In this issue:
- Grants Awarded: $39,515 to local organizations and artists
- Prairie Star & Prairie Disciple nominations due soon!
- Upcoming Arty Party's: Lyon & Lincoln
- Attend MN Arts Advocacy In-Person Rally at the Capitol!
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- Artist Retreat, May 6-7: Register today!
- SMAC Workshop: Beginning Your Accessibility Journey
- SMAC grant updates: Upcoming grant deadlines & webinars
Pictured: Maria Novak's "100 Years Ago Today" variety show project at the Little Theatre in New London, which she received a SMAC Individual Artist Grant for.
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SMAC Awards $39,515 to local organizations and artists
The SMAC board met on March 22nd and awarded a total of $39,515 in grant funds to five organizations and six artists within our SW MN region for a total of eleven grants awarded.
The following five organizations have been awarded SMAC Equipment & Facilities Improvement grants. These grants provide up to $10,000 to arts organizations for the purchase of equipment items and facilities improvements that will strengthen the organization’s capacity to serve the arts needs of the SMAC region.
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Crow River Players of New London were awarded $3,907 for equipment purchases that are needed to expand their support for visual and mixed media capabilities for exhibitions. Items included are custom hanging and mounting mechanisms plus installation fees. This includes art hanging rail systems, hooks, hardware and magnetic solutions. For their inaugural artist exhibition they are honored to welcome and present "Landscapes" by Jean Trumbo.
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Friends of the Auditorium in Worthington were awarded $10,000 to purchase and install two ETC High End Systems Lonestar LED lights. The applicant explained, "we've seen that the demands of the performances have shown a need for lighting that includes more features with our lighting instruments, including the ability to shutter the lights."
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Granite Area Arts Council was awarded $6,799 for a new hanging system and new interior lighting tracks for their gallery, as well as building out a new gallery wall to replace temporary panels, repair a broken projector, build an art-book lending library, improve gallery and gift shop’s display options, curtain off our exposed back workspace, repair a hole in the gallery ceiling, install a resilient floor, and repaint the entire space.
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Green Earth Players of Luverne were awarded $6,508 to make updates to their rehearsal space, including: Replacing the stage floor with a more permanent solution; the applicant plan to buy materials to construct a better, stronger and safer stage floor. Funds will also go towards: the purchase of speakers and small scale mixing board, a new electric piano/keyboard, and basic shop tools.
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Prairie Winds Concert Band of New London was awarded $3,347 for replacing old speakers, repairs to music stand racks, a drum set, and other various percussion equipment: new mallets, a cabasa, bongos, replacement tabs for timpani set, and tables and storage containers to house equipment.
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The following artist has been awarded a SMAC Artist Equity grant. Artist Equity grants provide up to $4,000 to aid Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and other artists of color with projects that will advance their skills and artistic careers.
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Georgina Drapeau of Morton was awarded $4,000. Georgina is a 3rd generation quillwork artist, and will use these funds to further her artistic skills and opportunities through mentorship and exposure. Georgina plans to develop five quillwork co-creations with mentor Hope Two Hearts and display them to their community at the Lower Sioux Agency historic site. Quill artwork pictured left.
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The following six artists were awarded SMAC Quick Support for Individual Artist grants. These grants provide artists with up to $1,000 for activities such as purchasing supplies, attending classes, and small artist-led community projects.
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Darwin Dyce of Ghent was awarded $1000 for bringing the musical trio group (of which he is a member) Kindred Spirits to perform at the renovated historic Minneota Opera Hall. The first set will be followed by two other groups of musicians coming from Ortonville, Watson, Milan and Montevideo area. SMAC will be partnering with Darwin's event for our Lyon County Arty Party (click here to read more) or see the article later in this newsletter!
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Adrienne Herbert of Lakefield was awarded $954 for supplies to prepare an exhibit for the Nobles County Art Center in Worthington. Adrienne will also be using funds to take a class on working with Encaustics. Pictured left: "Winter", Encaustic, 6"x12".
