• January Commission Meeting 
• Introducing Jenna Kriegel
• Coming Up at CAH
• Arts and Health: The Role of the Arts Sector in Promoting Resilience and Well-Being
• Non-CAH Opportunities
• FY24 Fellowship Grantees on Spotify
• Resources
• Visit Our eMuseum
• Update Your Profile

Our next Full Commission regular meeting will begin at 5:30 ET on Monday, January 22. Members of the public are invited to observe the meeting live online on CAH’s YouTube channel.

Members of the public may request three minutes to speak during the public comment period held at this meeting. Requests must be submitted by no later than Noon ET on Thursday, January 18. Written comments may also be submitted by no later than Noon ET on Thursday, November 16, as an alternative or in addition to spoken comments. Public comments, both spoken and written, will be included in the public record of the meeting.

This meeting is governed by the Open Meetings Act. Please address any questions or complaints arising under this meeting to the Office of Open Government at opengovoffice@dc.gov.

Hey, y’all!

My name is Jenna Kriegel (pronounced Kree-gull). I’m an artist, educator, hiker, yogi, dancer, dog-mom, and the newest member of CAH’s Public Art Team.

Texas-born and raised in sub-rural Oklahoma, my creative practice is grounded in using traditional handcraft, green materials, and natural spaces to elevate marginalized voices and contemporary stories.

I’m super passionate about Creative Community Service: the potential for art to span the gaps where conventional language falls short, creating connections and making life just a little brighter. With that in mind, I enrolled at the University of Oklahoma intending to study Art Therapy. Four years and several left turns later, I graduated with a BFA in Studio Art-Sculpture with a minor in Art History.

I then went on to earn a MFA in Studio Art-Sculpture with a Graduate Certificate of Women’s Studies from the University of Georgia. My work has granted me the opportunity to travel throughout the US and Europe to teach, exhibit, speak, and attend residencies. While I loved every minute of it, volunteering and creative programming in my local community is..

Join the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities in our 200 I St Gallery for a reception to celebrate our latest exhibition, Legacy: Civil Rights at 60. This juried exhibition commemorates the 60th anniversary of the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which aimed to prohibit discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. By visually depicting the material, personal, and direct-action work of the past 60 years through the artworks of DC-based artists, this exhibition is a call to continue pursuing equity and social justice locally and nationally. 

SAVE THE DATE: 6 to 8 pm on Friday, January 12, 2024

The General Operating Support Grant Program (GOS) offers general operating support to non-profit arts, humanities, and arts education organizations whose primary mission focus is in one or more arts or humanities disciplines referenced in Guide to Grants. 

The GOS application for FY 2025 (Oct 1, 2024 to Sept 30, 2025) will open in February. We will share more information in next month's newsletter.

About this Issue

Mindful of the toll that the pandemic has also taken on the arts and cultural sector, this issue will look at some of the ways that the arts continue to address and contribute to public health, healing, well-being, and community resilience. These are just a few of the stories demonstrating the importance of the arts sector and the incredible power of the arts to help individuals, organizations, and communities come out of a difficult time, think differently about how they live, take control of their own narratives, and advance efforts to be whole. Living an artful life is essential to living a healthy life.

DC Jazz Collective presents “Jazz: The Final Frontier” — with Lionel Lyles (sax), Joe Herrera (trumpet), Bobby Jasinski (keys), Steve Arnold (bass), and Will Stephens (drums), and featuring tunes inspired by space… the sun, the moon, the stars, and other celestial phenomena. Marx Cafe, 3203 Mount Pleasant Street NW, Washington DC 20010.

10 pm to Midnight on Friday, January 5.

Hey there, style mavericks! Want to help tell the story of our local vibrant fashion scene bursting with bold expressions and hidden gems? We have a grantee on a mission to uncover the soul of DC's diverse style across all eight wards. By taking a quick 5-minute survey, you'll be considered to possibly: 

• Become a style ambassador for your ward: Share your fashion haunts, hidden treasures, and the trends that make your street sizzle. 
• Make your voice heard: This isn't just about data, it's about capturing the spirit of what makes DC fashion truly special. 
• Help influence the story: Your insights will guide initiatives, events, and platforms that celebrate and empower DC's fashion community.  

Ready to unleash your inner trendsetter and leave your mark on the DC fashion map? Click the link below and let your style story flow! Don't worry, fashion friend, your responses will be kept anonymous. So, help them paint a vibrant portrait of DC's fashion community.

And if you know others in the fashion community, please share this email with your fellow style contributors and spread the word! The more voices, the richer and more impactful this DC fashion narrative becomes.  

From the great apes to beluga whales to baby turtles, this Watch Now Playlist from the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital showcases successful efforts to protect threatened animals and their habitats — and, in the case of wolves and bison, the role reintroduction can play in returning ecosystems to balance.

Check out DCEFF's new Watch Now Playlist for some free streaming suggestions highlighting ongoing efforts to protect threatened species worldwide.

The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District invites filmmakers to submit recent short documentary films to the Bethesda Film Fest.  

