152 Grants Awarded to Artists and Organizations in 66 Communities
DES MOINES - Blazing an art trail through the countryside. Reviving old-fashioned printmaking in a historic post office. Tracing connections between the environment and people of color.
These are just three of the 152 innovative projects that will receive grants for fiscal year 2018 from the Iowa Arts Council.
Overall, the Iowa Arts Council awarded $1,301,546 to organizations, people and projects in 66 communities across 45 Iowa counties today. View a list of grantees, alphabetized by grant, then by city. The Iowa Arts Council received 260 eligible grant applications requesting $1,992,611 during this funding cycle.
"These investments support artists and organizations who are raising the quality of life in our communities and making them more culturally vibrant and attractive places to live," Iowa Arts Council Administrator Matthew Harris said. "We congratulate this year's grant recipients and encourage all Iowans to fully experience and enjoy the arts in Iowa."
The Southwest Iowa Arts Council received a $3,000 grant to present the Southwest Iowa Art Tour, which connects people from rural communities to artists through a self-guided tour in an eight-county region. The tour will take Iowans and others to more than 22 different locations where they can interact with 75 artists in galleries and studios.
Meanwhile, the Poste Print Festival in Perry received a $1,895 grant in support of its one-day festival on Dec. 9 in the newly renovated 1913 post office. The festival celebrates original prints and the artists who created them. The festival will expose the general public to traditional printmaking and promote, grow and create new connections in the arts community in the state.
Over in Iowa City, Public Space One received a $6,100 grant to bring three different artists to Iowa City for artist residencies called "Ecologies," which explores the relationships between ecology, environment and experiences of people of color who have been marginalized. Each artist will visit Iowa City a month at a time this summer to work on their art and share it through youth workshops and public programs.
The grant funding announced today was awarded through a variety of categories, including the following:
- 42 Art Project Grants: $320,794
- 8 Cultural Heritage Project Grants: $66,360
- 11 Capacity Building Grants: $27,500
- 2 Partnership Grants: $20,000
- 5 Artist Fellowships: $50,000
- 3 Arts Build Communities Grants: $30,000
- 26 School Arts Experience Grants: $21,892
- 55 Cultural Leadership Partners: $765,000
The Iowa Arts Council is a division of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs.
The Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs and its three divisions – the Iowa Arts Council, Produce Iowa - State Office of Media Production and the State Historical Society of Iowa – empower Iowa to build and sustain culturally vibrant communities by connecting Iowans to the people, places and points of pride that define our state. The department’s work enables Iowa to be recognized as a state that fosters creativity and serves as a catalyst for innovation where the stories of Iowa are preserved and communicated to connect past, present and future generations.