September 23, 2021

Dear Djerassi Community,

As valued members of our Program community, we wanted to share an important update with you on behalf of the Board of Trustees.

For more than 40 years, our mission at the Djerassi Resident Artists Program has been to support and enhance the creativity of artists by providing uninterrupted time for work, reflection, and collegial interaction in a setting of great natural beauty. Thousands of artists from diverse backgrounds and countries around the world have experienced that gift of time. We feel that providing the community we serve with an environment that nurtures their artistic practice is more important than ever.

Recent years have brought no shortage of challenges to our planet, communities, and lives. The Djerassi Resident Artists Program is no exception. Over the past eighteen months we have confronted a confluence of challenges, including the disruption of our residency program caused by the COVID-19 pandemic; the incidence of wildfire in the vicinity of the program; and, most recently, a distressing incident within our community that has called on us to confront difficult realities of our own. While on site, one of our resident artists reported comments from a Program employee that were racially charged, threatening, and unacceptable. While the disturbing incident was investigated and all appropriate disciplinary action has been taken, its aftermath highlighted a need to review, assess, and address our organization’s policies and work environment to make it more responsive and inclusive, for which the Program’s leadership is ultimately responsible. To those affected, we apologize and express regret.

We want you to know that the Board of Trustees takes these matters very seriously and has moved swiftly and decisively, committing to a range of actions already taken and longer-term ones that are underway. We have started working with outside Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) experts to assess our policies and procedures; to identify and implement best-practices; and to engage in necessary, challenging conversations with appropriate training and education for the board and staff.

We have put in place additional security measures and are considering new approaches to our leadership structure. While difficult, we have also accepted the letter of resignation of our Executive Director, in which she expressed her belief that the organization would be better served by a leader with extensive experience in tackling the DEI related concerns that have been raised.

These most recent inward-looking measures are consistent with the cultural competency work we had committed to in our organization’s strategic plan five years ago. Over the past five years at Djerassi, we have worked to significantly diversify our resident applicant pool and serve more artists of color, resulting in our most diverse cohort of residents in our history with a significant majority of accepted 2022 resident artists identifying as gender-diverse, Black, Indigenous, or Person of Color. While we realize that there is much more work ahead, we are dedicated to prioritizing and continuing our organization’s DEI efforts.

At this pivotal moment, in the world and in our society, we have a chance to implement greater listening and responsiveness to all voices across our organization.

The Program’s Board and staff are working closely together, continuing to facilitate limited residencies and programming consistent with our COVID-19 plan and local public health guidelines.

As we move forward with the recommended actions, training, policies, and procedures that come out of the process now underway, we look forward to continuing to engage with you - our incredible and diverse community of artists, activists, and visionary supporters of the arts and the environment.

We are grateful to those artists and individuals who have shared their experiences, contributed to this process, and by doing so have given us the opportunity to address issues and take actions that will enable us to better live up to our mission and ideals.

Thank you very much for your continued support which offers artists the gift of time and makes the magic of Djerassi possible.

We will be very happy to connect with you and hope to see you at the Program soon.

Sincerely,

Anna Sidana

Chair, Board of Trustees

Djerassi Resident Artists Program

Alexander Djerassi

Vice Chair, Board of Trustees

Djerassi Resident Artists Program