Getting Here
Zea Mays is located in a quiet part of town approximately 1.2 miles from the center of Florence and 2 miles from downtown Northampton and food markets. Having your own car is the most convenient way to get around. The closest airport is Bradley International Airport in Hartford, Connecticut. There is a shuttle service, Valley Transporter, that you can use to arrange a ride to and from the airport.
Amtrak trains are available from Boston to Springfield and New York City to Northampton. Peter Pan buses are available from Boston to Northampton.
Getting Around
If you do not plan on bringing your own car, other ways we recommend getting around are:
Taxi: Go Green Cab Company
Bike: There is 1 bicycle at the studio available for residents to use. The city of Northampton has a rental bike service with a station right across the street from the studio. Downtown Northampton is a 2-mile walk or bike ride away.
Rideshare apps like Uber and Lyft are also an option, but please keep in mind they take longer than they do in major cities. If you need to make a short trip by car to buy groceries or pick up supplies, Shel is often available to help you out.
Checking In
Check-in time is 4 PM on the first Monday of your residency. If you plan on arriving later, please get in touch with Shel in order to arrange a check-in time.
During Your Stay
The Guest Suite is located on the 2nd floor of the studio and is accessible only via stairs. The kitchen and each bedroom are heated and air-conditioned with individual mini-splits.
The following amenities are included in the Guest Suite: linens (including sheets, towels, dish towels), blankets, clothes washer/dryer, laundry soap, fully equipped kitchen, gas stove/oven, drip coffee maker, french press, tea kettle, microwave, cleaning supplies, hair dryer, paper towels, toilet paper.
We are committed to recycling and composting. Separate bins are provided for paper, recyclables and compost. Trash and recycling are picked up once a week by Sheldon on Monday at 12 noon. There are marked bins and a trash can located in the downstairs foyer next to the stairs to deposit all refuse until pickup.
During your stay you may be sharing the Guest Suite with another resident, a visiting faculty member or a workshop participant. We welcome guests of all genders, backgrounds and nationalities, and we expect guests to share the common spaces in the apartment and treat each other with respect at all times.
Working in the Studio
Your residency is your time – you can do with it what you want. If you are working in the Annex (the private studio) and you want total privacy, you can just keep your door shut. If you want to connect with the community, you are always invited to have lunch or tea in the members’ studio with the members who are working that day. You can also arrange to have an open studio time during your residency to share your work with the studio members.
Individual instruction for any techniques practiced at Zea Mays is available and must be scheduled in advance. There is an additional cost of $75 per hour for private lessons. Please inform us if private lessons are something in which you are interested.
The Studios at Zea Mays Printmaking available to our residency artists:
The Annex – Private Residency Artists only
- 24-hour access, 7 days a week
- Private outdoor entrance
- Heated and air conditioned
- Takach etching press – 39.5” x 72” bed
- Glass topped tables
- Vertical etching tank with ferric chloride (if requested)
- Screenprinting board and supplies (if requested)
- Large rollers (if requested)
The Teaching Studio – open 10am-6pm Tuesday-Sunday
Space and equipment must be reserved in advance
- Heated and air conditioned
- 2 Takach etching presses
- Etching facility for copper plates in ferric chloride (up to 18” x 24”)
- Etching facility for zinc and aluminum plates etched in copper sulfate (up to 18” x 24”)
- Spraybooth and airbrush for acrylic aquatint
- Vandercook 4 letterpress
Photopolymer Darkroom – open 10am-6pm Tuesday-Sunday
Space and equipment must be reserved in advance
- Nuarc UV light exposure unit (max. plate size 18″ x 24″)
- Aquatint screens
- Plate developing facility and equipment
- Plate Shear and Kuttrimmer
Screen Printing Studio – open 10am-6pm Tuesday-Sunday
Space and equipment must be reserved in advance
- Darkroom with LED exposure unit- largest screen size 27 inches x 34 inches outside dimensions
- Washout sink and power washer
- Screen printing table and portable screen presses
- Large light table
Supplies During Your Residency
Supplies that are provided by the studio to residency artists, free of charge: Press blankets, newsprint, cleaning supplies, rags, etching grounds and strippers (BIG Ground, Soywax Soft Ground), etching mordants (ferric chloride and copper sulfate), screen printing emulsion and stripper, a limited number of silk screens that must be reserved in advance (16” x 20”) and (27” x 34”), a selection of rollers and brayers, ink knives.
Supplies that can be purchased at the studio: Selected printmaking papers, copper plates, aluminum plates, petg plates, sintra plates, tarletan.
Supplies the Resident must bring themselves: Plates, screens, inks and modifiers (oil-based etching and relief inks, water-washable etching and relief inks are all acceptable, no rubber-based inks or inks with solvents), brushes, personal tools (ie. etching tools, woodcut tools, scissors, knives, tape, etc). International Artists-in-Residence may have access to some tools and equipment, please inquire.
Artists-in-Residence may not bring any VOC solvents to Zea Mays and must have other chemistry approved in advance. We currently do not permit cyanotype chemistry in the studio.
Artists-in-Residence are welcome to mail supplies to the studio in advance, and we will hold them for you until your arrival. Our mailing address is Zea Mays Printmaking, 320 Riverside Drive, Florence MA 01062. Please make sure “Zea Mays Printmaking” as well as your name are included in the shipping info to ensure your packages are delivered correctly.
Checking Out
Check-out time from The Annex is midnight on the last Sunday of your residency. Check-out time from the Member’s Studio is 6 PM on the last Sunday of your residency.
Check out time from the apartment is 10 AM on the last Monday of your residency. Keys can be left in your bedroom or on the kitchen table.
You are responsible for cleaning up your space in the printshop and the apartment before you leave. A broom and dustpan is located in the apartment and in the studio. Ask Sheldon if you need other cleaning supplies.