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Molly Rivera of Hutchinson was awarded $1,000 for purchasing the equipment and hiring an electrician to install a kiln in her basement for firing ceramics. Molly has an exhibit coming up in July. Pictured left: Bookend Vase 1, stoneware, underglaze, glaze, 2021.
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Don Sherman of Ortonville was awarded $1,000 to work with two artists, Dawn Tevis and Jennifer Conrad, to learn to make new types of handmade papers for marbling and collages. Through this project, Don plans to make five 16"x20" marbling pieces from local natural and invasive plant fibers. He also plans to create five large collages using pulp painting and collage design on handmade paper.
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Kay Westlie of Willmar was awarded $1,000 for supplies and artist time to create five artworks incorporating fabric handwork of designers and creators from previous generations. Kay said, "My artistic vision is to showcase the work of embroiderers and crocheters, ultimately to display them in a long-term care or other senior center. My art form is rooted in showcasing fabric handwork of previous generations of mostly Scandinavian culture, using acrylic paint and fabric on canvas." Artwork pictured left.
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Southwest Minnesota Arts Council Nominations are now OPEN for our Prairie Star and Prairie Disciple Awards! |
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The Deadline for both nominations is April 15, 2022 by 4:30 pm. Nominations forms are short, but we do recommend letters of support from multiple community members, so the sooner you can start collecting, the better! It is SMAC's intention that in recognizing these individuals publicly, the awards will raise the profile of the arts in their community and throughout the SMAC region.
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Every other year, the Prairie Star Award ($5,000) recognizes an individual artist whose body of work has made a significant contribution to the arts over an extended period of time, who has been recognized by their artistic peers, and who has best exemplified the highest quality of work in the SMAC region. To learn more and see past recipients, visit our Prairie Star webpage.
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The Prairie Disciple Award ($1,000) provides awareness and recognition of one individual per year from southwest Minnesota, whose activities and involvement have substantially contributed to the arts over an extended period of time. The accomplishments of arts advocates working in the region are often not widely known or appreciated, and this award aims to correct that. This year nominations are limited to educators only. To learn more and see past recipients, visit our Prairie Disciple webpage.
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JOIN US for an “Arty Party” in Lyon County:
Sunday, April 24 from 1-2 pm & stay for musical entertainment Kindred Spirits & Friends from 2-4 pm!
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YOU are invited to network with artists and arts supporters in the Lyon County area! This event will take place at The Minneota Opera Hall, located above the Minneota Library, (200 N Jefferson Street, Minneota); there is an accessible elevator available.
From 1-2 pm SMAC will provide refreshments in a casual networking setting. SMAC staff will be available to connect with attendees and get the word out about who SMAC is, what we do, and what services and assistance we can offer for our communities. Keep up to date about this event through our social media on Facebook and Instagram, or you can always email us for details: info@swmnarts.org. This will be our eighth program in our 18-month series networking events for every county in our region.
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Stay at the location from 2-4 pm to enjoy a musical performances from Kindred Spirits (pictured) and friends! This portion of the event was arranged by Darwin Dyce (of Kindred Spirits) through a SMAC Quick Support for Artists grant, made possible in part by the voters of Minnesota through a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund. Kindred Spirits' music is rooted in jazz and blues and their visiting friends will offer a variety of music ranging from rock, folk, and original compositions. Come see the beautiful restoration work done by the Society for the Preservation of Minneota's Heritage and let the music reconnect you with community.
A suggested donation of $10 is requested by the organizer for this portion of the program to support the re-emergence of live music.
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In-Person Arts and Culture Rally, Thursday May 5th, 2022 @ 10AM |
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Minnesota Citizens for the Arts will be hosting an in-person rally for the arts at the Minnesota State Capitol on Thursday, May 5th, 2022 @ 10AM. Supporters will start on the front steps of the Minnesota State Capitol at 10 am for an outdoor gathering and then go into the Capitol Rotunda at 11 am for an indoor rally!
