A mile north of the Capitol, on a random Tuesday in mid-2025, over 200 creatives gathered at THIS JANUARY’s The Creative Department happy hour, buzzing with energy about art, strategy, design, filmmaking, and creative pursuits from sewing to startups.

The creative community in DC is thriving — and though DC is not known for its creative scene, the founders of THIS JANUARY think our nation’s capital may also be the next great creative capital.

It’s a city where Transformer hosts an annual gala featuring hundreds of works from artists in DC and all over the world. Where 23 local designers got the keys of a soon-to-be-demolished hotel, creating works of art in every room. Where AIGA gathers hundreds of designers for a week-long celebration of sold-out parties, lectures, and portfolio reviews. Where Art All Night thrives, and beloved art fairs like Umbrella are flooded with excited locals. And we haven’t even touched on the incredible emerging vintage scene!

As DC’s indie creative agency, THIS JANUARY wants to support local art and help make DC the next great American creative city. The team aims to speak to 100 students per year about creative careers, host at least one community event per quarter, and donate office space to nonprofits for events all year long.

With the pilot program NOOK, the team at THIS JANUARY will directly support the next generation of great local creative talent by providing funding, workspace, and hands-on mentorship to an emerging DC artist.

The 8-week pilot program will offer the artist dedicated work space and a $4,000 stipend (plus a $1,000 materials stipend) to pursue a project of their choice and help bring their vision to life. The resident artist will also have the opportunity to sit down with established mentors in the DC art landscape.

The selected artist will give an artist talk with a work walkthrough, and the THIS JANUARY team will provide content capture of their work process as well as the final works.

Applications are ongoing, and all DC/DMV-area artists are eligible, regardless of discipline.
Questions? Please reach out to maggie@thisjanuary.com.

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ARTIST RESIDENCY PROGRAM DETAILS

• Stipend: $4,000 (50% at start, 50% at completion)
• Materials: $1,000 materials stipend (artist purchases directly)
• Workspace: Access to THIS JANUARY’s office space on Wednesdays and Fridays with a dedicated work area in the open office
• Mentorship: Regular check-ins with Maggie Winters (Co‑Founder & CCO), Zach Goodwin (Co‑Founder & CCO), and a one-on-one sitdown with art mentors, including Victoria Reis, Founder + Executive Director of Transformer and Teddy Rodger, Cultural Programs Curator, Goethe-Institut Washington
• Content & Visibility: Regular content capture with the TJC team
• Donate one work (install‑ready) to the THIS JANUARY collection
• Eligibility: The top criteria for selection will be that impossible-to-define x-factor. Don’t let your perception of the boundaries of “art” or traditional parameters get in the way of applying! We welcome all insiders, outsiders, and exceptional weirdos.
• DC or DMV-based artists are welcome to apply (live or work in the DC area, or are moving to the area, DMV-curious applicants are welcome). All disciplines welcome (visual, design, installation, new media, sound, AI/creative tech). We welcome applications from underrepresented artists and practices.