Up to five films will be selected to be shown. A film by a young filmmaker, under the age of 18, may also be chosen. Filmmakers whose films are selected will receive an honorarium of $1,000. Young filmmakers will receive a $250 honorarium. Short (5-30 minutes), documentary films by filmmakers in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. will be considered. Films must have been completed within the last two years. All topics are eligible. Filmmakers chosen for the 2023 festival are not eligible and may submit again for the 2025 festival.  

The application deadline is January 9, 2024. 

McLean Project for the Arts (MPA) currently seeks submissions for our 2024 Spring Solo Exhibitions. Contemporary living artists working in the Mid-Atlantic Region are invited to submit exhibition or project proposals to be on display in the Emerson and Atrium Galleries. The dates for the exhibitions will be from April 11 - June 15, 2024.

Deadline is January 13, 2024.

Know a talented young writer or musician who is part of the Deaf and/or disability* communities? Make sure they know about the Kennedy Center's creative careers programs and encourage them to apply by the deadlines noted below. In addition to financial awards, both programs provide exclusive workshops, connections with professional mentors, a trip to Washington, D.C. and more.

Young writers enrolled in senior high school (generally, ages 14-19) with disabilities are invited to submit a ten-minute script of any genre for the opportunity to participate in a playwrights program. Entries may be the work of an individual student or a collaboration between two students (at least one student with a disability). A panel of theater professionals selects winners.

The deadline is 11:59 pm (EST) on January 10, 2024.

Each year outstanding young musicians with disabilities from around the world receive the VSA International Young Musicians Award, $2,000, and the opportunity to perform and participate in professional development and music coaching activities provided by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. This program is open to soloists and ensembles of any instrument or genre.

The deadline is 11:59 pm (EST) on January 17, 2024.

As of 2022, DCIFF, the oldest independent film festival in Washington DC, is a Film Festival & Forum with a storied history of presenting extraordinary films. They showcase cutting-edge features, animation, experimental films, shorts, and documentaries on every subject, from every country, and with every budget and subject imaginable. 

Submission deadline is January 22, 2024.

EARTHDAY.ORG’s Your Art, Our Earth poster competition for Earth Day 2024 is underway and open to student submissions until January 22, 2024!

On April 22nd, 1970, the very first Earth Day saw 20 million people take to the streets to advocate for environmental protection. Since then, EARTHDAY.ORG has stood as a champion for the planet. Each year, a billion people worldwide engage in various Earth Day activities, including participating in cleanups, signing petitions, and supporting our initiatives. Throughout the history of Earth Day, they've harnessed the power of impactful art to emphasize the urgent need to care for our planet and advocate for the environment.

Applications are now open for the 2024-25 cycle of Arts Midwest’s two national grants programs: the NEA Big Read and Shakespeare in American Communities. 

NEA Big Read 

An initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest, the NEA Big Read supports community reading programs designed around a single NEA Big Read book. The goal of this program is to inspire meaningful conversations, celebrate local creativity, elevate a wide variety of voices and perspectives, and build stronger connections in each community. 

Grants range from $5,000 to $20,000 each, and the Intent to Apply is due on January 10, 2024. 

Shakespeare in American Communities 

Shakespeare in American Communities is a theater program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. Through grants to theater companies, this program supports high-quality productions and educational activities to young audiences throughout the United States. Applicants can choose from two paths: Schools or Juvenile Justice. 

Grants range from $15,000 to $25,000 each, and the Intent to Apply is due January 25, 2024.  

The Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant program aims to improve the health, well-being, and quality of life for military service members and veterans exposed to trauma as well as their families and caregivers through experiences of art or art making. 

 The Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) in partnership with Mid-America Arts Alliance (M-AAA). 

The deadline is January 17, 2024 

Through grants and peer learning opportunities, ArtsHERE invests in organizations that have demonstrated a commitment to equity within their practices and programming, with the goal of increasing arts participation for underserved groups/communities, and sharing insights that may inform similar funding programs in the future. 

Applications are welcome from organizations that are diverse in terms of geography, scale of operations, and focus of arts programming; as well as organizations that work at the intersection of the arts and other domains, such as community development, health/well-being, climate/environment, or economic development. 

The Statement of Interest [SOI] deadline is January 19, 2024. 

Pictured: Maria Elena Ramirez,

Montezuma's Headdress, 2023

Opening in June 2024, the Greenville Museum of Art (GMoA) will host The Home I Never Knew: Ni de Aqui, Ni de Alla, a group exhibition of artwork by Latino/a/x artists from or currently residing in the southeast region of the United States. Accepting artworks by artists ages 15+ and working in all media, the GMoA aims to provide a space for artists identifying within the Latino/a/x community to share about their lives growing up in this region, including hardships, triumphs, and everything in between. Reclaiming the idea of “ni de aqui, ni de alla,” or “not from here, nor there,” we will highlight the range of individual and shared experiences associated with being both “from here” AND “from there,” belonging or not belonging, or feeling mentally, emotionally, or culturally from elsewhere. The title of this exhibition was inspired by the pictured artist, Maria Elena Ramirez.

