PROVIDENCE – Throughout the years R.I. State Council for the Arts, also known as RISCA, has strengthened arts communities across the state and helped build the “cultural capital” identity worn by Providence through its extensive grants program.
After what RISCA executive director Randall Rosenbaum called a “record-breaking cycle” which saw 347 applications requesting more than $2 million in grant funding, the state agency awarded $824,938 in grants to 152 nonprofit organizations, schools and individuals across the Ocean State.
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“The level of support for the arts remains high, and this investment is important for our state’s economy and cultural life,” said Rosenbaum in prepared remarks, but RISCA is only able to fund “about 40 percent” of the requests it receives and the “average grant award is still very small.”
His statement went on to say: “The arts are a great return on the state’s investment, and with increased investment we could be doing more to supercharge the Rhode Island economy.”
Now, RISCA is calling for grant applications from artists and organizations across multiple disciplines prior to its October 2 deadline, according to an August 17 request for proposals.
Among the grants open for application are education-related funds, arts in health care initiatives, funds for Rhode Island-based individual artists as well as fellowships in choreography, drawing and printmaking, music composition, new genres and painting.
RISCA’s previous design fellowship has been replaced with the Design Innovation Grant – a $6,000 award in recognition of a “high level of creative problem solving and innovation” be design professionals 18 years old or older according to the application.
A total $2.4 million is up for grabs in the State Cultural Facilities grant. This program address the deterioration over time of “significant cultural properties” which “contribute to the quality of life in Rhode Island,” according to the program’s application information. The deadline for a letter of intent for this grant program is September 1.
Emily Gowdey-Backus is a staff writer for PBN. You can follow her on Twitter @FlashGowdey or contact her via email, gowdey-backus@pbn.com.