We need arts and culture supporters to SHOW LEGISLATORS THE IMPACT OF THE ARTS SECTOR! It is imperative that they see swarms of people supporting this $100 million bill!
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Don't forget...whether you can make it to the in-person rally or not, don't forget to sign the petition to show your support! |
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Did you miss our annual Artist Retreat in 2020 and 2021? It's finally back! On May 6th & 7th join artists from across Southwest Minnesota for 1 & 1/2 days of networking and arts inspiration. Workshop sessions are being created to appeal to artists of many disciplines. The retreat will be held at Danebod Folk School in Tyler, MN for a “get-away” learning atmosphere. Overnight accommodations will be available, but not required; you can choose to come for one or both days! More details will be coming soon, be sure to watch for updates through our emails, social media ( Facebook & Instagram) and our website. |
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Deadline to register is April 29, 2022 |
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Friday, May 6:
12-1 pm, Check in/Room assignments
Light lunch available. Held in Dining Hall Basement.
1-2:45 pm, Session #1 Workshops
Collaborative Mural Painting/Nature Mandalas/Poetry
(Nature Mandala pictured below)
2:45-3 pm, Snack/Break
3-5:30 pm, Session #2 Workshops
Collaborative Mural Painting Continued/Merengue Dance(4:30-5:30)/Cartoon You
5:30-7 pm, Supper Provided
7-8:30 pm, SMAC Lincoln County Arty Party!
(free and open to the public) Performance TBD
Open Evening:
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Saturday, May 7:
8-9 am, Registration for Saturday-only Attendees & Breakfast
Held in Dining Hall Basement
9 am, Welcome (Held in Dining Room)
9:15-10:45 am, Session #3 Workshops
How to Write A Cozy Mystery/Community Theatre/Mandala Drawing
(Mandala drawing pictured below)
10:45-11 am, Break & Networking
11 am-12:30 pm, Session #4 Workshops
How to Write a Cozy Mystery Continued/Community Drumming/Eco-Print Scarf Dyeing (11-12)/Optional Mandala Drawing Continued
12:30-1:30 pm Lunch (Dining Room)
1:30-3 pm, Session #5 Workshops
Ceili Dance/E-Z Printmaking/Eco-Printing (2:30-3:30)
3-3:30 pm, Snack & Networking
3:30-5 pm, Session #6 Workshops
Grant Opportunities for Artists
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FEES:
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Friday afternoon only: $15 for workshops & meals*
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Saturday only: $15 for workshops & meals*
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$30 total for both days of workshops*
- Overnight Lodging-Private Room: $35
- Overnight Lodging-Shared Room: $20
- Overnight Lodging-Private room with bath: $70
*Attendees outside SMAC Region: $25/day ($50 total for both days)
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Deadline to register is April 29, 2022 |
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BONUS: Our SMAC Arty Party for Lincoln County will take place in Tyler at the Danebod Folk School on May 6th, the first evening of our Artist Retreat, from 7-8:30 pm as part of our festivities! The Arty Party will be a free event open to all. This will be the 9th county Arty Party hosted by SMAC out of our 18 counties! Like the other Arty Party's, we'll have arts entertainment, some tasty treats, and opportunities for networking with artists and arts supporters. SMAC staff will be available to connect with attendees and get the word out about who SMAC is, what we do, and what services and assistance we can offer for our communities. |
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What: Beginning Your Accessibility Journey Workshop
When: Thursday, May 26, 2022 from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM CDT
Where: This is an online event hosted on Zoom
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Workshop Description: An introduction to the language and concepts of disability, access law, and how to take some first steps to make your activities accessible to people with disabilities. This workshop will be presented by Scott Artley. |
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More Information
This workshop will be virtual through Zoom. Visit zoom.us or find it on your device’s app store to download for free and make your account before the meeting begins.
Upon registration for this workshop, you will be emailed the login information to join our workshop.
There will be an optional Accessibility Q&A Session with the presenter a month after the initial presentation on Thursday, June 23rd from 6:30-7:30pm as a follow-up.