The submission deadline is February 10, 2024.

The Springfield Art Museum is pleased to announce a call for entries for Watercolor USA 2024, highlighting the very best in contemporary American watermedia. This year’s exhibit will run

from June 8 through September 1, 2024. The entry portal opens on January 3, 2024. All entries must be submitted online. The deadline to apply is midnight (Central Standard Time) on February 22, 2024.

The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District invites local artists to submit work to the 20th annual Bethesda Painting Awards. This juried art competition awards $14,000 in prizes to four selected winners. The deadline for submissions is Tuesday, February 27, 2024. Up to eight finalists will be chosen to display their work at Bethesda’s Gallery B in June 2024.

Two preparedness grant opportunities are available from the Performing Arts Readiness (PAR) project with application deadlines in early 2024.  

Grants of up to $7250 for 9 performing arts organizations for the creation of individual institutional emergency preparedness or Continuity of Operations (CoOP) plans (deadline Jan. 15, 2024). 

Grants of $5,000 - $25,000 each will be awarded for 4 projects to support both the development of new or emerging disaster preparedness networks that include performing arts and culture organizations, or the expansion of existing networks to increase participation among performing arts organizations (deadline March 1, 2024). 

ArtsCONNECT supports performing arts touring projects collaboratively developed by presenters working together in the mid-Atlantic region. 

The tours include performances as well as complementary engagement activities designed to create greater understanding or connections between artists, audiences, and communities. 

The deadline is March 7, 2024. 

The Special Presenter Initiatives provide additional opportunities for the support of small to mid-sized performing arts presenters in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, West Virginia, and Native nations that share this geography.  

Fee support is available for engagements of performing artists based anywhere worldwide. Engagements include performances as well as community activities that offer meaningful exchanges between touring artists and a presenter’s community. 

The deadline is March 14, 2024. 

The Mid Atlantic Tours program is a roster-based program for presenters in the mid-Atlantic region to receive up to 50% of the roster artist's artist fee plus up to $2,000 in other program expenses. The roster is live now.

Connect with a Tour Manager and complete a letter of agreement by March 28, 2024 to be considered for this program. 

If you’re looking for a playlist to check out, we’ve created one featuring selections from our FY24 Arts and Humanities Fellowship Grantees who are on Spotify. While by no means comprehensive, this playlist features a variety of District artists and genres. So please check it out. 

To Scan a Spotify Code

For: Mobile and tablet

Note: Spotify needs access to your phone’s camera for this.

1. Tap Search 🔍 . 

2. Tap the search bar.

3. Tap the camera 📷

4. Tap SCAN.

5. Point your camera at a Spotify Code.

Starting a nonprofit can seem terrifically complicated--is it worth it? This class at Candid Learning can help you decide.

In this session, you’ll learn the legal and logistical elements necessary to start a successful nonprofit. You’ll also learn about possible alternatives to starting your own nonprofit that you may not have considered. Finally, you’ll be introduced to a tool that will help you assess your own readiness to move forward.

This Zoom is from 2 to 3:30 pm EST on Tuesday, January 16.

Artists and cultural workers who have been historically under-resourced in areas of pay, protections and direct support are more vulnerable than ever. In a world where the language to provide context is contested and in some places criminalized, ACA's President and CEO, Lisa Funderburke, will host a timely conversation with advocates and program administrators to explore innovative and practical ways to strengthen support for artists and cultural workers. 

1 pm EST on Thursday, January 18.

MOCHA is a tool from The Management Center for establishing clear roles on projects. In most settings, projects involve contributions from multiple people. This is especially true in the progressive and education equity sectors where we strive to collaborate, build coalitions, and seek perspective from communities most impacted by the issues we work on.

Multiple people working together can generate greater participation, more equitable outcomes, and broader impact. And if we’re being honest, it can also lead to confusion. The MOCHA model clarifies who’s responsible for what and reduces the chance of hidden labor by spelling out each person’s contributions.

Antonio C. Cuyler and Alan Brown sat down to talk about capacity building around access, diversity, equity, and inclusion (ADEI). Cuyler is the founder of Cuyler Consulting, which partners with cultural organizations to maximize their impact and community relevance through ADEI. They discussed the challenges the arts and cultural organizations face in their ongoing ADEI work. their conversation touched on the need for capacity building at the board level, the importance of recognizing different kinds of capital, and the need for ADEI to be integrated with core operations, not a “special project.”

The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities online database showcases our Art Bank Collection, a collection of moveable artworks loaned to other District government agencies for display in public offices, as well as our Public Art Collection of installations of large-scale artworks in public sites/places throughout the District of Columbia.

We understand that the frequency with which we send emails can be a lot at times for some of our subscribers, and so we invite you to instead opt into a monthly e-newsletter. You may also select email lists specifically for Grants and Public Art opportunities.

You can update your profile at the bottom of this and every email we send by clicking on “Update Profile”.

Please note: If you leave GENERAL LIST selected, this will override any other selections and you will still receive every email. Please be sure to deselect this if you choose one or more of the other options.