We have established a highly collaborative environment at the Maryland State Arts Council. MSAC staff members move ideas to implementation using the same "Yes, and!" technique found in theatre improvisation... I receive your idea and will build on it! During the month of September, the Maryland arts scene was vibrating with collaboration, and nothing could be more exciting. Baltimore Center Stage and the Olney Theater Center are partnering to produce MISS YOU LIKE HELL at both theaters. This is an important piece of theatre for our time and I highly recommend it. The National Folk Festival aligned MSAC's Maryland Traditions program, the National Council for Traditional Arts, the city of Salisbury, and countless artists and volunteers for a weekend of spectacular presentations attended by more than 100,000 people. MSAC's Public Art program, the Dorchester County Arts Council, the city of Cambridge, the Harriet Tubman Museum and Educational Center, and other partners' combined efforts to install and celebrate the stunning mural by artist Michael Rosato. Collaboration is a hallmark of the creative process and, in Maryland, we are demonstrating that community impact is only enhanced when we say, "Yes, and!"
Ken Skrzesz, Executive Director, Maryland State Arts Council
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The MSAC Online Resource Bulletin, maintained by Maryland Art Place, includes regional, national, and international exhibition opportunities, grants, fellowships, residencies, and information on available studio spaces in the area. The Resource Bulletin is updated on a weekly basis and maintains hundreds of listings of arts opportunities, organized by subject and deadline date. Check out the
MSAC Resource Bulletin
today! To post your call for entry,
email Caitlin, the Registry Coordinator, at
caitlin@mdartplace.org
.
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Please consider inviting MSAC Staff and Board Members to any public event that may include donor recognition as part of the programming. Public acknowledgement of MSAC funding, particularly when a staff, board member, or local legislator is present, allows arts audiences to understand the connection between the vote they cast for local officials, the local official’s support of MSAC funding, and how that funding returns to the communities of arts-connected constituents. Please send all invitations to
msac.commerce@maryland.gov
.
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BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART ANNOUNCES 2020 VISION COMMEMORATING THE YEAR OF THE WOMAN
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The Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) announced
2020 Vision
, a year of exhibitions and programs dedicated to the presentation of the achievements of female-identifying artists. The initiative will include 13 solo exhibitions, seven thematic shows, and scholarly programs that will foster dialogue on women’s contributions to art history and the development of many of the artistic institutions that we know today beginning in fall 2019.
"The initiative is part of the BMA’s ongoing implementation of its broader vision to address race and gender diversity gaps within the museum field, and to represent more fully and deeply the spectrum of individuals that have shaped the trajectory of art."
The first exhibition
By Their Creative Force: American Women Modernists
features 20 works by artists such as Elizabeth Catlett, Maria Martinez, and Georgia O’Keeffe to recognize the innovative contributions women artists have made to the development of American modernism. The exhibition is on view October 6, 2019–July 5, 2020.
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PROGRAM DIRECTOR SITE VISIT HIGHLIGHTS
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Program Director Laura Weiss took a trip to the Eastern Shore a few weeks ago to visit Brown Box Theatre Project. The nine-year-old traveling theatre company has a mission of breaking down barriers that separate the masses from live theatre and bringing the very best in performance, design, and collaboration to unconventional venues and underserved destinations. Laura caught a performance of Shakespeare’s “Measure for Measure” in Ocean City’s Northside Park. With a beautiful sunset over the bay as backdrop, the troupe brought the all-too-timely themes of sexual harassment, coercion, and abuse to the audience gathered in the park on a crisp fall evening. Throughout the summer, Brown Box brought these provocative topics to communities throughout the Eastern Shore all completely free of charge to audiences! The crowd in Ocean City was engrossed with the storytelling from the very beginning. Brown Box Theatre Project receives funding through MSAC’s Grants for Organizations program.
Photograph taken by Laura Weiss, Program Director
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OCTOBER IS NATIONAL ARTS & HUMANITIES MONTH
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Join Americans for the Arts next month as they celebrate the role the arts and humanities play in our lives. We have four easy ways you can bring the
National Arts & Humanities Month
(NAHM) to your community, including resources to host a Creative Conversation and a preview of this year's themes for the popular #ShowYourArt2019 Instagram challenge. We want to hear your creative ideas, too—fill out the
form
on our website and let us know how you'll be celebrating!
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At seven different locations across Maryland, MSAC is hosting its second annual Regional Arts Institutes as part of our professional development series this fall for all arts constituents. We have held four already and there are still three to attend. Visit
msac.org
to RSVP.
1. One-on-one networking and resource opportunities.
2. New MSAC Strategic Plan.
3. Launching of the Independent Artist Network.
4. Review of the Grants for Organizations on-year full application.
5. Presentations by MSAC Partners, MD State Department of Education, Maryland Citizens for the Arts, and Arts Education in Maryland Schools Alliance.
