On May 15, 2019, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) made their second major grant announcement of fiscal year 2019: $80.4 million for 1,114 new awards located in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and four U.S. jurisdictions.Â
14 grants totaling $480,000 were awarded to Arizona programs/organizations.
“Reflecting the diverse artistic richness of our nation, these Arts Endowment-funded projects are varied in their size, scope, and artistic discipline,” said Arts Endowment Acting Chairman Mary Anne Carter. “The projects also illustrate the unique geographic reach of Arts Endowment funding, serving Americans in places large and small in all corners of the country.”
Awards from this round of funding come from four categories: Art Works II, Our Town, state and regional partnerships and Research: Art Works, plus a renewal in NEA Research Labs.
Number of Grants: 14
Total Dollar Amount: $480,000
City of Mesa, Arizona
$50,000 Mesa, AZ
Art Works – Local Arts Agencies
To support the commission and presentation of public art related to the role of water in the greater Sonoran Desert region, and associated outreach activities.
Ballet Arizona
$30,000 Phoenix, AZ
Art Works – Dance
To support Ballet Under the Stars, a free outdoor performance series in local parks throughout the Phoenix metropolitan area.
City of Phoenix, Arizona (aka Office of Arts & Culture)
$125,000 Phoenix, AZ
Our Town – Design
To support sunBLOCK, a series of public art installations at transit stops, and a community arts festival.
City of Phoenix, Arizona (aka Office of Arts & Culture) (on behalf of Phoenix Office of Arts
& Culture)
$30,000 Phoenix, AZ
Art Works – Local Arts Agencies
To support the Phoenix Neighborhood Arts grants program.
Phoenix Theatre, Inc. (aka Phoenix Theatre)
$10,000 Phoenix, AZ
Art Works – Musical Theater
To support the development and world premiere production of Americano.
Rising Youth Theatre
$10,000 Phoenix, AZ
Art Works – Theater
To support Face to Face, an intergenerational convening of youth and adult artists from a wide range of backgrounds that will culminate in the development and performance of an original play.
Scottsdale Cultural Council (aka Scottsdale Arts/Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art)
$20,000 Scottsdale, AZ
Art Works – Local Arts Agencies
To support a group exhibition at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, including the commission of new work, the publication of an exhibition catalogue, and educational programming for the public.
West Valley Arts Council
$10,000 Surprise, AZ
Art Works – Local Arts Agencies
To support the creation and installation of public art through the Gallery 37 student apprenticeship program.
City of Tempe, Arizona (on behalf of Community Services Department, Arts and Culture Division)
$10,000 Tempe, AZ
Art Works – Local Arts Agencies
To support Tempe Playlist, a community audio project that will highlight music, storytelling, and poetry by local artists.
Borderlands Theater Teatro Fronterizo, Inc. (aka Borderlands Theater)
$50,000 Tucson, AZ
Our Town – Design
To support a community festival featuring storytelling, digital projection, and theatrical performances in Nogales, Arizona.
Lead Guitar (aka Lead Guitar)
$30,000 Tucson, AZ
Art Works – Arts Education
To support the expansion of a free classical guitar program in Chicago Public Schools (CPS).
Southwest Folklife Alliance, Inc. (aka Tucson Meet Yourself)
$35,000 Tucson, AZ
Art Works – Folk & Traditional Arts
To support the Tucson Meet Yourself Folklife Festival.
Southwest Folklife Alliance, Inc. (aka Tucson Meet Yourself)
$50,000 Tucson, AZ
Art Works – Folk & Traditional Arts
To support folklife activities, including an e-journal publication, an apprenticeship program, and the development of educational resources for citizen-folklorists, teachers, and hospice care workers.
Del E. Webb Center for the Performing Arts
$20,000 Wickenburg, AZ
Art Works – Dance
To support the creation of new works and engagement activities by ODC/Dance and Camille A. Brown & Dancers.
Art Works
Art Works is the National Endowment for the Arts’ principal grantmaking program. The Arts Endowment convened panels to review 1,605 eligible applications for funding and the agency will award 972 grants ranging from $10,000-$100,000 totaling more than $25 million.
Our Town
Our Town is the Arts Endowment’s signature creative placemaking program that supports partnerships of artists, arts organizations, and municipal government that work to revitalize neighborhoods. Two program areas are place-based projects with grants ranging from $25,000 to $200,000, and knowledge building projects with grant amounts ranging from $25,000-$100,000.
Research: Art Works
Research: Art Works supports research that investigates the value or impact of the arts, either as individual components of the U.S. arts ecology or as they interact with each other and with other domains of American life.
About the National Endowment for the Arts
Established by Congress in 1965, the NEA is the independent federal agency whose funding and support gives Americans the opportunity to participate in the arts, exercise their imaginations, and develop their creative capacities. Through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector, the NEA supports arts learning, affirms and celebrates America’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, and extends its work to promote equal access to the arts in every community across America. For more information, visit www.arts.gov.
To read the entire announcement, click here.
Banner Photo: Borderlands Theater’s multi-media production “Barrio Stories in Barrio Anita.” Courtesy Borderlands Theater, 2018.
