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Charleston Rhizome Collective first SC recipient of national ArtPlace America grant

[caption id="attachment_33275" align="alignright" width="270"] Charleston Rhizome Collective leaders with City of Charleston Cultural Affairs Director Scott Watson and Mayor John Tecklenburg[/caption] A Charleston grassroots organization is the first South Carolina recipient of a highly competitive national grant from ArtPlace America. The Charleston Rhizome Collective will receive $300,000 for the conNECKtedTOO project to help address the needs of small and tiny businesses using installations, visuals, forums, a tour, an app-based interactive map and a youth entrepreneurship program. conNECKtedTOO will create a solidarity hub and network linking tiny neighborhood businesses to consolidate buying and selling power and engage residents in decisions over business ownership, loans, job training, hiring practices, wholesale prices, schooling and housing. ArtPlace’s National Creative Placemaking Fund invests money in community development projects where artists, arts organizations, and arts and culture activity work to strengthen communities across 10 sectors of community planning and development. ArtPlace received 987 applications this year, and after narrowing the field to 70 finalists, selected conNECKtedTOO as one of only 23 projects that will receive a total of $8.7 million in funding. The 23 projects represent communities of all sizes across 18 states and one U.S. territory, with almost 52 percent of this year’s funded projects taking place in rural communities. The South Carolina Arts Commission has been actively promoting this opportunity for the past five years and working with organizations interested in applying, according to Executive Director Ken May. “The ArtPlace application is a rigorous and competitive process; many South Carolina organizations have applied and only a few have made it to the finalist level. Clearly, conNECKtedTOO had the right ingredients—authenticity, local engagement, artistic sensibility and a compelling need—to bring home this prestigious award. Congratulations to the Collective for being the first South Carolina organization to join the cadre of creative place making efforts funded by ArtPlace America.” ArtPlace Director of National Grantmaking F. Javier Torres visited South Carolina to present workshops about the grant opportunity and conduct site visits. “This year’s investments highlight critical dimensions of creative placemaking strategy that can provide great inspiration to communities across the country," said Torres. "We are deeply excited to announce these 23 new investments as our seventh cohort of funded projects through the National Creative Placemaking Fund.” For conNECKtedTOO, the Charleston Rhizome Collective will work with partners such as Jason Gourdine of the Black Collective, the South Carolina Association for Community Economic Development, the City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs and several tiny businesses. “All of Charleston commends the conNECKted team on their ArtPlace America award,” said Charleston Mayor John J. Tecklenburg. “Their past projects and recent efforts build confidence that the arts can be effectively put to work in new and creative ways to sustain and strengthen our local communities.” Find out more about the 2017 funded projects here. About The Charleston Rhizome Collective Based in Charleston, South Carolina, the Charleston Rhizome Collective is an art-in/with community group, where education, art and activism intersect. By design, it is grassroots, inter-racial and inter-generational. Through the arts, the Collective aims to amplify the voices of neighborhoods absent from public and private plans: social, cultural and economic. About ArtPlace America ArtPlace America (ArtPlace) is a ten-year collaboration among 16 partner foundations, along with 8 federal agencies and 6 financial institutions, that works to position arts and culture as a core sector of comprehensive community planning and development in order to help strengthen the social, physical, and economic fabric of communities. ArtPlace focuses its work on creative placemaking, projects in which art plays an intentional and integrated role in place-based community planning and development. This brings artists, arts organizations, and artistic activity into the suite of placemaking strategies pioneered by Jane Jacobs and her colleagues, who believed that community development must be locally informed, human-centric, and holistic. For more information visit www.ArtPlaceAmerica.org

Two SC groups are finalists for national ArtPlace America grants

Two South Carolina organizations -- A Call to Action in Bluffton and conNECKted in Charleston -- are among 80 finalists that ArtPlace America will consider for its 2016 National Creative Placemaking Fund. Each of the finalist projects has proposed an opportunity for arts and culture to help address a community development challenge or opportunity related to agriculture and food; economic development; education and youth; environment and energy; health, housing; immigration; public safety; transportation; or workforce development. The 80 projects represent six percent of the 1,361 initial applications that ArtPlace reviewed. The projects are proposed for 65 different communities across 35 states and two US territories, including seven states where ArtPlace has not yet funded a project. South Carolina is one of those seven states. Eighty percent of this year’s finalists are first-time applicants to the National Creative Placemaking Fund. A Call to Action project summary