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MARYLAND MICRO-CREDENTIALS
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Register for free professional development!
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2020-2021 MID ATLANTIC TOURS ARTISTS ANNOUNCED
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Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation has announced the artists for its 2020-2021 Mid Atlantic Tours program. Fee 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 July 1, 2020 and June 30, 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 agents.
The 2020-2021 selected artist from Maryland is
The Honey Dewdrops
,
an Americana duo with harmony soaked songs and mastery of their instruments’ acoustic tones.
For more information on the 2020-2021 Mid Atlantic Tours artists and booking agent contact information, please
click here
. For booking guidelines,
click here
.
Photograph courtesy of The Honey Dewdrops
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NASAA is pleased to announce the release of its
State Legislative Roundup 2019
, which highlights nearly 60 bills considered by state legislatures this year that are important to state arts agencies and their constituencies.
This annual report surfaces national policy trends reflected in legislation around the country. NASAA curated the current edition after reviewing more than 640 bills introduced during the 2019 legislative season that could either strengthen the arts or inhibit support for them. We hope it provides insights that will help you cultivate support for the arts in Maryland.
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2ND TRI-ANNUAL MARYLAND STATE ARTIST REGISTRY JURIED EXHIBITION
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A performance component has been added to the exhibition this year. Remaining p
erformances will be held on
Saturday, November 9th from 9pm to 11pm
.
Performance schedule to be announced.
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FY21 GRANTS FOR ORGANIZATIONS - APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN
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The Grants for Organizations (GFO) program provides annual operating grants to organizations that produce or present the arts to the general public through public programs or services.
The Intent to Apply application deadline has now passed. If you are a new organization interested in GFO funding, please keep an eye out for the Intent to Apply for FY2022 funding in late summer 2020.
The Full GFO Application and the Request for Funding (RFF) application are now available. To access either application, visit
SmartSimple
and log-in as your organization. New to
SmartSimple
? Be sure to first register your organization as a new user, and then the application will be available to you.
FY2021 "On Year" Artistic Categories submitting a Full GFO Application include:
- Literary Arts
- Music A1 and A2
- Visual Arts/Media A and B
- New applicants, those not funded in FY2020, and grantees notified of one-year funding cycles
Full Applications are due on Friday, November 15, 2019 at 5pm.
FY2021 "Off Year" Artistic Categories will submit an RFF application. RFFs are due on Sunday, December 15, 2019 at 5pm (please note: this deadline occurs over a weekend; there will not be technical support available on 12/14 or 12/15).
Questions? Reach out to your Program Director (Emily Sollenberger or Laura Weiss) for assistance.
Photograoh of Joe's Movement Emporium Taratibu Youth Association by Will Webb
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Artist Highlight: Nicole Cox
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Nicole Cox
is a writer based in Montgomery County. Her play, Office of the Speaker, had a staged reading at the Kennedy Center's Page-to-Stage Festival, and scenes from her play, Call Center, were showcased at the National l-Minute Play Festival. Her play, All Other Nights, won the Citizens Play Festival in Chicago and was selected by Paula Vogel and Dan O'Brien to be workshopped at the Sewanee Writer's Conference. Her play, Lift and Separate, was selected for the First Draft Series at Chicago Dramatists Theatre. Nicole's poems, reviews, and creative non-fiction have been published in Briar Cliff Review (Pushcart Prize nomination), Hanging Loose, Painted Bride Quarterly, Another Chicago Magazine, Anterican Book Review, Split Lip, Electric Literature, and others. She is currently at work on a memoir-in-essays and a new play. Her new play is about the groundbreaking Ferguson v. J.O.N.A.H trial, in which a New Jersey jury decided, for the first time in the nation, that gay conversion therapy is consumer fraud. Nicole earned her MFA from Emerson College.
Photograph courtesy of American University
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MSAC Councilor Highlights
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Shaunte Roper has been a state employee for a little more than two years now. Before coming to the state, Roper worked at MECU of Baltimore, in the accounting department for 11 years. She is a driven accountant with more than 10 years of professional accounting experience and more than five years of management experience. Roper has a varied business background. Being a part of the MECU of Baltimore team, she demonstrated her ability to manage multiple priorities, streamline processes, and develop ideas to build relationships.
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As Office Secretary, Derrick Quevedo is here to welcome you upon your visit to our base of operations. Quevedo was born and raised in Connecticut, growing up as an active participant in local cultural organizations and nurturing his obsession with drawing people. Quevedo cultivated this obsession while earning a BFA from the University of Hartford and an MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Quevedo continues his practice, exhibiting work in galleries and festivals. Although a Charm City transplant, Quevedo once again discovered and established community throughout several creative and cultural organizations in the area, including here at MSAC.
