August 2020
USArtists International Guidelines Now Available
Guidelines for the 2020 – 2021 USArtists International (USAI) program are now available. USAI supports performances by U.S. artists at impactful international festivals and performing arts marketplaces outside the United States and its territories.

In an effort to accommodate the changed performance landscape around the world, USAI will now accept applications for virtual engagements at eligible international festivals in addition to the program’s tradition travel-track applications.

Applications will be accepted at two deadlines: October 1, 2020, for projects between January 5, 2021 and June 30, 2022; and March 31, 2021, for projects between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022. The application will open next week for artists and ensembles applying to the October 1 deadline.

To click here to view the revised guidelines and access the application link when it becomes available next week.

Photo: USAI grantees Michelle Dalton, Haissan Booth, and Hadassah Segal of the Deborah Abel Dance Company (MA) perform at Mexico's Lila López International Contemporary Dance Festival.
Credit: Edgar Gutierrez Calvillo.
Performing Arts Touring Programs Announce 2020-2021 Grants
MAAF's ArtsCONNECT, Mid Atlantic Tours, and Special Presenter Initiatives have announced grants to mid-Atlantic presenters providing over $440,000 in support of performing arts engagements region-wide.

MAAF is working with all of our grantees to be as flexible as possible during the COVID-19 pandemic. Presenters and artists are working together to select engagement dates while taking into account the necessary health precautions to ensure a successful partnership. For more information on a particular engagement, please contact the venue directly.
 
The ArtsCONNECT touring program has announced 39 grants, awarded directly to the presenting organizations. Alarm WIll Sound, American Patchwork Quartet, Cirque Kalabante, Far from the Norm, Fifth House Ensemble, Jane Comfort and Company, Kaneza Schaal and Christopher Myers' CARTOGRAPHY, Red Sky Performance, and Xenia Franca will engage with 31 communities in the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. ArtsCONNECT increases access to live performing arts engagements across the mid-Atlantic region through support for touring projects proposed by presenter consortia. In addition to public performances, each engagement includes complementary activities designed to foster greater appreciation for artists' work, and offer meaningful exchanges between artists and the public. 

Mid Atlantic Tours will support 59 performing arts engagements through its 2020-2021 program. Mid Atlantic Tours is a curated roster program chosen to tour throughout the mid-Atlantic region. The roster changes annually but maintains a programmatic commitment to a diversity of performance genres, international cultural exchange, and engaging communities underserved by the arts. All engagements include public or virtual performances and activities designed to foster greater appreciation for artists' work and offer meaningful exchanges between artists and the public. 2020-2021 grants support presenters sharing the work of Acrobuffos, Ak Dan Gwang Chil, Choir!Choir!Choir!, The Honey Dewdrops, Rare Essence, Sonia De Los Santos, and Tentacle Tribe.

MAAF, in partnership with the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the Delaware Division of the Arts, the Virgin Islands Council on the Arts, and the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, has announced 24 grants through the 2020-2021 Special Presenter Initiatives program. The Special Presenter Initiatives offer small and mid-sized presenting organizations in Delaware, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and West Virginia grants to support performing arts touring projects in these regions. Artists may be from anywhere across the U.S. and around the world, but must be based outside of presenter's home state/territory.

Congratulations to all of the 2020-2021 grantees!

Photo: Mid Atlantic Tours artist Ak Dan Gwang Chil. Credit: Courtesy of the artist. 
Join the MAAF Team! Now Hiring a Financial Officer
Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation is looking for an experienced Financial Officer to join us in our Baltimore office! The Financial Officer works with our financial services contractor on day-to-day accounting and finance functions. Our office is located in downtown Baltimore, however, during the COVID-19 pandemic, some remote work is required. MAAF is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to the promotion of equity, diversity, inclusion, and access. See the full job description here.
Opportunity Quick Links
  • Baltimore Community Foundation invites applications from cultural organizations for The William G. Baker, Jr. Memorial Fund. The program awards grants averaging $10,000 to cultural organizations in support of organizational effectiveness initiatives, efforts to promote local artists and their work, and initiatives to provide cultural experiences that welcome people of all backgrounds, enhance Baltimoreans’ lives, and strengthen the region’s sense of cohesion and identity. Deadline: September 2, 2020 (Letters of Inquiry).
  • CERF+ is launching the COVID-19 Relief Grant program to provide financial assistance to professional artists working in craft disciplines who are facing dire circumstances from the COVID-19 crisis. As part of CERF+’s broader COVID-19 crisis response strategies, this special program will provide one-time $1,000 grants to meet urgent food, housing and/or health insecurities. Deadline: September 9, 2020.
  • The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University welcomes applications for its 2021-22 Radcliffe Institute Fellowship Program. Each year, the program makes grants to fifty exceptional scientists, writers, scholars, public intellectuals, and artists whose work is making a difference in their professional fields and in larger world. Fellows receive a stipend of $78,000, an additional $5,000 to cover project expenses, and an opportunity to step away from usual routines and dive deeply into a project. The fellowship runs from September 2021 through May 2022. Deadlines: September 10, 2020 and October 1, 2020.
  • The Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies is inviting applications for its individual grants program. Through this program, grants will be awarded to individuals in support of opportunities to create, develop, and communicate a project about architecture and the designed environment that will contribute to their creative, intellectual, and professional growth at a crucial or potentially transformative stage in their careers. Two types of grants will be awarded: Production and Presentation & Research and Development. Deadline: September 15, 2020.
  • Artist Relief helps support the financial, professional, social, and mental well-being of artists impacted by the Coronavirus public health crisis. The initiative will distribute grants of $5,000 to artists facing dire financial emergencies due to COVID-19, as well as serve as an ongoing informational resource and co-sponsor (with Americans for the Arts) of the COVID-19 Impact Survey for Artists and Creative Workers to identify and address the needs of artists moving forward. Deadline: September 30, 2020.
  • Since 1933, Barter Theatre has been developing new works and nurturing area talent. The Appalachian Festival of Plays and Playwrights (AFPP) has gained national attention by developing a process that has resulted in new plays being produced not only on Barter’s stages, but in regional theatres across the country. In an effort to give voice to the more diverse stories of the region, Barter's Black in Appalachia Initiative is committed to presenting at least one play written by a Black Appalachian playwright at each annual Appalachian Festival of Plays and Playwrights. Deadline for submission: October 1, 2020.
www.midatlanticarts.org