South Carolina sits between Charleston and Beaufort to the north, Hilton Head and Savannah to the south.  Construction, commerce and tourism are booming in this historic and cultural district. Currently, most of the downtown revitalization is driven by outside investors with money, vision, and connections to capitalize on the historic significance or architectural charm of a few neglected, undervalued blocks. Existing residents tend to benefit primarily from selling their properties to outsiders who then convert them into viable, profitable venues. A Call to Action, a local artist-led community-based organization, will implement a pilot initiative at the local AME church transforming it into a neighborhood clearing-house connecting residents with agencies, businesses, artists, and peers. This hub will support local homeowners in gaining access to the resources necessary to benefit from downtown revitalization.
conNECKted project summary
Charleston S.C., has been praised for its preservation of buildings and its quality of life in travel and business magazines. Simultaneously, this city has seen an increase in economic and education disparity for its residents. For the first time in 40 years, Charleston has elected a new mayor interested in closing the gap of opportunity for the City. conNECKted will implement a pilot project in east Charleston from Romney St, crossing Hampton Park to Huger St, the Harmon Field Park, parts of Gadsden Green, Peninsula West and Radcliffe neighborhoods, to reach East Calhoun St, the Maritime Center area and back north. After the closing of most of the local schools in this predominantly low-income community, conNECKted will design temporary "Public Squares" with "Imagination Tables" in order to capture and elevate residents’ priorities to ensure access to quality education in their neighborhoods and present creative concepts to the administration and local school board.
Each of the finalists will now complete a more extensive application and schedule a site visit with a peer expert and an ArtPlace staff member.  These peer experts will come together as an in-person panel to make recommendations this fall for the $10.5 million that ArtPlace will invest in this round of the National Creative Placemaking Fund. To date, ArtPlace’s National Creative Placemaking Fund has invested $67 million in 227 projects across 152 communities of all sizes. The complete list of 2016 finalists may be found here. A complete list of our National Creative Placemaking Fund investments to date may be found here. Via: ArtPlace America  

Reminder — Feb. 16 is the deadline to register with ArtPlace

February 16 at 3:59 p.m. EST is the deadline to register with ArtPlace if you or your organization intend to apply for a grant from the National Creative Placemaking Fund. Even if you are not sure yet that you will apply, you must register by today.

Questions? Email or call Susan DuPlessis, (803) 734-8693. ArtPlace American deadlines:
  • Feb. 16, 3:59 p.m. – registration
  • March 2, 3:35 p.m. – grant applications due
  • May 21 – grant notification
ArtPlace’s grants program offers $50,000 to $500,000 to support place-based arts projects as they relate to advancing our communities. Since 2011, ArtPlace has invested $66.875 million in 227 projects across 152 communities of all sizes, in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Its National Creative Placemaking Fund is designed to invest in creative placemaking projects that involve cross-sector partners committed to improving the social, physical, and economic fabric of their communities through arts-based strategies. About ArtPlace ArtPlace America (www.artplaceamerica.org) is a 10-year collaboration among 15 foundations, eight federal agencies, and six financial institutions who are dedicated to positioning art and culture as a core sector of comprehensive community planning and development in order to help strengthen the social, physical, and economic fabric of communities. ArtPlace focuses its work on creative placemaking, the set of practices in which art and culture work intentionally to help to transform a place. ArtPlace does this through a national grants program and five community-wide investments; it seeks to understand and disseminate successful practices through its research strategies; and it works to connect practitioners, organizations, and communities with one another.

