Region 2 Arts Council Blog
Tofte Lake Center Residency Programs
We at Tofte Lake Center are incredibly excited to share our 2025 residency programming with you! Applications for our 2025 artist residencies open December 1st. This year, we're offering five distinct residency opportunities, and we hope one of them below speaks to you, a friend, or fellow artist!
Thank you in advance for spreading the word about all of the opportunities we have for artists of all backgrounds, disciplines, and career stages here at the lake!
Please reach out with any questions or if you'd like to connect!
Individual Artist Residency
June 11-17, 2025
September 3-9, 2025
This year we are offering two Individual Artist Residencies. These residencies are focused on individual artists and/or small collaborative teams of all disciplines who wish to create work in community with other artists in all stages of their career.
National Emerging Artist Residency
July 2-11, 2025
Our National Emerging Artists Program is back! This 10-day residency is focused on emerging artists and/or small collaborative teams of all disciplines who wish to create among other emerging artists from around the US.
MN BIPOC Artist Residency
June 2-8, 2025
This week-long residency provides space for 6 BIPOC artists of any discipline to retreat and create in community. The residency balances personal work time with group interaction and optional sharing of work or performance, as well as time for play and rejuvenation.
Arts Educators Residency
July 14-20, 2025
This week-long residency provides space for 6 artist educators to center themselves and their work as artists first and get the well-deserved rest and rejuvenation they need.
Family Artist Residency
August 13-19
This week-long residency for Minnesota parent-artists offers the opportunity for single parent artists and artists who wish to bring their spouse/partner and 1-2 children. The residency enables these artists to focus on their work while the child/ren enjoy age-appropriate, supervised activities onsite and in town.
Applications are open December 1st - December 31st, 2024, at 5:00pm CST.
Programming activities are made possible in part by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.Operating support is made possible in part by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
Intro to Grants Writing
Are you or your organization seeking funding? Are you aware of all the grants that are available to you? Region 2 Arts Council has now created a monthly workshop series, Intro to Grant Writing. In these free monthly meetings, join our grants manager Holly Alcott share important information about grants and the granting process!
In the first session on November 4th at 6pm, we will discuss how to understand grants, how to apply for a grant, how to find other granting sources, and more! If you have any questions, you are encouraged to ask them! This is an online zoom, all you need is wifi, and a device to log in on.
You and your organization do not need to be located in our five county region in order to access this webinar. This is a tool that Region 2 is sharing with members of the public to access the opportunities around them!
To register, please email staff@r2arts.org or call us at 218 751 5447. If you have any questions you want addressed by Holly, don't hesitate to reach out and let us know!
The Stories of Us: Call for participants.
Region 2 Arts Council has been working towards developing new video content for the R2 website. One of these ideas came up after a very insightful meeting at the Gizhiigan Arts Incubator in Mahnomen. What if Region 2 began to document personal experiences correlating with art as a way to tell the stories of creative families?
This started an idea of generational interviews, allowing families to tell their stories about how art has impacted their lives. We have heard stories of how basket making wove a family closer, how the art of basket weaving was passed down through generations, and how intimately the art of the practice is woven with their family's history.
We began thinking about how powerful it truly was to hear about this experience. And further, how could we get these stories out there? At Region 2, we firmly believe that art is far more than just creation. It is also community, connection, and unity and a large part of that is sharing this with others.
Region 2 is looking for creative families to talk about their experiences. Whether they are weavers, painters, metal workers, writers, actors, or singers. We want to hear about you! Part of sharing these stories with others is to influence Arts Advocacy, showing that art is far more important to families and individuals than it may seem. For some families, art is a healing thread that holds them together and we want to advocate for this important connection.
If you or someone you know has a familial history of creating, whether you are in a family of actors, or you're the painter in a family of singers, we want to hear about your experiences. Please email: info@r2arts.org
October Board Meeting
Later in the week, Region 2 Arts Council will be having another board meeting. This meeting will be on October 17th at Rail River Folk School in Bemidji, from 5:30-8pm. If you have any questions about this meeting, please do not hesitate to talk with a member of staff!
