The Artist Residency

Who and Why

Old-fashioned factory building made of bricks with multiple windows and a sign that reads "Fabrication Foundry Co." in black text on white background, and a vintage car parked in front.

The Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry in the early 1900’s and today

The WaF Artist Residency , established June 2025, is a new and evolving art metals program operating out of the historic Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry based in Manitowoc, WI. The Artist Residency is an open, process-focused journey welcoming artists from all backgrounds and disciplines.

It is designed to cultivate curiosity and innovation, offering resources and opportunities that help participants realize their potential. Here, creativity is not measured by outcomes alone but by the skills, practices, and reflections that give shape to meaningful work.

More than a program, it is a community — a gathering of makers, thinkers, and dreamers who learn from one another and contribute to a shared creative culture. Like a golden ticket, the residency offers entry into an environment alive with imagination, exchange, and possibility, a living space for curiosity and collaboration, always ready for the next voice to join in.

WAFCO (parent company) link Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry, a non-ferrous castings company

Unlock Potential

A worker is pouring molten metal from a ladle into a mold in a factory.
Sketch of a stylized face or mask with geometric shapes, blue and brown ink, and a ruler placed on the right side. The text below reads: 'Final template too scale. Sunframe AU effortz'.
A person wearing gloves is working on a beige model of a tank with a large cannon, set on a black surface.
Close-up photo of a scroll saw cutting a piece of light-colored wood with handwritten text and lines.
Hand-drawn sports or race track design with various labeled sections such as P.1, P.2, P.3, P.4, and P.5, and notes indicating to cut out the circle to make a tunnel, with a black decocolor marker resting on the paper.

At the heart of any WaF residency is the rare access to Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry and all it has to offer — a complex and extensive environment of materials, tools, and processes. This setting opens possibilities for experimentation at a scale and depth rarely available, giving artists the chance to create work that resonates beyond their time in residence.

Residents are encouraged to embrace their capabilities and strive for excellence while remaining open to discovery. With time, space, and support, each artist is free to follow their own journey, engaging deeply with ideas that matter both personally and collectively.

During your time you will be supported by our Artistic Director to document and maximize your capabilities and foundry experience.

A woman with long blonde curly hair, wearing a black dress and a large silver statement necklace, sitting on an orange upholstered chair in a cozy room with a stone wall and decorative items in the background.

Founder and Creative Director | Traci Mia Schwartz

Traci Mia Schwartz is a fourth-generation family member of Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry and serves on its Board of Directors. Born into a world of art and architecture, she has carried that foundation into a lifelong journey of creativity, from building businesses, restaurants, community nonprofits, event planning, exhibit curating, fundraising, and advocating for wellness, music, and the arts. As VP of Docomomo Wisconsin, she works to preserve Modern buildings, structures, cultural sites, and allied public arts realized during the 20th Century.

Passionate about creating atmospheres that liberate energy and potential, Traci extends this vision into the Foundry Artist Residency. Here, artists are welcomed into an inclusive, supportive environment that encourages exploration of ideas  and visions, celebrating creativity in all its forms.

 The residency fosters meaningful exchange between artists and the workforce, tradition and experimentation, material and metaphor.

An elderly man with a beard and hat holding a wooden circle sculpture inside a rustic outdoor setting.
Man painting on a mural wall, holding a paintbrush in one hand and a jar of paint in the other, wearing a flat cap and a white shirt with rolled-up sleeves.

Lester O. Schwartz | Family History | Inspiration

Lester O. Schwartz was born in Manitowoc in 1912, the sixth child of Martha and Abraham Schwartz, founder of Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry. He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and, in 1937, received the prestigious Edward L. Ryerson Traveling Fellowship, which funded a steamship expedition around the world. While in Paris, he studied at the Académie Colarossi and met Pablo Picasso. Soon after, he learned that his work was being exhibited at a Chicago gallery alongside Picasso’s.

Upon returning to the United States, Schwartz exhibited his work in both New York City and Chicago. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1942, and in 1944 accepted a teaching position at the Layton School of Art in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Later that year, he was appointed Artist in Residence at Ripon College, a role he held until 1977. Over his three-decade tenure, he built and shaped the college’s art department, teaching, mentoring, and continuing to paint prolifically.

One notable piece, created in 1989, was a salute to his father, an assemblage of mahogany patterns used at WAF to make castings for Evinrude, Harnischfeger, GM and Kissel. His property was covered with enchanting welded metal sculptures in various themes,

Schwartz married Gloria Greco, with whom he had three daughters: Leslie, Tanya, and Gigi. He continued to teach and exhibit his artwork throughout the United States for the remainder of his life. In 2006 Les Schwartz died at age 93.