Lisa Kennedy is an admissions assistant at the Vermont Studio Center, a non-profit artists' residency center in Johnson, Vermont. Each month, the center provides studios, room and board for 54 "resident" artists from around the world, including painters, sculptors, writers, printmakers and photographers. Architect and painter John Gregg founded the Vermont Studio Center in 1984 as a way to create a vibrant artist community in rural Vermont. Lisa has worked there for one year.

Monster.com: How did you get this job?

I called and they told me that staff members usually are people who have come up as residents first. So I did the whole application process, sent in 20 slides, got accepted and came up as a resident last March. I got financial aid for the residency -- half grant money that the center gave me and half work-exchange. I used my savings for the rest. I stayed as a resident for three months and then got hired on.

It's easy to transition from being a full-time artist here to being a part-time artist, part-time office slave. It actually makes sense once you're up here. It's so beautiful, and you get so much work done, you want to stay.

Mc: What does an admissions assistant do on a daily basis?

LK: The job in admissions consists of calling residents who are coming, arranging their travel, arranging their residencies, doing the written communication for them, working on getting them Visas and giving tours for them when they come. Basically, it's like being public relations between the center and the residents. I work about 30 hours each week. As a staff member, housing is provided. We also get three meals a day and access to the visiting artists.

Mc: What are the pros and cons of living where you work?

LK: Because I'm living where I work and I'm totally enmeshed in the community, the line is a little hazy between work and non-work. Because I'm constantly available, people can ask me, "Where's the library?" It's hard to ignore them and chuck over to your studio.

The benefits of being totally immersed are that every month there are 50 people who have figured out some way of living as an artist. So I'm constantly getting to have conversations with people who have chosen that for their lives and are doing it somehow.

I think the other really interesting part is the fact that the place is so impermanent, that I'm making my home at a place with such a turnover. People are so excited to be here. They come in with this energy and they work all day and night. It's a break for them -- away from their usual phone calls and responsibilities. But this is actually my home. I have all the phone calls and things they're escaping from. I have to make a distinction between myself and them to be able to feed off their energy but also give myself a break for not working as hard as they do on my art every day.

Mc: What do you like most about your job?

LK: Over the past year, I've been exposed to more than 1,000 artists. That's been the most valuable thing. Getting that much exposure and being in a beautiful place outside New York City is a difficult combination to find.

Mc: Are there any specific important lessons you've learned from the visiting artists?

LK: One really inspiring thing to see is these women artists in their late 70s and early 80s who are completely thrilled to be alive and still learning. They're still conversing about art, still outwardly really engaged with the art world and youth culture and still taking a lot of risks. I didn't come from "art stock." I didn't know any artists growing up. To see women who have identified themselves as artists and are successful was a real relief to me. It's really inspiring.

Mc: Have you made any lasting relationships or valuable connections?

LK: Yes, I've met many people in their mid to late 20s who are living in New York. When I leave here, there's a real supportive community down there. And there are also some visiting artists down there who I'll keep in contact with and who will help me in any way they can -- whether it's finding studio assistant work or finding a place to live.

Mc: What kind of advice would you have for someone else who wanted to work at a residency or foundation like this?

LK: If someone is interested in living or working at a residency center, it's worthwhile to investigate the different residency centers internationally. There are so many residency centers around the world and so much local funding available to attend them.

Mc: What skills or qualities are necessary to work at an artist residency program?

LK: I think a really helpful quality to have is to be able to handle unexpected circumstances. In a non-profit organization run by artists, there are glitches and often a resistance to order. You need to be able to find the humor in totally uncontrollable, unpredictable circumstances and to be curious about all aspects of life -- the nasty and the interesting. You get a lot of different personalities up here.

Mc: What do you plan to do next?

LK: I'm planning to go to the New York Studio School for the summer. Then I'll look into graduate school in New York City.

Mc: Where can people get more information?

LK: The Vermont Studio Center Web site. There are also a number of artist-in-residency programs around the world.