Methods of Phone Photography at Watermark Art Center
Bemidji, MN - Exhibiting artist and local photographer William Petersen will present on methods of working with phone cameras (primarily iPhone) and photo enhancements using the app "Snapseed" on Thursday, October 24 from 6 to 8pm at Watermark Art Center. Participants should be familiar with operating their phone and download the app prior to arriving at the presentation.
Petersen came to embrace the practice of digitally enhancing his photographs once he accepted that it would take decades to master the darkroom in order to produce compelling images versus pursuingelectronic digitally-altered images and getting amazing results almost right away. His exhibit "iPhone Artistry" is currently on display at the center. His work can be viewed online atwatermarkartcenter.org/iphone-artistry/. The exhibit was made possible with support from Paul Bunyan Communications.
Registration is not required and there is no charge to attend this presentation. For more information regarding events, classes and exhibits visit watermarkartcenter.org or call 218-444-7570. Watermark galleries are accessible and open to the public Monday - Saturday from 10 to 5pm. Watermark is located at 505 Bemidji Avenue N. in Bemidji, Minnesota.
2SLGBTQQIA+ History Month
2SLGBTQQIA+ History Month is an annual observance of 2SLGBTQQIA+ history, and the history of the gay rights and civil rights movements. 2SLGBTQQIA+ History Month provides role models, builds community, and represents a civil rights statement about the contributions of the 2SLGBTQQIA+ community.
For more information please visit https://www.facebook.com/2SpiritsMotion
Region 2 Wears Orange for Orange Shirt Day
Today, the Region 2 Arts Council team is wearing orange for #OrangeShirtDay in solidarity with the First Nations, American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians affected by Residential Indian Boarding Schools. At Region 2 Arts, we are committed to supporting the individuals and communities that are healing from the terrible legacy of the boarding school era as they nurture the cultural traditions damaged by the systematic attempt to erase Indigenous cultures in America. We want to offer our support and solidarity to all those who were and still are affected by the tragedies that took place, in our community and in all communities. Today is a day of remembrance for those lost and those who are being returned home, as well as a celebration of the resilience of Indigenous peoples.
For background information regarding Orange Shirt Day, as well as resources, please visit: https://www.oregon.gov/.../Pages/orange-shirt-day.aspx
#ODHSOrangeShirtDay #OregonOrangeShirtDay #EveryChildMatters #mmir #mmiw
100 Minnesota Artists Are Receiving Guaranteed Income for Five Years
Read the full article, and watch the video here!
Kandace Creel Falcón, one of the artists in Springboard for the Art's guaranteed income piklot program, gives a talk on their billboard commission Guaranteed Income is the G.O.A.T.
Sarah Cascone September 20, 2024
In a welcome bit of good news, 100 artists in Minnesota are receiving five years guaranteed income as part of an expanded pilot program for St. Paul nonprofit Springboard for the Arts. The no-strings-attached payments are $500 a month.
It’s one of the longest-running guaranteed income pilots ever staged in the U.S., which Springboard hopes will provide key data demonstrating the value of guaranteed income and its positive effects on recipients’ lives.
“We’re excited to contribute research in order to better advocate for statewide federal guaranteed income,” Ricardo Beaird, Springboard’s community development director, told me.
Springboard’s guaranteed income program emerged in 2020, when the organization was able to provide 2,799 Minnesota artists with $1.4 million in emergency relief funds.
“We were thinking how we can address this at a systemic level, to make it so that there’s not a need for emergency relief for artists and for people in our community,” Beaird said.
