Caribbean Linked Artist Residency Program is a crucial space for building awareness across disparate creative communities of the Caribbean by finding ways to connect young and emerging artists with each other. This roving residency project focuses on the sustainable development, regional integration and critical education of younger artists while exposing Dutch Antillean, Anglophone, Francophone and Hispanic artists to each other. Caribbean Linked creates viable opportunities for young artists, writers, critics and creative activists to foster new relationships with a larger community, contributing to the holistic development of the creative industries. In addition, it provides the opportunity to link with industry professionals who facilitate access to wider global conversations for the region’s practitioners, while allowing the artists to create work, exchange ideas and participate in larger dialogues around art production and market. Caribbean Linked is providing the necessary support which allows for regional integration and understanding to occur naturally, through the arts. Art has the ability to function and operate as a bridge to narrow the gaps in our cultural differences, revealing similarities that are essential for progress/growth. In our local communities, there are major socio-economic problems plaguing the futures of emerging talent. Caribbean Linked functions as an act of resistance against failing political and resolute nationalistic systems. It raises issues of collective futures by discussing the survival of artists and the sustainability of local and intra-regional creative communities. It is funded by the Mondriaan Foundation, Stichting DOEN and the Prince Claus Fund.
