You have until 6 p.m. on March 5 to leverage your donation to an eligible arts organization with stretch pool funding from the Delaware Division of the Arts.

Participating arts organizations will receive an FY2021 grant bonus from the Delaware Division of the Arts, proportionate to the success of their fundraising in the Do More 24 campaign.

Organizations with the greatest number of donors will also receive an additional bonus. Top bonuses for number of donors will be $10,000 for first place, $5,000 for second place, and $2,500 for third place in each division.

This is a great opportunity for patrons of the arts to support the arts in Delaware and multiply the impact of your donations. Simply visit the Do More 24 Delaware website, search for your organization(s), and make your contribution between 6 p.m. on March 4 and 6 p.m. on March 5.

Thank you to all the participants in the 10th annual exhibition featuring the work of State of Delaware employees and their family members. And special congratulations to the winners in each of five categories: Youth, Teen, Amateur, Intermediate, and Professional, selected from more than 300 entries. To view all the entries and a virtual exhibition of the winners, visit https://arts.delaware.gov/national-arts-program/.

Spring is around the corner, and with it, warmer weather...finally! We all look forward to getting out, moving around, and shaking off the winter doldrums. This gives the arts a new lease on life and new opportunities for outdoor and expanded programming.

We have heard so many stories of how the arts have sustained individuals throughout this last year of restrictions and isolation. Those stories confirm the transformative and healing power of the arts. As vaccines reach more people, and restrictions can safely be lifted, we look forward to arts experiences that challenge, inspire, and renew our spirits.

Visit DelawareScene.com and check out how you can experience the arts if your life.

Grids and Arches, an exhibition of paintings by Constance M. Simon, will be on view in the Mezzanine Gallery from March 5-26, 2021. Simon is the recipient of a 2020 Artist Fellowship in Painting from the Delaware Division of the Arts.

The paintings in the exhibition are all done in gouache, an opaque watercolor medium, and come from two series based on geometric shapes and patterns. The works from the Grid series are based on grid structures that Simon uses as a base to play with variations of pattern, light, color, and volume. This series explores her interest in Islamic tile patterns, African kente cloth, and many quilting traditions.

Simon says of her Arch series, “I am drawn to architecture as a source of appealing geometric shapes and patterns. I have been adding arch shapes to my grids as a motif. The arch is by itself a beautiful shape with overtones of history and culture that resonate with me.”

The Mezzanine Gallery, open weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., is located on the second floor of the Carvel State Office Building, 820 N. French Street, Wilmington. Visitors must wear face coverings and maintain 6 feet distance from other individuals not in their household.

Visual artists who are interested in being considered for a solo exhibition in the Mezzanine Gallery in 2022 must submit an application by March 15, 2021. For more information and to access the online application form, visit the Mezzanine Gallery Application page.

Please note: Artists who completed an Individual Artist Fellowship application in 2020 and selected "yes" to the Mezzanine Gallery question will automatically be considered by the Gallery Panel and do not need to complete the application.

The Mezzanine Gallery, open weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., is located in the

Carvel State Office Building, 820 N. French Street, Wilmington. 

The work of the Fellows will be featured in a group exhibition, Award Winners XXI, at the Biggs Museum from June 4 to July 17, 2021. The Fellows’ artwork will be displayed in a series of installations mixed with the American fine and decorative arts on view in the Museum. Selections from the Award Winners show will travel to CAMP Rehoboth where it will be on view during August. We hope to add Cab Calloway School of the Arts to the lineup for the fall.

Biggs Museum of American Art

June 4 to July 17, 2021

CAMP Rehoboth

August 7-30, 2021

2021 Emerging Fellow, Literature: Fiction

2021 Emerging Fellow, Visual Arts: Crafts

Dierkes utilizes natural forms in her work. She sees them as a metaphor for her experience of the human condition, representing her female self, and creates organic forms and vessels using materials “with recognizable inherent properties that are also malleable.” She continually explores dichotomies in her work. “As women and mothers, we are bombarded with expectations . . . and this carries over to the art-making process.”