Reminder — ArtPlace America creative placemaking grant session Feb. 10

Free workshop! The South Carolina Arts Commission welcomes ArtPlace America to Columbia February 10 for an informational session about its National Creative Placemaking Fund. Director of National Grantmaking F. Javier Torres is visiting to discuss the ArtPlace grant process and encourage applications from South Carolina. The session is free and open to anyone from any area of the state. Join us Wednesday, February 10 (RSVPs are NOT required)

Topics:
  • What is creative placemaking?
  • An overview of the grant process.
  • What makes a strong application?
  • A discussion of how the arts have been used to “move the needle” to address relevant and challenging community issues.
Who should attend? Anyone and everyone interested in learning about how you can be supported to creatively make change in your community! Artists, arts organizations, designers, community developers, planners, city and town administrators, community residents, business owners, faith and religious groups, philanthropists, and more are invited to learn more about arts-based strategies to community development. The National Creative Placemaking Fund will fund anyone regardless of tax-exempt status. Consider these questions: What’s your understanding of how the arts change communities? Have you identified a community issue that leverages arts and culture as an intervention?  What part do partners play? In what geographic “place” will you work to solve this community-based issue? Who sits at “the table” when the decisions are made for this intervention? How will you measure success? These and other questions will guide the conversation and provide specifics about ArtPlace’s grants program that offers $50,000 to $500,000 to support place-based arts projects as they relate to advancing our communities. Since 2011, ArtPlace has invested $66.875 million in 227 projects across 152 communities of all sizes, in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Its National Grants Program is designed to invest in creative placemaking projects that involve cross-sector partners committed to improving the social, physical, and economic fabric of their communities through arts-based strategies. Questions about the sessions? Email or call Susan DuPlessis, (803) 734-8693. ArtPlace American deadlines:
  • Feb. 16, 3:59 p.m. – registration
  • March 2, 3:35 p.m. – grant applications due
  • May 21 – grant notification
About ArtPlace ArtPlace America (www.artplaceamerica.org) is a 10-year collaboration among 15 foundations, eight federal agencies, and six financial institutions who are dedicated to positioning art and culture as a core sector of comprehensive community planning and development in order to help strengthen the social, physical, and economic fabric of communities. ArtPlace focuses its work on creative placemaking, the set of practices in which art and culture work intentionally to help to transform a place. ArtPlace does this through a national grants program and five community-wide investments; it seeks to understand and disseminate successful practices through its research strategies; and it works to connect practitioners, organizations, and communities with one another.

Learn how to apply for ArtPlace America’s creative placemaking grants

The South Carolina Arts Commission welcomes ArtPlace America to Columbia February 10 for an informational session about its National Creative Placemaking Fund. Director of National Grantmaking F. Javier Torres is visiting to discuss the ArtPlace grant process and encourage applications from South Carolina. The session is free and open to anyone from any area of the state. Join us Wednesday, February 10 (RSVPs are NOT required)

Topics:
  • What is creative placemaking?
  • An overview of the grant process.
  • What makes a strong application?
  • A discussion of how the arts have been used to “move the needle” to address relevant and challenging community issues.
Who should attend? Anyone and everyone interested in learning about how you can be supported to creatively make change in your community! Artists, arts organizations, designers, community developers, planners, city and town administrators, community residents, business owners, faith and religious groups, philanthropists, and more are invited to learn more about arts-based strategies to community development. The National Creative Placemaking Fund will fund anyone regardless of tax-exempt status. Consider these questions: What’s your understanding of how the arts change communities? Have you identified a community issue that leverages arts and culture as an intervention?  What part do partners play? In what geographic “place” will you work to solve this community-based issue? Who sits at “the table” when the decisions are made for this intervention? How will you measure success? These and other questions will guide the conversation and provide specifics about ArtPlace’s grants program that offers $50,000 to $500,000 to support place-based arts projects as they relate to advancing our communities. Since 2011, ArtPlace has invested $66.875 million in 227 projects across 152 communities of all sizes, in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Its National Grants Program is designed to invest in creative placemaking projects that involve cross-sector partners committed to improving the social, physical, and economic fabric of their communities through arts-based strategies. Questions about the sessions? Email or call Susan DuPlessis, (803) 734-8693. ArtPlace American deadlines:
  • Feb. 16, 3:59 p.m. - registration
  • March 2, 3:35 p.m. - grant applications due
  • May 21 - grant notification
Grant information webinars:
  • Feb. 2 - 8:00 a.m.
  • Feb. 2 - 12:30 p.m.
  • Feb. 3 - 5:30 p.m.
About ArtPlace ArtPlace America (www.artplaceamerica.org) is a 10-year collaboration among 15 foundations, eight federal agencies, and six financial institutions who are dedicated to positioning art and culture as a core sector of comprehensive community planning and development in order to help strengthen the social, physical, and economic fabric of communities. ArtPlace focuses its work on creative placemaking, the set of practices in which art and culture work intentionally to help to transform a place. ArtPlace does this through a national grants program and five community-wide investments; it seeks to understand and disseminate successful practices through its research strategies; and it works to connect practitioners, organizations, and communities with one another.

