About us.
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Serving Minnesota’s Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard, Lake of the Woods and Mahnomen counties
Region 2 Arts Council serves Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard, Lake of the Woods, and Mahnomen counties in northern and north central Minnesota. We serve our region with a staff team, a Board of Directors, and our Anishinaabe Arts Initiative Council. Two arts-engaged community members from each of our five counties serve on our Board of Directors. Our Anishinaabe Arts Initiative Council is made up of Indigenous community leaders, artists, and culture-bearers whose role includes overseeing and managing the Anishinaabe Arts Initiative grant program and related funds to specifically support enrolled tribal members and descendants in their artistic practices.
What we do
R2AC provides grants for arts plans, projects, and programs for individual artists, non-profit organizations, government and tribal entities, schools, colleges, universities, and community education programs. To apply for a grant, create a login on our website and complete the application online. One of our grant programs, the Anishinaabe Arts Initiative Grant, also offers the option to submit a paper grant application.
Whether virtually or in-person, we are committed to organizing, centralizing, celebrating, and sharing accomplishments, opportunities, and resources for those who create art or engage with it. Through FaceBook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok we engage with others to cultivate awareness, excitement, and interest in the arts. Our website is designed to spark ideas and provide useful information about available resources and help overcome obstacles to the creative process. Our online arts and events calendar celebrates the diverse ways that the arts, culture, and creativity are showing up in our communities and beyond. Sign up with us and receive Region 2 Arts Council updates and information in your email inbox,
Help elsewhere
Outside our region there is help for all MN Artists in promoting your work, creating an online portfolio, finding health care, and gaining business skills. State and National Arts Funding is available beyond our five county region offering additional grant opportunities.
You can help support funding for artists and arts organizations through Arts Advocacy.
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Since 1980, the Region 2 Arts Council (R2AC), has been helping the people of North Central Minnesota strengthen the presence and purpose of the arts in their lives.
The Regional Arts Council system was created by the Minnesota State Legislature in 1977 and ensures that all Minnesotans have access to the arts, no matter where in the state they may live.
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Creating a thriving arts culture that enhances the quality of life in our communities.
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The Region 2 Arts Council strengthens the presence of the arts by supporting opportunities for arts creation, promotion, and education for the people of Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard, Lake of the Woods, and Mahnomen counties.
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The Region 2 Arts Council is part of a statewide system of 11 regional art councils that receive a legislative allocation for the arts. The regional arts councils work on a statewide basis in partnership with the Minnesota State Arts Board to provide access to the arts to everyone in Minnesota. Each regional arts council is designated to assess arts needs, develop programs and services to meet those needs, and distribute grants to fund arts programs in their region.
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The Region 2 Arts Council is funded through an appropriation from the Minnesota State Legislature, funding from the McKnight Foundation, and the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. The Region 2 Arts Council is a responsible steward of these funds maintaining accountability with measurable outcomes and assessment processes.
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Click here to open a file regarding the R2AC By-Laws.
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R2AC Official Documents:
Regional Arts Councils
The Forum of Regional Arts Councils is a consortium of the eleven regional arts councils that serve all Minnesota counties, providing continuous improvement of the councils through implementation of best practices in programming, management and leadership development, and information for Minnesota artists and organizations.
The voting membership of the RAC Forum consists of the primary staff person for each of the designated eleven regional arts councils of Minnesota. RAC Forum activities include, but are not limited to:
Planning and preparation of joint applications to private or public funders
Development of the biennial budget request to the state legislature for regional arts development
Planning regional arts participation in activities to inform the state legislature about the arts in Minnesota
Developing and carrying out activities jointly with the Minnesota State Arts Board and/or Minnesota Citizens for the Arts
Developing and carrying out joint activities designed to promote regional arts development across the state, such as conferences for local arts volunteers
Assisting individual regional arts council staff in understanding general regional arts council policies and activities, and in solving particular problems relating to them
Conducting joint activities to develop the skills of regional arts council staff, councils, and committees
Minnesota's unique, decentralized system of regional arts councils disseminates state and other funding for local arts projects, arts in education residencies, general operating support for organizations and other local arts activities.
