New Works Lab 2026
We are proud to announce and congratulate our 2026 New Works Lab Residents (previous Emergence Artist in Residence)!
Lucier&Rose @lucierandrose
notAmuse Theater @notamuse_theater
Jiemin Yang @jiemin.art
Barkha Dance Company @barkha_dance
Culture Lab LIC's New Works Lab is a developmental performing arts program geared toward the support and creation of new work.
​Started in 2021 by former Director of Performing Arts, Tana Sirois, the residency began as a desire to offer free rehearsal and performance space to performing artists. Since its conception the residency has been further developed and led by Artistic Director Tess Howsam expanding the program to include peer review sessions during the artists year and culminating in Culture Lab LIC’s New Works Festival November and December.
“New work is the heartbeat of the arts. It is through the creation and courage of bringing forth something never before seen— once only a glimmer in an artist’s mind—that we witness our world anew through their lens. It is through this work that makes New York City the epicenter for arts and culture.
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It is contradictory that the very thing that makes this city is under supported. We see this primarily in the cost of space to create. I cannot overstate the importance of protecting and nurturing safe spaces for new creation. Programs like the New Works Lab residency are rare—few organizations take the risk of offering nine months of free space, resources, and a platform for presentation with the mission to serve the artist and their work at no fiscal gain.
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This is what we desperately need to cultivate to ensure NYC remains the cultural hub it has historically been and Culture Lab LIC aims to offer this support.
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I am deeply proud to lead an organization that centers its mission on giving performing artists what they need most: time, space, and trust. These elements form the foundation and the soul of Culture Lab LIC’s New Works Lab residency program. "
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— Tess Howsam, Artistic Director, Culture Lab LIC
Thanks to our sponsors: Plaxall Properties, Steve Madden, TF Cornerstone, Douglaston Development, Paragon LIC, Schuman Properties, SPR Law, Howard Gilman Foundation, New York State Council on the Arts
