We hope to see you at Mt. San Angelo in the new year! We remind writers, visual artists, and composers that applications for Summer 2021 residencies are due by midnight on January 15, 2021. The current application includes several fully-funded fellowship opportunities. Be sure to check your eligibility and share these opportunities with others.

As you welcome the new year in your own way, we invite you to take a moment and consider making a gift to support VCCA and our ability to continue operations through our closure. Many of you have made year-end gifts on Giving Tuesday and throughout December, and for that we thank you! It is this time of year that we are most grateful for our supporters, friends, and generous Fellows who come forward and give back. Any amount is much appreciated. We recommend taking a look at today's resource at the bottom of the newsletter for info about tax deductions for donations this year. If you have questions about giving to VCCA, please feel free to email us.

We doubt you missed our biggest news of the year — our purchase of the Mt. San Angelo property from Sweet Briar College. But you may have missed the story of the signature gift that helped bring that news to fruition. A major gift by Cynthia Tremblay of a painting — Georgia O’Keeffe’s Blue Sand — made it possible for VCCA to secure a permanent home for its artist residency program. You can revisit the story in the Wednesday Champagne edition of this newsletter from July.

To date, our new Bookshop page showcases more than 100 recent and forthcoming publications by VCCA Fellows!

Our Fireplace Series has provided a platform for 33 Fellows across disciplines to present their work to audiences over 16 live stream events.

Our new Composer Playlist project has featured 35 musical pieces by 36 VCCA Fellow composers.

348 Fellows, friends, supporters, staff, and Board members have joined Virtual VCCA, our new online community platform that we've enjoyed watching take shape this year.

Since launching this community newsletter, we've served up 22 editions of "Wednesday Lemonade", eight editions of "Wednesday Cider," and one special edition "Wednesday Champagne."

Since purchasing Mt. San Angelo, we've been proud, busy, proper homeowners — renovating, refurbishing, and restoring Mt. San Angelo's buildings and grounds. Kevin and Sheila offered a video preview of key projects last month.

Cheryl gave us all a virtual walking tour, featured work by Fellows in outdoor community readings, and helped organize a successful virtual version of the annual meeting of the VCCA France Association.

We're looking forward to continuing our virtual Fireplace Series in 2021. Our first guests of the year will be composer Andrea Clearfield and writer Doris Iarovici. Our first host is composer and Fellows Council member Judith Shatin.

Andrea Clearfield is an award-winning composer of 160 works for orchestra, opera, chorus, chamber ensemble, dance, and multimedia collaborations. She will discuss her first opera, MILA, Great Sorcerer, with libretto by Jean-Claude van Itallie and Lois Walden, which was presented at the NYC Prototype Festival in 2019.

Author and psychiatrist Doris Iarovici will read from her latest story collection Minus One. Several of the stories in Minus One were written or revised at VCCA, and conversations with other VCCA Fellows enriched their conceptualization and revision. Minus One is about connecting with others after loss.

Tune in next Thursday, January 7, at 7:30 p.m. ET. Learn more about our guests and their work on our website.

In case you missed it, you can replay our final fireplace gathering of 2020. In addition to sharing fantastic work with us, visual artist Susan Jamison and writer Eric Weiner joined our host Steven Petrow in wide-ranging conversation and calls for radical self-acceptance. Watch on our website.

To be considered for a MICA Fellowship, complete the “Application for Mt. San Angelo Residencies” by January 15, 2021. In the very first question on the application, you can indicate fellowships for which you'd like to be considered.

Did you know that if you make a gift to VCCA before the end of the year, your gift can have a greater impact under CARES Act tax provisions? Under the pandemic relief program, taxpayers can deduct up to $300, even if they take the standard deduction. This New York Times article, It's Easier to Get a Tax Deduction for Donations This Year, breaks it down for you.

🧡 Stay safe, and be well.

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