Learn more about creative placemaking and how to apply for ArtPlace grants

The South Carolina Arts Commission welcomes ArtPlace America to the Lowcountry September 21-22 for three informational sessions about its National Grants Program. Director of National Grantmaking F. Javier Torres and Program Assistant Leila Tamari are visiting to encourage applications from South Carolina. The sessions are free and open to anyone from any area of the state. Join us for one of three sessions (RSVPs are NOT required):

Topics:
  • What is creative placemaking?
  • An overview of the grant process.
  • What makes a strong application?
  • A discussion of how the arts have been used to "move the needle" to address relevant and challenging community issues.
Who should attend? Anyone and everyone interested in learning about how you can be supported to creatively make change in your community! Artists, arts organizations, designers, community developers, planners, city and town administrators, community residents, business owners, faith and religious groups, philanthropists, and more are invited to learn more about arts-based strategies to community development. The National Grants Program will fund anyone regardless of tax-exempt status. Consider these questions: What's your understanding of how the arts change communities? Have you identified a community issue that leverages arts and culture as an intervention?  What part do partners play? In what geographic "place" will you work to solve this community-based issue? Who sits at "the table" when the decisions are made for this intervention? How will you measure success? These and other questions will guide the conversation and provide specifics about ArtPlace's grants program that offers $50,000 to $500,000 to support place-based arts projects as they relate to advancing our communities. Since 2011, ArtPlace has invested $66.875 million in 227 projects across 152 communities of all sizes, in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Its National Grants Program is designed to invest in creative placemaking projects that involve cross-sector partners committed to improving the social, physical, and economic fabric of their communities through arts-based strategies. Questions about the sessions? Email or call Susan DuPlessis, (803) 734-8693. The timeframe: ArtPlace will open its call for projects in early January 2016. About ArtPlace  ArtPlace America (www.artplaceamerica.org) is a 10-year collaboration among 15 foundations, eight federal agencies, and six financial institutions who are dedicated to positioning art and culture as a core sector of comprehensive community planning and development in order to help strengthen the social, physical, and economic fabric of communities. ArtPlace focuses its work on creative placemaking, the set of practices in which art and culture work intentionally to help to transform a place. ArtPlace does this through a national grants program and five community-wide investments; it seeks to understand and disseminate successful practices through its research strategies; and it works to connect practitioners, organizations, and communities with one another.

ArtPlace offers new grant opportunity for place-based non-government organizations

ArtPlace is accepting applications for Community Development Investments, a new one-time grant program offering $18 million to place-based non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with a primary mission of community planning and development. The program combines financial resources with advice from national experts to help organizations sustainably incorporate arts and cultural strategies into their work. Applications are due March 12, 2015. ArtPlace will select one NGO in each of six geographical regions and provide up to $3 million in funding per organization. One of the six targeted regions is a metropolitan community in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, or West Virginia.

The call for applications is open to place-based NGOs that:
  • have a defined geographical area of focus (neighborhood, town, city, region, etc.)
  • are working to achieve a variety of social, economic, and physical outcomes in that geographical area
  • regularly partner and work across sectors to achieve these community outcomes
  • have long-term vision and presence in a community
  • do not have a significant history of working with the arts and cultural sector
Each selected organization will also work with national creative placemaking experts, a Financial Capital Consortium, a Federal Grants Advisory Team, and a Community Documentation and Research Team. ArtPlace is interested in investing in organizations that represent a variety of regions of the country and work in communities of different sizes. Combining those desires with the geographical priorities of our funding partners, ArtPlace is inviting organizations with a programmatic focus in one of the following six regions:
  1. a community of any size in Alaska
  2. a community of any size in California
  3. a nonmetropolitan area community in Arizona, New Mexico, or Texas
  4. a nonmetropolitan area community in Minnesota
  5. one or more neighborhoods of Philadelphia, PA
  6. a metropolitan community in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, or West Virginia
Visit www.artplaceamerica.org/CDI for more information. Via: ArtPlace

Did you miss our ArtPlace America grants workshop?

