Signal Fire welcomes applications from artists of all disciplines, as well as curators, activists, and researchers for http://www.signalfirearts.org/programs/2017-stealing-fire/">Stealing Fire, a year of backcountry retreats united by the theme of storytelling. Applications open January 1, 2017 for all trips.

This year’s trips will visit seven regions of the West, each one culturally and geographically distinct, and each one shaped by competing narratives. We will bring together a range of voices shared through myths, folklore, testimony, and histories forgotten and suppressed. We will also consider those stories that seem to reveal a common humanity; the tale of a trickster “stealing fire” appears in myriad versions throughout the world. Participants will be invited to share stories from their own lives and cultures and we will ask ourselves how artists, as storytellers, can contribute to a collective history of the land that acknowledges past injustice and contributes to a more equitable and resilient future.

Our 2017 Selection Committee includes New York-based Peruvian composer Ivonne Paredes, interdisciplinary artist Jina Valentine, and painter Duane Slick. Applications are free and will be available in Spanish and English. Fellowships and scholarships are available for each of this year’s programs.

For artists of all disciplines (including writers and performers), curators, activists, and researchers:

April 2-8: http://www.signalfirearts.org/trip/backpacking-chiricahua-mountains/">Border Story: Chiricahua Mountains Backpacking

June 17-23: http://www.signalfirearts.org/trip/backpacking-hart-mountain/">Great Blanket of Stars: Southeast Oregon Campout

November 5-11: http://www.signalfirearts.org/trip/canoe-big-bend/">Border Story: Canoeing the Rio Grande

*this trip will be led in English and Spanish

For current students and emerging artists of all disciplines:

March 25-31: http://www.signalfirearts.org/trip/mfa-spring-break-kanab-creek-wilderness/">Written in the Rock: Wide Open Studios MFA Spring Break Trip

June 25- July 1: http://www.signalfirearts.org/trip/wide-open-studios-the-klamath/">The River Unbound: Wide Open Studios Klamath Backpacking

July 23- Aug 19: http://www.signalfirearts.org/trip/summerimmersion2017/">Coyote Was Going There: Wide Open Studios Summer Immersion

*Application period January 1- April 1. Available for 3 credits through Oregon College of Art and Craft.