$400,000 in Artist Relief, Grants and Commissions Announced by ArtsWave, City of Cincinnati and Duke Energy

Nov 06, 2020

Bi-Okoto performs before the announcement of two new grant programs for Cincinnati artists.

November 6, 2020 – At a press conference held outside the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center (NURFC), ArtsWave, the engine for the arts, working in partnership with the City of Cincinnati and Duke Energy, announced two opportunities which will provide $400,000 in total to local artists in the form of pandemic relief and creative project support.

The Cincinnati Arts Access Fund (CAAF) is being established by the City of Cincinnati with $200,000 in CARES Act funding. Two-hundred eligible artists of all types (visual artists, performers, actors, musicians, singers, etc.), who are city residents and who earn 25% or more of their income through their art, can receive COVID-related relief grants of $1,000 each. Two application deadlines, November 20 and December 4, being administered by ArtsWave, are designed to distribute the funds before the end of the year.

“The coronavirus pandemic is causing extreme hardship for large numbers of out-of-work artists in Cincinnati,” said City Councilmember Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney, who proposed the CAAF. “These grants can be used to reimburse living expenses or to find new ways to generate income.” To “pay back,” artists will find a way to share their art with the City. “You might hear a violinist playing outside of a nursing home, or a spoken word artist performing poetry on the corner of a neighborhood business district. They might be Cincinnati Arts Access Fund recipients!”

Councilmember Kearney, champion of CAAF, stresses how integral the art community is to the city.

A second, separate $200,000 program for projects addressing the theme of “truth and reconciliation” was announced by Cincinnati Councilmember Greg Landsman. Black and Brown artists are eligible to apply for up to $10,000 to create a work, in any artistic discipline, that helps re-imagine a more just and equitable future.

“Cincinnati’s Black and Brown artists have long been chronicling our uneven progress to overcome racism and division,” City Councilmember Landsman said. “These grants are another way for us to lift up their voices and bring our community together.” The City of Cincinnati is contributing $75,000 toward this program.

To extend the program to artists throughout the Cincinnati metro and Northern Kentucky region, Duke Energy is providing $25,000 in additional funding. Rhonda Whitaker Hurtt, Vice President, Community Relations & Economic Development for Duke Energy, added, “Artists and their works have the ability to lead us to greater empathy and compassion. This is especially true of Black and Latino artists. Their talents, creations and perspectives can help us make sense of recent challenges and prompt us to take further action toward greater equality for all.”

ArtsWave will match both investments with $100,000 from its Arts Vibrancy Recovery Fund, resulting in a funding pool that will enable a total of 20-25 projects that explore the program’s strategic focus on truth and reconciliation. All artists selected for grants will be asked to involve community partners and to exhibit or present their work to the public in summer 2021. To execute the program, ArtsWave will collaborate with local partners including the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. The application deadline is December 15, 2020 and grant recipients will be announced on January 22, 2021.

“ArtsWave is honored to be partnering with the City of Cincinnati and Duke Energy to create these two important funding opportunities for artists,” said Alecia Kintner, president and CEO of ArtsWave. “We have a chance to provide much-needed financial relief for 200 vital contributors to our creative community, and we are investing in the continued work and impact of Black and Brown artists across our region.”

Eligibility guidelines, program requirements and applications for both the Cincinnati Arts Access Fund for artist relief and the Truth and Reconciliation Grants for Black & Brown artists are available at www.artswave.org/apply.

From left to right: Alecia Kinter (president and CEO of ArtsWave), Gee Horton (artist), Councilmember Kearney, Kellan Robinson (staff), Councilmember Landsman, and Kelcey Steele (artist).