Unable to join us for the grant workshops presented by ArtPlace America? Here's a link to the presentation: ArtPlace Presentation (PDF) Also, be sure to check out the ArtPlace website for guidelines about their next round of grants. You must register as an applicant by Oct. 31, and Letters of Intent are due Nov. 3. Your South Carolina Arts Commission coordinator can also provide assistance.

ArtPlace grants for artists, arts organizations, designers, cities and communities

Learn how to apply for an ArtPlace grant. The South Carolina Arts Commission, in partnership with ArtPlace America, will offer South Carolina artists, arts organizations, designers, cities and communities an overview of the ArtPlace grants program during two informational sessions on Tuesday, Oct. 14. Prentice Onayemi, director of communications for ArtPlace, will share tips for preparing the grant application and answer your questions. ArtPlace is currently accepting applications for the next round of its National Grants Program and is particularly interested in funding South Carolina projects. The National Grants Program is designed to invest in creative placemaking projects that involve cross-sector partners committed to improving the social, physical, and economic fabric of their communities through arts-based strategies. Letters of inquiry are due Nov. 3. Join us Oct. 14 in person at either location or by telephone for the Spartanburg session. (RSVPs are NOT required.):

The sessions will cover these topics:
  • An overview of how ArtPlace understands creative placemaking
  • Tips and suggestions for crafting a strong application
  • An opportunity to ask questions about the ArtPlace National Grants Program
PREPARATION FOR THE MEETING/CALL: Please review the letter of inquiry information to determine if this opportunity is a good fit for you or your organization. HOW TO CALL IN FOR THE SPARTANBURG SESSION:
  1. A few minutes before 2:30 p.m., dial 1-800-753-1965.
  2. You will be instructed to enter a seven digit access code.
  3. Enter the access code: 7348679, followed by the # sign.
  4. If you are the first to join the call, please stay on the line until others call in.
  5. If your first attempt to join the call is unsuccessful, please hang up and try again. If repeated attempts are not successful, call the Arts Commission's front desk at (803) 734-8696 and someone will try to assist you.
To date, ArtPlace has awarded $56.8 million through 189 grants to projects serving 122 communities across 42 states and the District of Columbia. Grants range from $50,000-$500,000, and this year ArtPlace intends to support approximately 40 projects with roughly $10 million. ABOUT ARTPLACE ArtPlace America is a 10-year collaboration among 14 foundations, eight federal agencies, and six financial institutions who are dedicated to positioning art and culture as a core sector of comprehensive community planning and development in order to help strengthen the social, physical, and economic fabric of communities. ArtPlace focuses its work on creative placemaking, the set of practices in which art and culture work intentionally to help to transform a place. ArtPlace does this through a national grants program and five community-wide investments; it seeks to understand and disseminate successful practices through its research strategies; and it works to connect practitioners, organizations, and communities with one another.

ArtPlace “particularly interested” in grant applications from South Carolina

Letters of Inquiry due Nov. 3, 2014. ArtPlace America is currently accepting Letters of Inquiry for the 2015 round of its National Grants Program. Grants range from $50,000-500,000. This year ArtPlace intends to support approximately 40 projects with roughly $10 million. Any individual or organization within the United States or U.S. Territories is eligible to apply. ArtPlace’s National Grants Program targets creative placemaking projects in which art and culture help strengthen the social, physical, and economic fabric of communities. ArtPlace is particularly interested in projects from states in which it has not yet granted, including Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, and Wyoming. Since 2011, ArtPlace’s National Grants Program has contributed $56.8 million to 189 projects in 122 communities across 42 states and the District of Columbia Letters of Inquiry are due by November 3, 2014, at 3:59 p.m. EST. Answers to Frequently Asked Questions are available on the ArtPlace website, and technical issues can be directed to grants@artplaceamerica.org. For more information or to submit an application, please visit www.ArtPlaceAmerica.org/LOI. Via: ArtPlace

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