Six Los Angeles County-based artists have been chosen as the 2025/26 cohort for Santa Monica's Camera Obscura Art Lab artist residency program.
The selected artists are Cheyenne Green, Harmony Harris, Faith-Ann Young, London James, Anahid Boghosian and Sara Hassan Khani. They will develop their work during 14-week residencies in two studio spaces located in the Camera Obscura building overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Palisades Park.
As part of the program, the artists will lead free workshops open to the public. Artists receive a $2,500 honorarium and $500 materials budget for public workshops.
Green led a hands-on workshop with natural materials during Vamos al Parque!, commemorating Hispanic Heritage Month and Santa Monica's 150th Anniversary celebration, held on Sunday, Oct. 12, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Palisades Park.
Harris will lead a painting workshop at the final installment of Gather and Grow with Vinyl Vibes on Saturday, Oct. 18 in Reed Park. The event celebrates LGBTQ History Month with a music listening area, dance party and wine garden by Santa Monica's Offhand Wine Bar.
Future artist workshops will be posted at santamonica.gov/events.
Over the last two years, the residency program has evolved to address challenges facing the artist community, including limited resources, fluctuations in the gig economy and rising costs of studio space and art materials. This year included priority for artists affected by the Eaton and Palisades fires.
Green is a visual artist exploring nostalgia, femininity and identity through layered painting, drawing on her Tongva/Chumash heritage. Harris is a Black queer artist, muralist and community organizer whose bold murals transform public spaces. Young creates large-scale installations blending photography, digital collage and textile sculpture. James is a ceramic artist who founded Porcelain Sneakerhead, reimagining sneakers as ceramic sculptures. Boghosian is an Armenian-American multidisciplinary artist using reclaimed materials. Hassan Khani is an Iranian-born artist whose work explores memory and displacement.
The Camera Obscura Art Lab artist residency program is part of Santa Monica's Cultural Affairs Division network that has served more than 200 artists across various disciplines.
To learn more about city artist opportunities, visit https://www.santamonica.gov/process-explainers/artist-opportunities.
Edited by SMDP Staff