Arts Council Santa Cruz County’s board of directors has allocated $75,000 for COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grants. These grants will provide one-time emergency support to arts organizations and current Create Grantee artists that are based in, produce, and publicly exhibit their work in Santa Cruz County.
A recent survey of 28 Santa Cruz County-based arts nonprofits, estimated losses over $1.5 million due to closures and event cancelations.
“The arts sector has been hit incredibly hard by this crisis, as dance studios close and concerts, plays, and gallery openings are canceled. Many artists, like so many others, are now unemployed. These grants will help ensure that, when we start to leave our homes again, our vibrant arts community will be there to bring us together, help us heal, and remind us of our shared humanity,” said Jim Brown, Arts Council Santa Cruz County’s executive director.
Review criteria and considerations for arts organizations include having been an Arts Council grantee at least once in the last five years. Grant awards will primarily be based on financial need, risk that the organization will have to close, and ability of this funding to make a difference.
Bonnie Bernardi
Individual artist applicants must be a current Create grantee with an Arts Council-funded event/artwork impacted by COVID-19.
“The funding for this program would not be possible without a generous bequest from Bonnie Bernardi, a founding Arts Council board member and the driving force behind our SPECTRA arts education program for many years,” said Hannah Garcia, grants program manager.
“Santa Cruz County is unthinkable without its vibrant arts scene. It was urgent that the Arts Council take action to assist organizations that have been impacted by COVID-19 to be able to keep their doors open, and to begin to take steps toward their recovery. These grants are just a beginning; but they are a sign of our commitment, and of our communities’ commitment, to the vital importance of the arts,” said Jeff Galipeaux, board chairman.
Arts Council Santa Cruz County has eased requirements and deadlines for Open Studios artists and launched virtual arts education classrooms with tutorials, activities, and lesson plans to provide arts activities for students and to employ teaching artists during school closures.
“When this crisis is over, it will be the arts that will bring us together again, at concerts, festivals, plays, and events like Open Studios,” said Brown.
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To learn more or to apply for a grant, visit www.artscouncilsc.org/grants.