Springboard believes that guaranteed basic income would benefit all people—and was inspired in part by the city of St. Paul’s People’s Prosperity Guaranteed Income Pilot, which served 150 local families between October 2020 and April 2022. But the organization believes that artists in particular benefit from this kind of support because of the nature of their work: they are often effectively small business owners, paid on a project-by-project basis.
“I’ve always thought guaranteed income is something that we should all have,” Springboard pilot recipient Kashimana, who recorded an album inspired by the experience, told the Guaranteed Income Pilots Dashboard, which is collecting data from 30 pilots across the U.S. “Everybody in society deserves to be taken care of, no matter what circumstances we’re in, no matter where we find ourselves in life.”
Thus far, the dashboard found that the largest portion, or 35.94 percent, of the guaranteed income funds went toward retail purchases, followed by 30.26 percent for food and groceries, and just over 10 percent for housing and utilities.
The nonprofit’s initial 2021 pilot benefitted just 25 St. Paul artists, selected via lottery from applicants to Springboard’s emergency relief funds and to participants in the organization’s other programs and workshops.
Originally set to run just 18 months, it has grown in phases. First, Springboard added 25 more artists St. Paul, then 25 more in rural Fergus Falls, Minnesota, where the organization has an office, and the surrounding Otter Tail County. The last phase will add 25 additional rural artists, all of whom will enter the program with the security of knowing they will be getting the extra funds for half a decade.
“We’re curious what people will dream up or vision when they know for sure that they will have guaranteed income for five years,” Beaird said. “Because of the gig economy, artists are always thinking about the next six weeks or the next six months. This will provide space for artists to dream up what their next five years might look!”
Springboard has also been promoting the guaranteed income pilot through the artist’s work, including a commissioned billboard by pilot artist Kandace Creel Falcón titled Guaranteed Income is the G.O.A.T. And for International Basic Income Week, the organization is currently hosting a group exhibition, “Exhale,” at its St. Paul headquarters.
Though guaranteed income might be a hard sell among conservatives opposed to government handouts, Beaird believes one only has to look at statistics to make a strong case for implementing the payments nationwide: a troubling 64 percent of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, according to a December report from financial services company Lending Club.
“That means regular, everyday people are one emergency expense away from chaos and calamity,” he said. “If we want to restore economic power and stability to families and people, the guaranteed basic income movement says that we can do this through a very simple and effective tool, which is cash.”
Beaird also disagrees with critics who worry that guaranteed income will encourage people to drop out of the workforce—at just $6,000 annually, the program functions as an added safety net, not a replacement for a job, he argued.
The artists who have benefited from Springboard’s pilot program have great things to say about their experience.
“This is the first time I’ve really felt supported as an artist,” 64-year-old Fergus Falls fiber artist Torri Hanna told the Minnesota Star Tribune.
“Having a little comfort means I can go back to creating. Before, I couldn’t create unless it was generating income,” one artist told Springboard for the organization’s impact report on the pilot. “I couldn’t justify it.”
Another spoke of being able to buy back the DJ equipment he had been forced to sell to make rent, saying: “I’ve literally been using [my guaranteed income] to restart, or kickstart, my career from a bit of a dead zone.”
There is a push in Minnesota to implement statewide guaranteed income. A bill introduced this year by Representative Athena Hollins did not pass, but would have provided government funding to organizations like Springboard to run additional programs providing guaranteed income. (Springboard’s program is privately funded.)
“I feel really hopeful and optimistic that a guaranteed income bill could be passed in the next legislative session in Minnesota,” Beaird said. “Moving from pilot to policy, it’s really possible in this moment.”
Artists also received guaranteed basic income through a now-completed 2021 pilot program run by the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. A similar program, still ongoing, launched in New York in 2022, through the Creatives Rebuild New York program. Some 2,400 artists are receiving $1,000 payments for 18 months.
“Exhale” is on view at Springboard for the Arts, 262 University Ave W., St. Paul, Minnesota, September 17–30, 2024.
Arts Access Grant Now Open
As one grant closes, another one opens! The Arts Access Grant is now open for applications!
