Region of Waterloo Arts Fund awards 29 grants
Waterloo Region - The Region of Waterloo Arts Fund announces 29 grants for a total of $159,895 in response to proposals submitted by artists and arts organizations throughout Waterloo Region.
The Arts Fund initially received 62 requests, for a total of $444,224. After the first round of evaluations, 38 applicants seeking a total of $270,075 were invited to submit more detailed Stage 2 applications from which the 29 grants were ultimately selected. Since it was established in 2002, the Arts Fund has supported more than 594 projects for a total community investment of $3,196,501.
Proposals selected for full or partial funding in the Fall 2017 round are:
Richard Burrows, Open Ears Festival of Music and Sound $10,000 for “Nu Ears Ensemble” Four concert performances by the Nu Ears Ensemble, featuring compositions of new music by international artists – an experience otherwise not available to local audiences. www.openears.ca
Jennifer Cornish $7,500 for “Boy Beatle” The workshop stage for a memory play exploring the life of a musician – to generate material for staging, costume, set and projection design.
Sam Dlugokecki $4,000 for “Terminus” A nine track studio album, a career development step to follow up the artist’s initial 5 song EP - Recorded at Small Dog Studio. www.sammyduke.com
Anne Marie Donovan $8,400 for “Fundamentals of Rage” A development workshop and workshop performance for a new work on the theme of the status of women in contemporary society - A hybrid of opera, theatre and movement. http://www.annemariedonovan.ca
Rebekka Fry, Waterloo Chamber Players $3,850 for “Growing Darker” A concert featuring a collaboration between emerging composer Keenan Reimer Watts and the Waterloo Chamber Players, premiering Watts’ Piano Concerto in F. www.waterloochamberplayers.com
Misha Gingerich $2,500 for “The Sooner, the Better” An autobiographical graphic novel which includes full page embroideries – includes an exhibition of the completed work, and ultimately a published book.
Laurie D. Graham $4,420 for “Clearcut” The third book of poetry in a series, this book explores the ecology and non-human life in destroyed or disturbed ecosystems – includes a collaboration with visual artist Amanda Rhodenizer. www.lauriedgraham.ca
Carl Hiebert $8,000 for “Stories Within the Forest” A theatrical performance event at the Registry Theatre plus on site art creation, utilizing the 17 mixed media trees of the “Illuminative Forest of Storytelling Trees”. www.illuminativeforest.ca
Josh Hill, Moir Centre $6,000 for “Kaleid Choral Festival” A non-competitive choral festival engaging youth from several local high schools - Includes visiting artists and the composition of new choral music. www.kaleidchoralfestival.com
Kenneth Hull, Spiritus Ensemble $4,300 for “Hauptmusik – The Cantata Project A commission for a new choral-orchestral work – includes collaboration with composer Zachary Wadsworth and poet Amanda Jernigan – the new cantata will be performed in concert by the Ensemble. www.spiritusensemble.com
Nada Humsi $6,200 for “Why - Stories of Syrian Youth” A workshop in theatre, writing, filming and performing to provide youth the opportunity to express their experience of integrating and gaining a sense of belonging in their new home.
Ivan Jurakic, UW Art Gallery $6,500 for “This Could Be the Place” The third iteration of this unique performance art piece, in relation to a vintage Airstream trailer, it will include five or six new interdisciplinary actions - culminating in a symposium and panel discussion. www.uwag.uwaterloo.ca
Victorija Kovac, Cosmic Fishing Theatre $10,000 for “The B Party” To develop the artist’s experimental work based on the iconic image of “Barbie” into a professional one-act play. The public performance will include audience engagement opportunities. www.facebook.com/cosmicfishing
Dylan Langan, Vera Causa Opera $5,500 for “Canadian Opera Fest 2018” A festival of newly commissioned operas by emerging Canadian composers and performed by local artists - culminating in performances throughout Waterloo Region. www.vcopera.ca
Joe Mancini, Commons Studio $6,600 for “Alfred Kunz Documentary” A film on the life of conductor/composer/artistic director Dr. Alfred Kunz - in collaboration with the Commons Studio, the goal is a broadcast quality film. www.theworkingcentre.org/commons-studio/171
Ahmad Meree $7,950 for “The Suitcase” A play inspired by the artist’s experience as a Syrian refugee - includes the work of many local theatre professionals.
