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Indie Grits Labs seeks artists to tell story of rural Southeast

Rural Project calls for Proposals

Application Deadline: Monday, Dec. 24, 2018 Indie Grits Labs is a non-profit organization that works to serve communities through media education, artist driven projects, and the Indie Grits Festival in Columbia. In Their Words "In 2018-2019, we are focusing on the issues facing small town and rural communities of the Southeast in the 21st century. The dominance of industrialized farming and the shrinking of domestic manufacturing have transformed the landscape of much of the South. In its wake, we see communities struggling with many of the same issues faced by underserved urban populations: poor access to education, health care, and opportunities for advancement. With this open call, we are looking for artists connected to rural communities across the Southeast to develop projects around the stories and experiences of this often overlooked and disrespected part of our region." Eligibility [caption id="attachment_34666" align="alignright" width="251"] The world-famous Hub Calls for Art Megaphone.[/caption] All applicants and/or their project must have a connection to the Southeast U.S., and it's up to each applicant to make an argument for a valid connection. ALL disciplines of art are acceptable: painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, sound, video, installation, mixed-media, etc. Artwork can be pre-existing, but it must have a connection to the 2018 Rural concept. In the application each artist must describe how their proposed work ties into the Rural Project. Applications are being accepted on a rolling basis, but the final date to apply for this cycle is Monday, Dec. 24, 2018. Past projects include "Two Cities 2018," "Seen & Heard," Visiones 2017," "Waterlines 2016," and "Daughters 2016." You can read more about each on the call for proposals page. (For inspiration, it's recommended that you familiarize yourself with the rural concept above and review the past projects to get a feel for the diversity, experimentation, and collaborative spirit that makes up the Indie Grits Labs history and approach to the media arts. Click here to read more on the call, its budget guidelines, and how it will tie into the Indie Grits Festival in 2019.

Tuning Up: Black History event in Anderson, call for short films, etc.

Good morning! "Tuning Up" is a morning post series where The Hub delivers quick-hit arts stories of interest to readers. Sometimes there will be one story, sometimes there will be several. Get in tune now, and have a masterpiece of a day. And now, in no particular order...


  • Tonight at 6 p.m., the Anderson County Library begins the county's Black History Month celebration with an event highlighting our state's role in the civil rights movement. To wit: did you know Rosa Parks received training in Columbia? More information here. (The event is sponsored by the Arts Commission.)
  • Are you more Halloween than Valentine's Day? An Arts Commission AVI grantee has a "ghoul" project in the works that you'll be "goblin" up. (Okay, we'll stop.) Filmmakers and screenplay writers are invited to help Deathcat Entertainment with "Grave Intentions" – their pun, not ours. Go here for more information.
  • More on films: Indie Grits Festival Director Seth Gadsden chatted Indie Grits Labs on the National Endowment for the Arts' "Art Works" podcast!
  • Call for art! Visual Arts Exchange in Raleigh is calling for art from installation artists. Check out The Cube and The Lab for more. Deadline for both spaces appears to be Feb. 15.
  • And finally... why we advocate: because through public support of the arts, the S.C. Arts Commission was able to award 342 grants totaling $3.3 million in 42 counties in FY 2017. That's 73% of our state funding – more than the legislative mandate of 70%.