Gloucester Daily Times
http://www.gloucestertimes.com/
Published: March 22, 2006
Forum tonight on seARTS grants
By Ben Carder
Gloucester Daily Correspondent
Grand displays of portraits, sculptures and mosaics, widely admired in museums around the world, aren't always an attainable goal even for the most talented of artists. Due to limited funds, artists often lack the extra dollars that could have made their work shine.
But Susan Erony says that the opportunity to shine is here, thanks to the help of the Society for the Encouragement of the Arts.
The Society for the Encouragement of the Arts recently unveiled three ways artists can participate in programs for the 2006 season, and at the same time, make their own work credible in the eyes of art enthusiasts. The programs - Partner with an Artist and the Gloucester New Arts Festival - were introduced last year. This year, Arts-Biz, a new initiative formed by seARTS, will complete the grant-awarding trifecta.
"Grants are like stamps of approval from the outside," said Erony, executive director of seARTS. "The message from them is that an artist's work is worthwhile to an audience."
Erony's group will award four $1,000 PWA grants to artists that create "collaborative and innovative" arts projects for businesses along Gloucester's waterfront and downtown. Encouraged to take into account the historical aspect of each site before embarking on the project, seARTS will give each artist four months to complete their projects, which will be unveiled this fall. The Partner With An Artist program requires that each artist partner with a local business. Erony said that seARTS staff will help match artists and businesses whenever possible.
Gloucester New Arts Festival will award 30 participating artists honorariums ranging from $200 to $400 and is open to all proposals and ideas for site-specific work. Their festival will take place in mid-August.
The most recent addition to the grant programs, Arts Biz, is slightly different than the other two. Arts-Biz will reimburse performance costs of up to $200 for exhibition and performance costs for 16 seARTS member artists with confirmed exhibition opportunities. As seARTS newest program that's working to build relationships with both performance artists and businesses, Arts-Biz initial phase will be to build a list of artists and businesses interested in exhibition and performance opportunities. The members of this roster of artists and businesses can then connect one with another for potential exhibition and performance opportunities. There is no deadline on the reimbursement which will be offered on a first come, first serve basis.
All grants are available only to seARTS members, but all Cape Ann artists, Erony said, are eligible once they become members.
"Artist's resumes are built on shows, grants, performances, publications, all external manifestations of public approval and acceptance," said Erony. "The situation is no different for artists than for people in other fields. The more success one has, the more success one can hope for."
Last year, Erony and the executive committee for seARTS did the judging on who was awarded the grants for the PWA; Sarah Silfer, curator for GNAF, decided who would be awarded that grant. Erony said the selection process varies with each program.
"If an artist cannot afford to make work, no one can experience the art," she said. "Art is a communication between the maker and the audience. Without that communication, the art exists in a vacuum, and both the artist and the public miss out."
A public information session to discuss the grants will be held tonight at 7 at the YMCA Arts and Activities Center on 5 Center St.