Spiritual Pedagogies Fellowship Dia Chelsea, 2026–2027

About Dia Art Foundation

Based in New York, Dia Art Foundation is committed to advancing, realizing, and preserving the vision of artists. A nonprofit founded in 1974, Dia collects the work of some of the most renowned artists of the last half-century; presents long-term, site-specific projects; executes new commissions; and produces scholarly publications related to its exhibitions and collection.

Learning at Dia is founded on the idea that art is an active, self-determined experience. Since their inception in 1993 in New York, learning programs have offered space for the collective curiosity and inquiry of artists, educators, and learners to be in critical exchange at Dia.

For more about Dia’s constellation of locations and sites, exhibitions, and programs of engagement, visit their website.

About the fellowship

Dia’s Learning and Engagement fellowships bring together early-career artists, educators, and cultural producers to explore and deepen their own creative, intellectual, and professional practices. Based in Beacon and Chelsea and engaging Dia’s sites across New York, fellows activate Dia as a resource for collective scholarship, experimentation, and exchange.

The 2026–2027 Spiritual Pedagogies Fellowship draws on the sustained inquiry of artists in Dia’s collection and exhibition history to question the evolving relationship between artistic practice, pedagogy, and spirituality. What does it mean for artists to act as conduits, channel inspiration, and create artworks that invite contemplation, revelation, or transcendence? How have spiritual traditions and spaces shaped the ways that people gather, learn, and make meaning? With a broad understanding of spirituality that encompasses theological, mystical, ritualistic, and embodied practices, fellows will examine how spirituality is entwined with creative and pedagogical pursuits and explore what a rigorous engagement with spirituality might open in our understanding of contemporary art, learning, and culture.

Rooted in Dia’s commitment to long-form inquiry and artist-led experimentation, fellows will participate in process-driven research, dialogue, and exchange alongside an artist mentor, fostering individual growth while nurturing a collective exploration of how creative and pedagogical practices are informed by spirituality.

A virtual information session will be held on Monday, July 20, 2026, 4–5pm; register here.

Details

Department: Learning and Engagement
Cohort: six fellows
Duration: October 2026–June 2027

Schedule:

• Monthly cohort sessions: first Friday of each month at Dia Chelsea or Beacon; select sessions will take place at alternative sites and/or times
• Monthly mentorship meetings
• Monthly program engagements

Stipend: $3000, to be disbursed in two payments of $1,500 in January and June 2027

The fellowship includes:

• Individualized mentorship from Dia artists, educators, and staff
• An inclusive and co-created peer-learning community
• Access to materials and community spaces
• Direct engagement with Dia’s public programs, exhibitions, collection, and archive
• Direct engagement with Dia’s locations and sites in New York, including but not limited to Dia Bridgehampton, The New York Earth Room, and The Broken Kilometer
• The opportunity to apply for Fieldwork, a program that invites participants of Dia’s apprenticeship, fellowship, and teen programs to conduct research projects that engage with Dia’s sites and their related environments and communities

Selection criteria

Dia invites applications from early-career artists, educators, and cultural producers with an interest in contemporary art, experimental pedagogy, and community engagement, and who seek opportunities to deepen their individual creative or pedagogical practice in collaboration with peers and within the context of Dia Art Foundation and its Learning and Engagement department.

The selection process is open and competitive; application materials are assessed on the thoughtfulness and quality of work submitted as well as demonstrated potential to thrive in a collaborative and self-determinative peer community.

Dia Art Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, color, national origin, ethnic origin, citizenship status, disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law in its employment policies. In addition, Dia will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and supports a neurodiverse workplace. Candidates with nontraditional learning or career paths and/or applicants whose qualifications differ from those listed above are encouraged to apply.

Application Instructions

To apply, please complete the online application, linked here. You will be asked to submit the following:

A letter of intent in audio, video, or written form
A creative response to one of three prompts in any form or medium
Optional supplemental materials
To submit a PDF application, please inquire by contacting learning@diaart.org.

Applications will be accepted through Sunday, August 9, 2026.