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About the presenter:
Scott Artley, CPACC is a nationally recognized expert in arts and culture accessibility. He has over a decade of leadership experience in the arts, with a special focus on community-based initiatives and social justice, emerging (in part) from his own experience as a queer person with disabilities. He serves as the Accessibility Program Director for the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council (St Paul, MN), a role designed to develop and manage grant programs for arts organizations in the Twin Cities Metro, and to develop resources to expand the arts participation of people with disabilities in the region. He is a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies by the International Association of Accessibility Professionals. Scott is also an artist and cultural producer, currently writing his first novel.
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This Zoom event will have automated closed captioning as an option. Live human-generated captions and live American Sign Language interpretation can be provided within a week's advanced notice of the event, Thursday, May 19th (even if the published notice timeline has elapsed, we may still be able to accommodate the request). A pdf of the presentation will be made available to registered individuals prior to the event. Please direct all requests and inquires to info@swmnarts.org. |
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In the Gallery through April 29,th 2022:
David Strom's Drawing to Painting: May I have this Dance...
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David Strom paints and draws in Windom, MN. Strom works with acrylics and pen & ink on paper and canvas. The southwest Minnesota rural landscape has been his main interest.
In 2019 he did a series of black acrylic and ink drawings on format paper. These drawings are a combination of realism and fantasy and refer to gray steel grain bins, elevators, wind turbines, round bales, roads, ropes, rows of crops in all stages of development and rest, and the abstract way that we define the land using maps, specifically plat maps. These elements are combined by putting them in vignettes and connecting them together much like one would make a quilt or illustrate a graphic novel.
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2021-2022 Strom received a grant from Southwest Minnesota Arts Council (SMAC) to interpret these drawings into twelve large-scale acrylic on canvas paintings. The paintings use the drawings as a starting point and then take off from there. Strom thinks of it like music with sharps and flats, slow and fast, rest and rhythm etc. The end result will be 12 Dancing pairs of drawings and paintings reflecting and interpreting the landscape he lives in and what lives within him. The SMAC galley is hosting 6 of these pairs. Learn more about David on our website gallery page.
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Above left: Screen grab from David's virtual artist talk on Zoom. Left: Painting within a painting, detail from couple 6 painting.
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Please let us know of any accommodations needed for you to enjoy any of our events, virtual or in-person: info@swmnarts.org. The gallery is generally open for viewing M-T 8 am to 12 pm & 1-4:30 pm, but it is best to call before arrival or set up an appointment to ensure we will be available. Please email info@swmarts.org if you would like to set up a private viewing in our gallery.
These activities are made possible by the voters of Minnesota thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
Funding provided by the McKnight Foundation. Minnesota thrives when its artists thrive. The McKnight Foundation supports working artists to create and contribute to vibrant communities.
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Every other year, the Prairie Star Award ($5,000) recognizes an individual artist whose body of work has made a significant contribution to the arts over an extended period of time, who has been recognized by his or her artistic peers, and who has best exemplified the highest quality of work in the SMAC region.
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The Prairie Disciple Award ($1,000) provides awareness and recognition of one individual per year from southwest Minnesota, whose activities and involvement have substantially contributed to the arts over an extended period of time. The accomplishments of arts advocates working in the region are often not widely known or appreciated. In recognizing these individuals publicly, this award will raise the profile of the arts in their community and throughout the SMAC region. This year nominations are limited to educators only.
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Meet With Our Grants Administrator
SW MN Arts Council grants administrator Caroline Koska is available to meet with you by phone, web conference or in person at our office in Marshall to answer your questions on grant eligibility and using the application system or to review a draft of your application. Schedule a time with Caroline Koska.
As a reminder, Koska also holds monthly in-person open office hours at the SMAC offices in Marshall on the second Tuesday of every month from 10 am to 2 pm. The next one will take place April 12th.