2021 Established Fellow, Jazz: Performance

Dixon is a world-class virtuoso on soprano, alto, and baritone saxophones, flute, and clarinet, as well as a vocalist and highly regarded composer. She has fronted or played with hundreds of musical greats in scores of legendary venues, jazz festivals, and clubs worldwide, and has made multiple television and theatrical appearances. “Excellence is my core motivation,” she says, “and I am rewarded by lifting the hearts and lives of people.”

USAI is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Howard Gilman Foundation, and the Trust for Mutual Understanding, and is the only program of its size and scope in the country.

USArtists International supports performances by U.S. dance, music, and theater solo artists and ensembles invited to perform at important cultural festivals and performing arts marketplaces anywhere in the world outside the United States and its territories. This grant program has recently expanded to accept applications for virtual performances (live streamed or pre-recorded) at eligible international festivals. USArtists International grantees reflect the vibrant diversity of U.S. artists and creative expression in the performing arts. The next program deadline is March 31, 2021. To learn more about the program, see additional deadlines, or access the online application, please visit our website.

Challenge America guidelines include important new details on eligibility requirements, as well as the program description, project types, and what we mean by "underserved".

A live webinar with tips and Q&A will be held on March 10 at 3 p.m. ET. Please register in advance to attend.

Questions? We’re always happy to help. The Challenge America team can be reached at challengeamerica@arts.gov. 

Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation has announced the artists for its 2021-2022 Mid Atlantic Tours program. Project support grants are available to mid-Atlantic presenters (DC, DE, MD, NJ, NY, PA, USVI, VA, WV) booking roster artists for engagements taking place between September 1, 2021 and December 31, 2022.

Booking deadline is Friday, May 7, 2021.

There is no application process for Mid Atlantic Tours funding, but funds are limited. Presenters are encouraged to pursue this opportunity and secure artist engagements as soon as possible by directly contacting the artists' respective representatives.

For full details on the program, visit: https://www.midatlanticarts.org/grants-programs/grants-for-organizations/#mid-atlantic-tours

The Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts (BOPA) and the Municipal Art Society of Baltimore City have announced two Calls for Artists for the new Lexington Market. As part of the development of a new Lexington Market, including a new plaza, the Calls for Artists seek two permanent, site-specific, integrated artworks. Both calls are open to artists living and working in Maryland and its contiguous states: Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Artists living and working in Baltimore and across Maryland are especially encouraged to apply. Artists may apply individually or as a team. The full application with additional information is available here and is due by Tuesday, March 23, 2021.

Each month we feature a handful of arts and community-based organizations and their programs and projects funded by the Delaware Division of the Arts. Funding for Division of the Arts grants is provided by the Delaware General Assembly and the National Endowment for the Arts. To view past grants awarded (2000 to present), please visit our Grants Awarded page.

Arts Wowzers!

The Division has embarked on a year-long digital advertising campaign to increase reach and engagement on DelawareScene.com. We remind and recommend that organizations, businesses, and individual artists submit their 2021 events as soon as they are scheduled, and no later than the recommended deadlines below. Submit now

Do you have an exciting arts program, project, or story to share? Are you interested in being interviewed, either to promote an upcoming event, your work in the arts, or an issue relevant to Delaware’s arts and entertainment sector? Send an email to delarts@delaware.gov with "DE State of the Arts Podcast" in the subject line.

Please note: All applications for grants must be submitted through smARTDE.

The Delaware Division of the Arts is an agency of the State of Delaware. Together with its advisory body, the Delaware State Arts Council, the Division administers grants and programs that support arts programming, educate the public, increase awareness of the arts, and integrate the arts into all facets of Delaware life. Funding for Division programs is provided by annual appropriations from the Delaware General Assembly and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. For more information about the Delaware Division of the Arts, visit arts.delaware.gov or call 302-577-8278.