The Region 2 Arts Council (R2AC) which serves Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard, Lake of the Woods, and Mahnomen Counties recently awarded $52,000 in Arts and Cultural Heritage Grants to area artists and non-profit organizations. Funding for the Arts and Cultural Heritage grants resulted form the Minnesota Land and Legacy Amendment supported by Minnesota voters in November of 2008. Awards from these grants will be used to create arts access to populations that lack arts opportunities, provide arts education experiences, or bridge cultural gaps using art as the catalyst.
Artists and non-profits that received financial support for their projects are as follows.
Headwaters School for Music and the Arts, Beltrami, was awarded $6000 to be used to assist with costs for “A Weekend with Billy Collins.” Collins is the former Poet Laureate of the United States. He will be in Bemidji the weekend of September 25 giving workshops and readings.
Natalia Himirska, Beltrami, was awarded $2,778 to assist in the production of “Flora and Fauna,” a watercolor, oil and encaustic painting exhibition with a strong educational component highlighting the interaction of these three different media in imaginative and realistic compositions. Raised and trained in Eastern Europe, but now a United States citizen, the artist will bring a cross-cultural awareness to her work, many of which will be based on landscapes around Region 2.
Jacque Tinsley, Beltrami, was awarded $2,832 to be used to present quality ethnic and cultural music, featuring the Native American Flute and the Celtic Folk Harp to senior living centers and public schools in Clearbrook and Mahnomen, Minnesota.
Jon Romer, Beltrami, was awarded $2,355 to be used to present quality ethnic and cultural music, featuring the Native American Flute and the Celtic Folk Harp to senior living centers and public schools in Bagley and Baudette, Minnesota.
Headwaters School for Music and the Arts, Beltrami, was awarded $3,155 to defray the costs of presenting the 2nd annual Lakes Area Drumset Camp which is open to all levels of percussionists and will be held at the Headwaters School for Music and the Arts this August.
Park Rapids Lakes Area Arts Council, Hubbard, was awarded $3,770 to assist in costs of producing and presenting the “Youth Music & Arts Showcase,” a three-day event in downtown Park Rapids that showcases the talents of area youth at a concert venue.
Kathy Jo McKeown, Beltrami, will use her award of $783 towards creating a slideshow of images that will be accompanied by original music and played at the Bemidji State Park visitor center.
Mask and Rose Theater, Beltrami, was awarded $4,870 that will assist in producing a theater project in which local female students ranging in age from 11 to 18 will write plays based on essays from Eve Ensler’s “I Am an Emotional Being.” The theater production will be performed on an outdoor stage and later tour local schools and area Boys and Girls Clubs.
Lynn Studanski, Beltrami, will use her award of $2,754 towards acquiring equipment to complete her glass bead-making studio where the artist will provide instruction in the art of making lampwork beads.
Bemidji Symphony Orchestra, Beltrami, will use an award of $6,000 to present a master class for regional choral high school students, taught by Dr. Jennifer Swanson.
Park Rapids Lakes Area Arts Council, Hubbard, was awarded $3,950 to present “Art Leap 2010” a two-day event featuring an afternoon of live performances and a driving tour to local artists’ studios and workshops, as well as other cultural destinations.
Park Rapids Lakes Area Arts Council, Hubbard, will use a $3,000 award to bring area artists, artisans, musicians, writers, and dancers into the business community of downtown Park Rapids on the Third Thursday of each month.
Jennifer Geraedts, Hubbard, will use her $735 grant award to cover the costs of studying the art of bookbinding with bookbinder David Farkell. She will pass her knowledge on to others in her area via workshops.
Clear Waters Life Center, Clearwater, will use $3,018 of funding to assist in hiring two artists to work with the community through a series of workshops for the purpose of designing and fabricating an outdoor sculpture for the Center.
Peacemakers Resources, Beltrami, received $6,000 to assist in the coordination and implementation of the performance and education components of Bemidji’s Cultural Connections Day.
The next grant deadline for Arts and Cultural Heritage Grants, which support projects such as those listed above, is August 12. The R2AC encourages artists and nonprofits who have ideas about art projects to call the office at 751-5447 or 800-275-5447 and discuss how various grant opportunities might assist in covering costs of those projects. Information about all R2AC grants, no-risk workshops, arts contacts, and other useful tools can be found at r2arts.org.
r2arts.org 