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Writer's pictureJean Sumner Downs

New Aid for Artists, Creative Organizations, and Venue Operators

Here are four newly announced funding sources for artists, creative organizations, and shuttered venue operators. Please share this post with your networks so that we can reach as many artists and creatives as possible.



1. The COVID-19 Arts & Culture Relief Fund

The pandemic continues to hit Denver’s arts and creative sector especially hard. In the early fall, Bonfils-Stanton Foundation and The Denver Foundation awarded nearly $1.2 million to 41 organizations through the COVID-19 Arts & Culture Relief Fund. Now, the Foundations are gearing up for a second round of emergency funding.


In response to the coronavirus pandemic, Bonfils-Stanton Foundation, The Denver Foundation, and Create Boulder created the COVID Arts & Culture Relief Fund to support nonprofit organizations that are experiencing a dramatic, unexpected loss in revenue.


​Grant awards from the COVID-19 Arts & Culture Relief Fund will range between $5,000 to $50,000 per organization, with the goal of injecting much-needed revenue to keep organizations afloat during the public health crisis.


​Arts organizations are invited to apply from January 6 – January 27, 2021.





2. CERF+ COVID-19 Relief Grant Program for Artists


CERF+ is now accepting applications for the third cycle of their COVID-19 Relief Grant Program.


This program will provide one-time $1,000 grants to artists working in craft disciplines who continue to face dire food, housing, and medical insecurities caused by the pandemic.


Priority will be given to eligible artists who have traditionally been underserved by the grantmaking community, including people of color, and folk and traditional artists.


Given the magnitude of this ongoing crisis, CERF+ anticipates more requests for funding than available funds. COVID-19 Relief Grant recipients from prior rounds are not eligible for additional COVID-19 Relief Grants.


Apply from Wednesday, January 13, 2021, at 9 a.m. (ET) to Wednesday, February 3, 2021, at 5 p.m. (ET).





3. National Endowment for the Arts - Grants for Arts Projects


These grants support arts projects that use the arts to unite and heal in response to current events; celebrate our creativity and cultural heritage; invite mutual respect for differing beliefs and values; and enrich humanity.


The Arts Endowment encourages applications from a variety of eligible organizations, e.g., with small, medium, or large budgets, and from rural to urban communities. Similarly, projects may be large or small, existing or new, and may take place in any part of the nation’s 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories.


​The National Endowment for the Arts is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and fostering mutual respect for the diverse beliefs and values of all individuals and groups. The Arts Endowment encourages projects that use the arts to unite and heal in response to current events, as well as address any of the following:

  • Celebrate America’s creativity and/or cultural heritage.

  • Invite a dialogue that fosters a mutual respect for the diverse beliefs and values of all persons and groups.

  • Enrich our humanity by broadening our understanding of ourselves as individuals and as a society.

Applicants may request cost share/matching grants ranging from $10,000 to $100,000. Designated local arts agencies eligible to subgrant may request from $10,000 to $150,000 for subgranting programs in the Local Arts Agencies discipline. A minimum cost share/match equal to the grant amount is required.


Apply via the Applicant Portal from February 16 - February 23, 2021.






4. Shuttered Venue Operators Grant


The newly announced Shuttered Venue Operators Grant will provide emergency assistance for eligible venues affected by the COVID pandemic.


The Shuttered Venue Operators (SVO) Grant program was established by The Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Non-Profits, and Venues Act, signed into law on December 27, 2020. The program includes $15 billion in grants to shuttered venues, to be administered by the Small Business Administration’s Office of Disaster Assistance.


Eligible applicants may qualify for SVO Grants equal to 45% of their gross earned revenue, with the maximum amount available for a single grant award of $10 million. $2 billion is reserved for eligible applications with up to 50 full-time employees.


Although the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is not yet accepting applications for the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program, you can begin learning about the program, gather information about your monthly revenues to see if you have eligible expenses, and make a list of how you will use funds if you are awarded.


The grant opportunity will be posted on www.grants.gov at a later date and the SBA will hold a pre-application information session.


For the latest information, visit www.sba.gov/coronavirusrelief and email svogrant@sba.gov with any questions.




 

For more aid resources for artists and creatives in Southern Colorado, visit the Corazon de Trinidad Creative District's Aid for Artists page.


 

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