LOOKING FORWARD: In the first 2 weeks of June Caroline will be doing IN-PERSON grant workshop in our each of our 3 regions: NORTH (Big Stone, Swift, Lac qui Parle, Chippewa, Kandiyohi, and Meeker), CENTRAL (Yellow Medicine, Lincoln, Lyon, Redwood, Renville, and McLeod), and SOUTH (Pipestone, Murray, Cottonwood, Rock, Nobles, and Jackson). During these workshops you can lean more about our grants and how they might fit you or your organization's needs, how to fill out a grant application, as well as get to know all the changes that are being made to our grants for our next fiscal year (starting July 2022). Keep an eye our for our emails and social media for updates: SMAC Facebook, SMAC Instagram and SMAC website.
Call 800-622-5284 or email us info@swmnarts.org with your questions. Please let us know of any accommodations needed for you to attend any of our events, virtual or in-person.
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Would you like to help SMAC review and score grant applications?
The SMAC Board of Directors continually seeks panels of artists, arts administrators, arts volunteers, and arts appreciators representing multiple artistic disciplines from throughout the SMAC geographic region and from all our communities including BIPOC, people with disabilities, and LGBTQIA2S+ individuals. Being a grant panelist is a positive way to strengthen your grantwriting skills by understanding the process as a whole. It's also a great way to learn and support what exciting projects are happening in rural SW MN! Panelists are compensated $75 for a panel. More details on being a SMAC panelist
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For more opportunities and resources be sure to check out our latest news posts (updated DAILY!) on SMAC's website
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Regional arts calendar
We are continuing to post both in-person and virtual arts events in our region on our website calendar. If you have events to let us know about, please email the details to info@swmnarts.org!
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Memberships
From February 25 to March 31, 2022
Contributors: Mary Jane Striegel, Marshall • Dr. WM. F & Mary Ann Yseth, Pipestone • Margaret Hurlbut-Vosburch, Worthington •
Supporters: Tokheim Stoneware, Dawson • Green Earth Players, Luverne • Carol Purrington, Marshall • Paula Nemes, Marshall • Jean Replinger, Marshall • Marv & Jane Link, Milan • John White, Ortonville • Jan Craig Nelson, Redwood Falls • Cheri Buzzeo, Spicer • Willmar Area Arts Council, Willmar • Business, Arts & Recreation Center, Windom • Prairie Arts Continuum, Windom • Nobles County Art Center, Worthington •
Sustainer: John Ginocchio, Marshall •
Patron: Farmers & Merchants State Bank, Appleton •
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Other donations: Mark Brodin, Windom • |
Would you like to become a contributing member of SMAC or make a donation?
THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE ARTS!
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2022 SW MN Arts Council BOARD OF DIRECTORS |
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Big Stone - Judy Beckman
Jackson - Gilligan Singler
Lincoln - Mark Wilmes
Meeker - Darlene Kotelnicki
Pipestone - Erica Volkir
Rock - Shawn Kinsinger
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Chippewa - Georgette Jones
Kandiyohi - Cheri Buzzeo
Lyon - Michele Knife Sterner
Murray - Jessica Welu
Redwood - David KelseyBassett
Swift - Alison Nelson
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Cottonwood - Anna Johannsen
Lac qui Parle - Kristine Shelstad
McLeod - Justin Beck
Nobles - Cheryl Avenel-Navara
Yellow Medicine - Betsy Pardick & Michele Huggins
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Executive Director - Nicole DeBoer
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Grants & Financial Administrator - Caroline Koska
Accessibility & Marketing Coordinator - Krystl Louwagie
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SW MN Arts Council
The Southwest Minnesota Arts Council (SMAC) is a non-profit organization committed to promoting and encouraging the development of the arts in the eighteen counties of southwestern Minnesota by serving as a source of funds and technical services which enable local organizations, educational institutions, and individuals to sponsor and/or create and promote the arts in their communities.
SMAC receives funding from individuals, businesses, organizations, schools, cities, counties, private foundations including the McKnight Foundation, an allocation from the State of Minnesota, and a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund, made possible by the voters of Minnesota.
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