These grants can support creation, production, and presentation of high-quality arts activities, as well as projects that help overcome barriers to accessing high-quality arts activities, and projects that help instill the arts into the community and public life in our region. Arts activities proposed for funding must be accessible by the public, have a strong community component, and must benefit the residents of Beltrami, Hubbard, Clearwater, Lake of the Woods, or Mahnomen Counties. Organizations can apply for up to two Arts Access Grants for two different arts activities each year. Arts Access Grants are open to non-profits, nonparochial public and charter schools, colleges, universities, community education programs, local tribal government entities from the sovereign nations of Leech Lake, Red Lake, and White Earth or town/city/county government entities from our five-county region, arts organizations, arts affiliates, and groups formed for nonprofit purposes with a fiscal sponsor.
Application Deadline: November 15, 2024
Maximum Award: $6,000
Earliest Start Date for Projects: January 29, 2025
For eligibility details and to apply visit www.r2arts.org
Questions? Need more information? Inquiries about accessibility needs?
CALL: 218-751-5447 / 800-275-5447 TEXT: 218-407-2507 EMAIL: staff@r2arts.org
Region 2 Arts Council Arts Access Grants are made possible by the voters of Minnesota thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund
Rural Regenerator Fellows 2024-2026
Meet the 2024-26 Rural Regenerator Fellows!
Springboard's Rural Regenerator Fellowship brings together individual artists, culture bearers, grassroots organizers, and other rural change-makers who are committed to advancing the role of art, culture and creativity in rural development and community building.
We are proud to introduce the 2024-26 cohort of Rural Regenerator Fellows!
Hannah Breckbill (she/her/hers) - Decorah, Iowa
Megan L. Bull Bear (she/her/hers) - Mankato, Minnesota
Shelley Buffalo (she/her/hers) - Meskwaki Settlement, Tama, Iowa
Monica Cady (she/her/hers/we/us) - Hessel, Michigan 1836 ceded territory Ojibwe Nation
Lynne Colombe (she/her/hers) - Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation
Lera Hephner (she/her/hers) - Ogema, Minnesota
Regina M. Laroche (she/her/hers) - Madeline Island on the southern edge of Lake Superior, Northern Wisconsin
Chrystal A. Odin (they/them/their) - Osceola, Wisconsin
Marcella Prokop (she/her/hers) - Beaver Creek, Minnesota
Susan Mayo (she/her/hers) - Peabody, Kansas
Alejandra (Alex) Sanchez (she/her/hers) - Mondovi, Wisconsin
Stephen Robert Webster (he/him/his) - Oneida Reservation in Wisconsin
These 12 artists span a diverse range of geographies and artistic practices across the Upper Midwest, from spinning wool to sustaining traditional and Indigenous foodways. While their individual practices vary, these fellows share a dedication for environmental justice, land and food sovereignty, agriculture, climate solutions, and sustainability.
Over the next two years, each fellow will receive $10,000 in flexible funds to support or expand on their existing work, and participate in learning, exchange, and solidarity-building with their fellow rural artists.
“Artists in rural places are at the forefront of reclaiming and redefining how we care for our environment. By drawing on local knowledge, cultural traditions, and creative engagement, they offer unique approaches to environmental stewardship deeply rooted in their communities. We are excited to provide a space for these fellows to exchange ideas, support one another, and foster rich learning by sharing knowledge across geographies, cultures, and generations.”
- Michele Anderson
Rural Director, Springboard for the Arts
Anishinaabe Arts Initiative Grant Now Open
Anishinaabe Arts Initiative Grant Deadline November 1, 2024
Region 2 Arts Council Anishinaabe Arts Initiative Grants are open to Indigenous artists, musicians, writers, filmmakers, actors, dancers, craftspeople and culture bearers who are enrolled tribal members and descendants residing in the following Minnesota counties: Becker, Beltrami, Cass, Clearwater, Hubbard, Itasca, Lake of the Woods, Mahnomen, or Roseau. This grant offers funding for costs associated with the exhibition, performance, or production of a creative work, purchase of materials or equipment to create works of art, learning opportunities in the arts, and proposals for projects or opportunities to enhance the career of an individual artist.
