ArtWorks plans to hire around 100 youth apprentices for the 2026 summer season, offering paid jobs and career training for teens and young adults interested in working in the arts.
Founded in 1996, the Cincinnati-based nonprofit has hired thousands of youth apprentices and emerging artists to work on hundreds of murals and community-based art projects across the region.
Open to young people ages 14 to 21 from across Greater Cincinnati, apprentices work alongside professional teaching artists, such as Shahzia Sikander, on public art projects throughout the region. Projects span a range of creative disciplines, including mural-making, ceramics, photography, film, graphic design, screen printing, dance, research and writing.
Apprentices earn $13 per hour and work 20 to 30 hours per week during the eight-week summer program, which runs from June 1 through July 23. By the end of the program, they’ll have gained valuable experience for their resumes while contributing to the permanent creative and physical landscape of Greater Cincinnati.
“It’s amazing to reflect on our history of hiring thousands of young people and artists from across our community,” said Colleen Houston, ArtWorks CEO and artistic director.
“This program has launched so many creative careers and has been empowering for local artists and transformative for our city as a whole,” she continued. “We look forward to creating life-changing opportunities for at least 100 more youth this year.”
No experience required, lasting impact
Now in its 30th year, the youth apprenticeship program doesn’t require participants to have any prior arts experience. ArtWorks provides all project-specific training.
Along with hands-on artmaking, apprentices take part in career development programming that focuses on communication, collaboration, creativity, critical thinking and goal-setting. They also build practical workforce skills such as resume writing and financial literacy.
At its core, though, the program remains rooted in art and arts education, offering a meaningful entry point for young people interested in creative careers.
Over the years, the program has helped shape the paths of many young creatives, including Lizzy Klein, who joined ArtWorks as a teenager and later built a career in animation with studios including Disney, DreamWorks and Nickelodeon.
“ArtWorks showed me that art could be a serious profession,” Klein said. “It taught me what it means to show up, finish work and take pride in what you create.”
That influence extends beyond individual careers to the public art itself and to the artists who collaborate with ArtWorks youth.
Internationally recognized artist Shahzia Sikander worked with ArtWorks apprentices on the 2025 mural “Commons,” her first outdoor mural anywhere in the world. She said the downtown Cincinnati project showed the value of cross-generational collaboration in public art.
“Public artwork allows artist and viewer to overlap in unexpected ways,” Sikander said. “I’m interested in art that invites contemplation, reaction and reflection – that can linger in the viewer’s mind and make them find reasons to revisit and rethink.”
She said long-term murals created through ArtWorks’ partnerships with Cincinnati youth and young artists allow conversations to develop over time.
“That inherent compression of time is at the heart of ‘Commons,’” Sikander said.
Sikander also noted the dedication of the apprentices involved in the project.
“Their passion, talent and discipline were extraordinary,” she said, adding that the teaching artists provided strong leadership and mentorship.
What applicants need to know
Apprentices must live in or attend school in Greater Cincinnati and meet the program’s age requirements.
Beyond that, ArtWorks looks for applicants who bring a positive attitude, a willingness to learn and an interest in working collaboratively.
ArtWorks will host its annual Apprentice Application and Interview Weekend from Feb. 28 to March 1, 2026, at its Creative Campus in Walnut Hills. The event will answer questions and give applicants a clear sense of the program and what participation looks like.
Walk-ins can attend, though ArtWorks encourages appointments. Applicants who can’t make it in person should email Thanasiu at grace@artworkscincinnati.org by March 2.
Not sure if this opportunity fits you? Grace Thanasiu, ArtWorks’ recruitment and hiring manager, said anyone curious should check out the open house anyway.
“To anyone who’s unsure about applying, I always encourage them to go for it,” Thanasiu said.
“Even the application process itself is a valuable learning experience,” she continued, “and for those who join us, the relationships and growth that happen over the summer are meaningful to see.”
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