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John Schratwieser is the Director of the Kent County Arts Council in Chestertown, Maryland. From 2010, through May 2017, John served as the Director of Maryland Citizens for the Arts, working to secure public funding for the arts (in the form of the budget of the Maryland State Arts Council) in Maryland. From 2004 until 2010, John led the Prince Theater Foundation in Chestertown Maryland, creating and expanding community responsive programming in an historic Art Deco movie theater in the heart of the downtown business district. John has a bachelors degree in Religious Studies and a masters in Public Administration and he has worked in the nonprofit arts sector for more than half of his nearly 30 years in the workforce. John serves on the Boards of Stories of the Chesapeake Maryland Heritage Area, the Kent County Local Management board, and Adkins Arboretum in Caroline County, Maryland. He lives with his partner Michael and their Golden Retriever, Franklin, in a historic Quaker farmhouse built in 1782 in Worton, Maryland.
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Sumita Kim, an artist and Professor of Art at Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland, was born in Gwang-ju, South Korea. Growing up in Seoul with artist and journalist parents, she developed a deep appreciation for the power of art and language at an early age. Kim is currently the Painting Coordinator of the Art Department at the Rockville Campus of MC. From 2008 to 2011, she also served as the Chair of the Art Department. She has been an active member of the college community, serving on college-wide committees such as the General Education Revision Committee. In 2011, she was recognized for her excellence in teaching by earning the Faculty Outstanding Teaching Award.
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Benny Russell began playing tenor saxophone at age 12. By the time he was a student at Morgan State, he played tenor, alto and soprano saxophones as well as clarinet, bass clarinet and flute. an adjunct instructor of music at Harford Community College since 2005, Russell was commissioned by the Multicultural Music Incorporation to write a three movement suite entitled The Darfur Chronicles which was performed by the Bronx Arts Ensemble and featured the highly acclaimed actress Nora Cole as the narrator. That same year, Mr. Russell initiated a march in Northwest Baltimore that commemorated the 40th Anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. with the Wayland Baptist Church. Dick Gregory was the guest speaker. In 2011, Mr. Russell conceived a program that featured an overture entitled Just Before the Autumn performed by the Susquehanna Symphony Orchestra. On February 24, 2013, Mr. Russell presented at Harford Community College Spirituals and Other Musings: A Tribute to 50 Years of a Dream. It featured a nine piece chamber orchestra in which he arranged all of the music and conceived the entire multi media production.
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Artist in Residence Program:
The MSAC's
Artist in Residence (AiR) Program
provides grants to Maryland schools that cover half the cost of a teaching artist residency. Guidelines for the FY20 Program can be found
here
and applications can be accessed in
eGrant
.
Questions about Artists in Residence Program? Contact Arts in Education Program Director
Precious Blake
for more information.
Presenting and Touring Program:
The Maryland Touring Grant assists eligible nonprofit organizations by, subsidizing the presentation of any performer on the Maryland Performing Artist Touring Roster. Guidelines for the FY20 Program can be found
here
and applications can be accessed in
Smart Simple
. All applicants will need to register for a new account. These grant applications are accepted on a rolling basis and are reviewed on a quarterly.
Arts & Entertainment Districts:
Arts & Entertainment Districts Technical Assistance Grants support organizational development and marketing efforts for designated management entities of Maryland's 28 Arts & Entertainment Districts. Guidelines for the FY20 Program can be found
here
and applications can be accessed in
Smart Simple
. All applicants will need to register for a new account. These grant applications are accepted on a rolling basis and are reviewed as they are submitted.
Creativity Grant Program:
The purpose of the Creativity Grant Program is to strengthen the vitality and sustainability of artists and small organizations, in order to maintain a strong arts infrastructure in the state. The Creativity Grant also provides opportunities to serve the growing needs of relevant arts projects and collaborations within Maryland communities. Guidelines for the FY20 Program can be found
here
and applications can be accessed in
Smart Simple
. All applicants will need to register for a new account. These grants are accepted on a rolling basis and are reviewed monthly.
FY21 Grants for Organization:
The Grants for Organizations (GFO) program provides annual operating grants to organizations that produce or present the arts to the general public through public programs or services. Full Applications and Request for Funding (RFF) Applications are now available to eligible organizations! Applications are available via Smart Simple. Full Applications are due on November 15, 2019 and RFF Applications are due on December 15, 2019. Questions about eligibility?
Contact Program Directors
Emily Sollenberger
or
Laura Weiss
for more information about the Grants for Organizations program.
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