Maximum Award: $1,000
Application Deadline: November 1, 2024
Grant Review by Anishinaabe Arts Initiative Council: December 11, 2024
Earliest Start Date for Funded Projects: January 15, 2025
Create a Login and Apply Online: r2arts.org
Request a paper copy of the grant application: staff@r2arts.org
Questions? Need support? Inquiries about accessibility needs?
Contact the Region 2 Arts Council
CALL: 218-751-5447 / 800-275-5447
TEXT: 218-407-2507
EMAIL: staff@r2arts.org
IN-PERSON: 505 Bemidji Avenue North; M-F 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Anishinaabe Arts Initiative (AAI) Grants are made possible by the Anishinaabe Arts Initiative through support from the Region 2 Arts Council with funding from the McKnight Foundation
Interview with Patrick Calder-Carriere
Earlier in the week, Executive Directer Patrick Calder-Carriere had an interview with KAXE, check it out!
New Mural on the Northwest Indian Development Center in Bemidji
Exciting things are going on around the lake! If you’ve driven through town you may have already had a chance to sneak a peak at the new mural being painted on the side of Aazhoomon, the Northwest Indian Development Center. Please visit this link and watch the video!
The Northwest Indian Community Development Center, located in Bemidji, has started a community-based art project in the form of new mural, which will be seen on the side of their building facing Bemidji Avenue.
The center is a Native-run community nonprofit organization that has been serving the Indigenous population of the greater Bemidji area for the past 35 years.
“We’re located between the three largest Ojibwe reservations in the state of Minnesota,” explained NWICDC Executive Director Martin Jennings. “And we have a significant Native population, but you don’t really see that expression very prominent in this community. So I want this center to be a place that helps tell that other side of the story and the richness of the culture, the strengths and beauty of the Indigenous population, which originally called this area our homelands.”
The NWICDC not only wants to be a forefront for Native representation inside the enter, but outside as well.
“I want this building to be a landmark,” stated Jennings. “I want this to be a place of visibility, pride, the Indigenous values that we have.”
“The mural project is to inspire appreciation and building community together through sharing culture, because culture is meant to be shared,” said lead mural artist Sylvia Houle.
So far, the background and first layer has been painted, and this weekend the artists will get together to start painting the people.
“There’s going to be people from different backgrounds participating in this different races, identities,” explained Houle. “But the main thing is to have Indigenous relatives in modern times doing traditional practices.”
In being brought in as the lead artist, Houle is mentoring a group of teenagers connected with the NWICDC who are volunteering to help with the project.
“You don’t have to be technically skilled at it from the gate,” said Houle, “I encourage them to just learn to have fun with it, learn to play. So even if it’s just like getting your hands all covered in paint and just smearing it on the wall, because that’s where it starts – it’s just learning how to become comfortable with it.”
Although Houle was the only one painting Friday due to the rainy weather, you can drive by the Northwest Indian Community Community Development Center at any point this weekend or next week to see the group of artists at work. They’d appreciate a wave or “hello” as they continue to work on the project, which is set to be finished within the next week and a half.
Visit https://lptv.org/in-focus-northwest-indian-community-development-center-painting-new-mural/ to read more and to watch the video!
Yéigo Action Grant
Dear Friends and Supporters,
First Peoples Fund has always championed artists and culture bearers as the heart of our communities. We are thrilled to announce the launch of the Yéigo Action Grant, a dynamic new initiative designed to empower and uplift Native artists and culture bearers. This grant provides crucial financial support for professional development opportunities or to help overcome any challenges that may stand in the way of creative expression.
