Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
A 360-degree turnaround
20 artists win grants to help fund creativity
Twenty Northwest Arkansas area artists will be the recipients of Artists 360 grants, distributed by the Mid America Arts Alliance and made possible through the support of the Walton Family Foundation.
“We have been carrying out a program called ‘Artist Inc.,’ with training for individual artists, that has been taking place at Arts Center of the Ozarks in Springdale, in Little Rock, and in six other communities all over the state,” says Mid America Arts Alliance CEO Todd Stein. The Artist Inc. program teaches artists practical ways to turn their art into profitable businesses. “Over the 10 years we’ve been doing this program, we’ve been good at becoming aware of the needs of artists. … Trying to find this type of financial support for artists is difficult, so for the Walton Family Foundation to provide a grant to be able to support artists in this way was just wonderful.”
Stein says that his organization received 314 applications for the 20 available grants. Practicing artists were eligible for grants of $7,500, while student artists could receive $1,500.
“The types of projects they could apply for support for were projects that include the touring or presenting of their work, within and outside of Arkansas,” says Stein. “For support of works in progress, projects that involve specific phases of work in progress — for example, that could be the creation of a component of a visual arts exhibition, creation of any part of a dance choreography or creative research for professional advancement — and these would be projects that activate the Northwest Arkansas community and address social issues, opportunities and challenges.”
“As a singer/songwriter, the grant is the difference [between] complete failure and possible success,” says
recipient JD Clayton. “Recording good quality music is not easy, and it can be very expensive. I plan to use the grant to help pay for the new record I just made in Nashville and to spread the word about my music.”
came in perfect timing with a collaborative project I’ve been invited to participate in,” says visual artist Linda Lopez.
“The Artists 360 grant was perfectly timed with a collaborative project I have been invited to participate in with Steinbeisser’s Experimental Gastronomy project,” says visual artist Linda Lopez, another grant recipient. “This experimental dinner is an experience of all senses and questions our traditional tableware landscape and interactions. I will be using this grant to
“It’s not uncommon to be an
artist working a day job and doing your craft by night,” says grant recipient JD Clayton. “At my stage of the game, any money I make usually must go towards the things I need each month. The Artists 360 grant gives artist the chance to be successful and to pursue their dreams.” visit my paired chef with prototypes of my serving sculptures, create an exclusive series for Steinbeisser and attend the gastronomy dinner in May.”