture the beauty and spirit of the Plumas National Forest through the creation of high-quality art.
- Provide learning opportunities through the arts and visitors to the Plumas National Forest.
- Help citizens understand the connections between public lands, use of natural resources and our emotional ties to beauty, nature, and self-expression serving as a link between the utilitarian and aesthetic values of the forest- Celebrate the power of the arts – and artists – to explore and interpret the forest environment and the forest related issues.
Artist selection is based on an evaluation system that includeshow the artwork will support the forest’s interpretive themes, resume of professional artwork, application packet and electronic file of artist work or website link.
For the 2024 residency program, artists are invited to submit visual artwork, 2 or 3 dimensional, or literary (poetry or short prose).
The application deadline is Friday,May 31, 2024 and the final selection made by Saturday, June 15, 2024.
The application process requires that the artist submit information about their artwork and art background, personal interest in spending time in the lookout and ideas for public presentation of their work. In the case of a visual arts submission, two representative samples of the artist’s work are to be delivered to the Plumas Arts Gallery, 525 Main Street in Quincy CA between May 29 and 31, from 11a.m. to 5p.m. Appointments for delivery are requested.
For more information or to request an application packet, contact Plumas Arts at 530-283-3402 or email [email protected].
For more information on the Plumas National Forest, visit www.fs.usda.gov/plumas or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/USFSPlumas.
“Nebula” Photo by Barbara McCabe, 2023 Artist in the Lookout ©2023
The refurbished Black Mountain Lookout located at 7,161’ in elevation on the eastern edge of the Plumas National Forest. The seventy-five year old Black Mountain Lookout comes with a commanding view to the east of Nevada’s Basin and Range folds, to the north stands the higher, still active Thompson Peak Lookout. At the bottom of the Sierra Nevada’s eastside escarpment sits the sometimes colorful, however, often dry Honey Lake.Out of service for over thirty years, this building was built in the late 1930s/early 1940s by the Civilian Conservation Corps. It served as a home and office for rangers who worked on the historic Milford Ranger District, now known as the Beckwourth Ranger District.
It has recently been retrofitted by a group of very dedicated volunteers with electricity, a heater, stove, refrigerator and updated lighting rod to ground technology.
This new accommodation is a natural for cycling and hiking “Peak Baggers”, photographers (incredible sunrise and sunset shots), stargazers, adventurous families, solitude seekers and others who want a quiet night in the mountains but prefer not to sleep on the ground.
Easy access begins near the small settlement of Milford on State Highway 395, twenty-three miles south of Susanville. Roads to lookout locations are often gravel or dirt so, if you are driving, bring your most capable vehicle.
Click here for more information, directions, and reservations