Ciaran Myers, Informal Upright Theatre Collective $7,000 for “Me, Not You” Creation of new theatre works based on the plays of Samuel Beckett – develops the portfolio for the artist collective, and contributes to audience development. www.informalupright.com
Adam Murphy $6,000 for “Life Lines” A community oral history project which includes video recorded interviews, live comics drawing and book publishing – in collaboration with Commons Studio, City of Kitchener and a seniors’ assisted living facility. www.adammurphy.com
Joni Nehrita $8,000 for “Love and Protest Album” An eleven song studio album on the themes of social justice, activism and feminism - Recorded at Cedartree. www.joninehrita.com
Marc Pare, Nota Bene Baroque Players $4,000 for “The Magic Touch” Performances of Baroque repertoire on the theme of magic, with specially commissioned works of visual art - In partnership with Chilean artist Maca Suazo, and local sculptor Nicholas Rees. www.notabenebaroque.ca
Mary Catherine Pazzano $2,000 for “Women Music Revolutionaries” A jazz concert performance, with expanded instrumentation by the Penderecki String Quartet, honouring seminal female artists - Includes performances by Joni Nehrita, and emerging vocalist Maggie Van Der Sluis. www.marycatherinepazzano.com
Seth Ratzlaff and Clarence Cachagee $3,800 for “North Wind Man” A biography of Clarence Cachagee, created collaboratively and including material from Clarence’s deceased father, a residential school survivor.
Amanda Rhodenizer $1,175 for “The Larger Forgetting” A book of paintings and poetry with a launch event and exhibition – in collaboration with Laurie D. Graham. www.arhodenizer.com
Paul Roorda $3,000 for “Time Stops” Installations of interactive micro-galleries placed in public places in neighbourhoods – challenging community members to consider the effects of climate change. www.paulroorda.com
Don Russell $$6,000 for “Stone, Clay, Fire” A durational land art project which includes a stone and clay circle around a fire burning for 28 days – in collaboration with CAFKA and RARE Charitable Research Reserve. www.donrussell.ca
Alan Sapp, The Nickel Mines Collective $4,000 for “We Will Never Be the Same” A staged reading of the third draft of the play inspired by the shooting in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania of 10 Amish girls - In partnership with the Mennonite Central Committee. www.alanksapp.workbooklive.com
Aidan Ware, Cambridge Art Galleries $10,000 for “Transformed Through Touch” A multi-sensory art exhibition created through workshops with a team of artists including deaf and blind participants – free from the normal “Look! Don’t touch!” limitations. www.ideaexchange.org/art
Carol Leigh Wehking, Fresh Stories $2,200 for “FresherThan Fresh” Two new storytelling events for children and families – to expand the audience demographic.
Jason White $1,000 for “Listen” A career development opportunity for 5 mid-career musicians to make recordings of their live performances at the Jazz Room; the recordings may then be used for further artist promotion and development. www.thejasonwhite.com
The mandate of the Region of Waterloo Arts Fund is to make art happen in our community by providing meaningful grants and other advocacy support to individual artists and to arts and culture organizations.
In 2017, Region of Waterloo Council increased the annual allocation to the Arts Fund by $150,000. Waterloo Region now generously allocates the equivalent of 67 cents per capita to the Arts Fund so that the people of Waterloo Region may benefit from the vibrancy of the arts and culture sectors.
Created in 2002, the Arts Fund is a not-for-profit corporation served by a volunteer Board of Directors. The Arts Fund provides arms-length funding for the performing, visual, media and literary arts. It welcomes grant applications in all arts disciplines from individual artists and arts organizations based in the Region of Waterloo (comprising the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo and the townships of North Dumfries, Wellesley, Wilmot and Woolwich).
The Arts Fund Board invites applications in the spring and fall of each year for projects that will occur within the following 12 months. The goal in the longer term is to enhance the ability of an artist or arts organization to make more art happen through future projects.
The Arts Fund is one of the few granting bodies in Canada that awards grants directly to artist-led projects. Often these supported projects are able to attract additional funds through earned revenue, grants from provincial, federal or private sources, sponsorships, private and in-kind donations.
For more information about initiatives such as peer-to-peer grant writing assistance, Board-hosted open houses before application deadlines, Artist-at-Large Advisers and previous grant recipients, please visit the website: www.artsfund.ca.
The next Arts Fund Open House for grant applicants before the spring 2018 round is on Tuesday, February 6, 2018, 5-7 p.m. at the Region of Waterloo Headquarters, Room 110, 150 Frederick Street, Kitchener. This is an informal drop-in, where board members will be available to share general information about the fund and its mandate.
The next deadline for applications to the Arts Fund is 4 p.m. on Friday, March 2, 2018; full details are available on the website: www.artsfund.ca
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For more information, please contact staff and Board members via email: info@artsfund.ca