The Yéigo Action Grant offers funding ranging from $100 to $5,000 to individual Native artists and culture bearers. At First Peoples Fund (FPF), we understand the significance of supporting artists through tough times, especially when unexpected hardships arise. The grant’s name, inspired by the Diné word "yéigo," is a phrase of encouragement meaning “keep going” or “don’t give up.”
We encourage you to spread the word about this exciting opportunity within your network and urge eligible individuals to apply. Together, we can ensure that Native artists continue to flourish and share their invaluable talents with our communities.
Don’t give up—keep going with a Yéigo Action Grant! Apply today and share this opportunity with your friends and family. For more information, visit our website, or reach out to us at programs@firstpeoplesfund.org with any questions.
Ahéhee’ (Diné bizaad: Thank you),
Justin Kii Huenemann (Diné)
President/CEO of First Peoples Fund
Office Closed 8/22
The Region 2 Arts Council office will be closed August 22nd, as staff will be participating in a mural painting at the Northwest Indian Community Development Center, located next to University Heights on Bemidji Ave!
Season/Series Arts Support Grant Opens Early!
And remember it is also time to nominate (or self-nominate) the best artists in your community for a $6,000 R2AC Artist Fellowship Award!
R2AC Fellowship Nominations Open
Today Region 2 has opened their fellowship nominations early! Instead of having to wait until August 1st to send in your nominations, you can now send them in anytime between now and September 1st when the nomination process ends. A Region 2 Arts Council fellowship is awarded to two artists with a maximum award amount of $6,000. If you have any inquiries please reach a member of staff at staff@r2arts.org or call (218)751-5447.
Nominations Process:
We are seeking self and outside nominations for dedicated and experienced artists who meet our award criteria. If you are an artist or if you know an artist who should be considered for a Fellowship award, please drop off, email, mail, text, send through messenger, or call us with your nomination. You can also visit www.r2arts.org on the R2AC fellowship page to find the application online.
As part of the nomination, please include:
The artist’s name
Their contact information (active email and/or phone number)
Their county of residence (if known)
Their art form (musician, jeweler, composer, writer, actor, sculptor, poet, painter, dancer, filmmaker, etc.)
What makes them a great candidate
As the nominator, please include:
Your name
Your contact information (active email and/or phone number)
Whether you’d like to remain anonymous to the review committee
Whether you’d like to remain anonymous to the artist you’ve nominated
After nominations have closed R2AC staff will solicit the nominated artists for an Artist Statement, Work Samples, and an Artist Bio or Resume. Two Artist Fellows will be selected by the Region 2 Arts Council Board of Directors from the nominated artists.
The R2AC Fellowship Award is made possible the by generous support of the McKnight Foundation to provide unfettered funding to individual artists to fuel their art in Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard, Mahnomen, and Lake of the Woods counties in Minnesota.
Welcome, Patrick Calder-Carriere!
Region 2 Arts Council has gone through a large change over the past few months. Laura Seter, the Executive Director for the past 13 years, has moved on to other adventures. As such, Region 2 would like to introduce members of the public to our new Executive Director, Patrick Calder-Carriere!
Patrick Calder-Carriere returned to the Bemidji area and joined the Region 2 Arts Council in July of 2024. He was a Professor of Theater, Creative Writing, and English in the Minnstate system for 2 decades. Patrick’s passion for the arts has led him to perform and study in Greece, Cyprus, China, Japan, Russia, and England. One highlight of his career is the 8 years he worked with the Thunderbird Theater at Haskell Indian Nations University where he witnessed how the arts bring together communities, celebrate culture, and create conversations. Patrick holds a Ph.D. in Dramatic History and Criticism and a Master’s degree in Theater/International Theater from the University of Kansas, a Master’s degree in English Literature/Composition from Minnesota State University – Mankato, and Bachelor’s degrees in Theater and Education from Bemidji State University, and Biology from Carleton College.