Professional development grants for artists and arts organizations available
Applications are now being accepted for professional development grants for artists and arts organizations through the West Virginia Commission on the Arts of the West Virginia Division of Culture and History. Applications must be postmarked by Feb. 1, 2007. Projects must take place between July 1, 2007 and June 30, 2008.
The grants are designed to encourage artistic development. Individual artists are eligible to apply for support to expand or improve their work or to share their expertise with others. Artists may apply for funds to purchase new equipment or materials to pursue new avenues in their media; travel to and registration, meals and lodging for professional development workshops; and self-designed apprenticeships (joint application must be filed by master and apprentice).
First-time applicants can request up to $2,500, representing 75 percent of the cost of each item or service requested, and provide the remaining 25 percent cash match. For previous recipients, the match is 50 percent with the same spending cap.
Organizations are eligible to apply for support to expand or improve programs that support individual artists in their professional development. In addition, they are encouraged to form new partnerships, open new or expanded avenues, sites and training for working artists. Eligible projects include mid- or advanced-level workshops and apprenticeship programs. Organizations can request up to $5,000, or 75 percent of the project cost for the first year and 50 percent in succeeding years.
Individual applicants must be working artists who have been West Virginia residents for one year prior to February 1. Emerging and professional artists are eligible to apply. Applicants creating work under the supervision of a master artist/instructor will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Arts organizations must be federally designated non-profit, tax exempt groups that have operated in the state or one year.
For more information about the professional development grants, or to receive an application and guidelines, contact Jeff Pierson, individual artist services coordinator for the Division, at (304) 558-0240, ext. 717. The applications and guidelines also are available from our website at http://www.wvculture.org/arts/grants.html.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History, an agency of the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts, brings together the state’s past, present and future through programs and services in the areas of archives and history, the arts, historic preservation and museums. The Cultural Center is West Virginia’s official showcase for the arts. Visit the Division’s website at
www.wvculture.org for more information about programs of the Division. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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