LOS ANGELES, CA.-Beginning this month, United States Artists (USA), a new organization devoted to supporting America’s finest living artists, will send six 2006 USA Fellows to Alaska to participate in an unprecedented, statewide artist-in-residence (AIR) program. Alaska AIR is a unique collaboration between USA and the Alaska-based Rasmuson Foundation. Five Alaskan cultural institutions – Alaska Dance Theatre, Anchorage Museum of History and Art, Koahnic Broadcast Corporation, Perseverance Theatre, and the University of Alaska in Fairbanks – will host the first residencies with artists selected from the pool of 2006 USA Fellows.

Made possible by a grant from the Rasmuson Foundation of Anchorage, one of the founding supporters of USA, Alaska AIR provides opportunities for short and long-term residencies at each of the host organizations. The broad range of creative experiences available through these partnerships reflects the breadth of artistic disciplines represented by the USA Fellows program, which recognizes outstanding artists by awarding 50 unrestricted grants of $50,000 annually. The first 50 USA Fellowships were awarded in December 2006, totaling $2.5 million.

“I am pleased to see this ambitious new program taking root within the state of Alaska,” said Diane Kaplan, president of the Rasmuson Foundation and a founding member of the USA Board of Directors. “Alaska AIR continues Rasmuson’s commitment to supporting arts and culture throughout Alaska, and at the same time, brings great artists from around the country into our state to enrich our institutions and communities.”

“United States Artists is committed to providing new opportunities for America’s finest creative talent, both through financial support and programs that catalyze new artistic expression,” said USA Executive Director Katharine DeShaw. “With the generous support of the Rasmuson Foundation, we have established this exciting partnership that will expose USA Fellows to native cultures, important arts communities, and dramatic landscapes unlike any in the continental U.S. At the same time, we hope the work of the USA Fellows will benefit Alaskan cultural organizations and enrich the audiences that experience these programs.”

Last spring, the 2006 USA Fellows applied for opportunities at the host organizations. Interested artists were paired with the cultural institution best suited to support the scope and needs of each project. USA Fellows participating in the inaugural season of Alaska AIR are: designer and USA Target Fellow Tanya Agui�iga (California), dance duo and USA Prudential Fellows Eiko & Koma (New York), visual artist and USA Nimoy Fellow Michael Joo (New York), photographer and USA Broad Fellow Catherine Opie (California), and radio artist and USA Rockefeller Fellow Dmae Roberts (Oregon).

“This is such a unique opportunity for me to interact with an entirely different context – environmentally and culturally,” said Michael Joo, who will be in residence at the Anchorage Museum this fall. “I’ve always been interested in how older traditions and contemporary technology can be juxtaposed within my art, and Alaska will be an amazing place to inform that work.”

The Alaska AIR program is part of USA’s growth as a national organization that continues to develop new initiatives to meet the needs of living artists and to advocate for increased appreciation for the important role of individual creativity within society. The second annual USA Fellowships will be announced on November 17, 2007, in a celebration at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles.