Become a 2023 Grantee!
Application Deadline: Sunday, October 16, 2022 at 11:59 PM EST
Our 2023 Grant Applications are LIVE! Now is your chance to apply for awards up to $10,000. All guidelines and applications for this year's Creative Equations Fund and Community Arts Grants (including Brooklyn Arts Fund, Local Arts Support, and The Charlene Victor and Ella J. Weiss Cultural Entrepreneur Fund) are available here.
Please review the application guidelines thoroughly before beginning your application to make sure you are eligible. More details on Virtual and In-Person Information Sessions will be posted soon.
Don't forget that our Grant Panelist Nomination Form is now open as well. We use the panel selection process to review proposals and determine awards. Since we give grants to all kinds of artists from all over Brooklyn, we need Panelist nominations from all of our borough's communities!
Let your artist networks and communities know about BAC's grant opportunities and encourage them to sign up for our newsletter for upcoming announcements. Also, be sure follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Death by Audio Arcade (DBAA), 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee. Photo by Walter Wlodarczyk, 2018.
Meet Our Interim Executive Director
Jilian Cahan Gersten, who has served as Development & External Affairs Director at BAC for five years, has stepped into the role of Interim Executive Director as of September 1.
Ms. Gersten will work closely with the Board of Directors to lead the organization during this period of transition while the search is underway for BAC’s next Executive Director, conducted by Arts Consulting Group. This marks the launch of a transformational time for BAC that reflects our shared ambitions to both deepen and broaden our impact on Brooklyn’s vibrant arts and culture scene while nimbly responding to the evolving needs of the borough’s creative sector.
Photo by Brigitte Lacombe
We’re Hiring Teaching Artists!
Our Arts in Education (AIE) programs play a critical role in keeping the arts alive in New York City public schools, at the same time promoting the development of essential academic, communication, and critical thinking skills for some of the area’s most at-risk students. We support creative aging initiatives and promote arts learning at dozens of senior centers.
We employ over 200 teaching artists and performers, reaching approximately 25,000 people in 50+ schools, afterschool programs, and community centers around New York City annually.
Our Grantees' Events
Upcoming events hosted by our board members, grantees, fiscal sponsees, and partner organizations. Keep scrolling for a full, comprehensive list of what's top-of-mind this September.
nolja! : a night of three duos
Leo Chang is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee.
September 8 | 7:30 PM
The Record Shop
360 Van Brunt St, Brooklyn NY
The evening will serve as a double record release show for Jason Nazary (drums, synth) and Leo Chang's (amplified voice via gongs, piri) album Failure to Display on the label SUPERPANG, and Amirtha Kidambi (voice) and Luke Stewart (bass)'s album Zenith/Nadir on the label Tripticks Tapes. Chris Williams (trumpet) and Isabel Crespo Pardo (voice) will also be performing as a duo, rounding out this night of excellent improvised music.
Brasswick 2022: An Urban Brass Music Festival
L Train Brass Band is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee.
September 10 | 3 PM - 10 PM
Industry City Courtyard 1/2
254 36th St, Brooklyn, NY
Don't miss the fourth annual Brasswick festival presented by the L Train Brass Band! An outdoor brass extravaganza at the historic Industry City. Live music performances by Night of the Living Funk, New Heights Brass Band, The Villagers Brass Band, Sugartone Brass Band, and the L Train Brass Band.
Brasswick is an annual urban music festival showcasing the talent of the ever-growing and vibrant brass band scene in the New York City area. The festival originated in a humble garden in Bushwick and has sprouted in different communities throughout Brooklyn. Now in its fourth year, the festival will take root in Sunset Park with a second line to the main event at the historic Industry City.
Carbon Sponge
Brooke Singer is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee.
September 10 | 11 AM - 12:30 PM
Rain Date: September 17
Oko Farms
105 River St, Brooklyn NY
Entrance on North 3rd and River St
Join us at Oko Farms for a mix of art, science and farming! During this hands-on workshop led by Brooke Singer, who initiated Carbon Sponge, participants will learn about urban carbon farming, the benefits of cultivating with soil carbon in mind and monitoring with easy to use tools to simultaneously address climate change mitigation and adaption. During this workshop, we will specifically look at the sorghum that Oko Farms is growing and discuss why this climate resilient and majestic beauty is a terrific partner for sinking carbon. Sorghum-based snacks and drinks will follow. All ages welcome!
Current (Take.7)
Current Showcase is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee.
September 17 | 5 PM - 6:30 PM
Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 3
334 Furman St, Brooklyn, NY
Current Showcase’s Current (Take.7) is a site-specific performance that works like a museum, in which audience members are able to "choose their own adventure,” and move along from one performer to the next as desired. Ten emerging artists will perform simultaneously throughout the 90 minutes, while audience members come and go throughout the space. Each site in the space will present different spatial and environmental elements for the performers to interact with.
Natural Dyeing: Colors for Every BK Mood
Iviva Olenick is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee.
September 17 | 1 PM - 2:30 PM
The Wyckoff House Museum
5816 Clarendon Road, Brooklyn NY
Join Iviva Olenick for Farmhouse Family Day: Natural Dyes on Saturday, September 17th at Wyckoff Farmhouse. Start with a farm harvest at 12pm followed by natural dyeing with plants and flowers grown on Wyckoff Farm and elsewhere in Brooklyn to commence at 1pm. Supplies provided. Registration encouraged; free to attend.
The Quiet Light Project
Cady Finlayson is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee.
September 18 | 5 PM
Livestream
The Quiet Light Project is a spirited and soulful musical performance enhanced with inspiration from the ancient Celts. Inspired by the Irish saying, “Ní neart go cur le chéile” ('We are better together') the project honors people that have shared their light with the Brooklyn community. Our vision is to uplift and inspire audiences to be their own "quiet light" in the community.
The livestream performance includes music, video, and guest artists including Irish dancers from the Buckley School of Irish Dance. Produced by Cady Finlayson & Vita Tanga, there will also be Celtic fiddle and global guitar.
Rovaco Dance Party 2022
Rovaco Dance Company is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee. Photo by Alice Chacon Photography.
September 24 | 4 PM - 9 PM
Triskelion Arts
106 Calyer St, Brooklyn NY
This evening of live music, dance, and cultural exchange begins with an informal social in outdoor patios inspired by Indian hospitality traditions. After the social, we transition indoors for live music and dance performances, curated and MC'ed by Rovaco's Artistic Director, Rohan Bhargava. The evening ends with a DJ dance party!
Learn More
Events & Programs
Additional happenings hosted by our grantees and other organizations, collectives, and institutions.
ISSUE PROJECT ROOM: 2022 FALL SEASON OPENING PERFORMANCE
This ISSUE Project Room program is proudly supported by Brooklyn Arts Council.
September 10 | 7:30 PM
First Unitarian Congregational Society
116 Pierrepont St, Brooklyn NY
ISSUE will open its 2022 Fall Season at First Unitarian Congregational Society in Brooklyn Heights with an in-person performance from the new improvising group of three singular artists: poet, theorist, critic Fred Moten (voice), improviser, composer, and multi-instrumentalist Brandon López (double bass), and Detroit-born jazz drummer Gerald Cleaver (drums). The evening also features composer/performer and media artist Pamela Z presenting solo works for voice, real-time electronic processing, sampled sounds, and wireless gesture controllers, plus sound artist, producer and DJ SYANIDE performing a new improvisation piece titled “8.”
THIS AND THAT
Wednesdays - Saturdays through September 24 | 7 PM
The Chocolate Factory Theater
38-33 24th Street, Long Island City
The Chocolate Factory Theater in partnership with The Bushwick Starr presents The Institute of Useless Activity’s THIS AND THAT, co-created by international theater director Phil Soltanoff and performer/puppeteer Steven Wendt (Blue Man Group).
What is THIS? What is THAT? — THAT imagines the creation of the universe, THIS is about the people in it – their romantic sense of longing, loss, alienation and near miss… a cowboy sleeps under the stars, a family puts their child to sleep for the night, a crooner serenades his lover, a jazz pianist fantasizes while he plays. The vignettes morph from one scene to another— hand shadows inspired by the sculptures of Henry Moore dissolve into each scene.
Open Streets on #theother5th
Saturdays through October 29 | 11 AM - 10 PM
Along 5th Ave starting at St. Marks Place
Open Streets on #theother5th has been a huge success these past two years thanks to ongoing community support. The Park Slope Fifth Avenue BID started in July of 2020 with just four blocks in the north Slope and have expanded our reach across 15 blocks. This year we’re looking forward to an even more exciting and robust schedule of events.
BRIC JazzFest 2022
October 20-22
BRIC House
647 Fulton St, Brooklyn, NY
The 2022 BRIC JazzFest lineup brings together jazz world legends, rising stars, and emerging musical geniuses at BRIC House in Downtown Brooklyn. These artists are pushing the boundaries of the jazz genre, some through the lens and influence of hip hop and others through a musical style all their own.
This year’s star-studded lineup is co-curated by performer Maurice Brown along with BRIC Producer Viviana Benitez and Winter JazzFest Founder Brice Rosenbloom.
Workshops & Professional Development
Reliable workshops from outside collectives and institutions.
The Artichoke Ambassadors program
Application Deadline: September 10
Saturdays from October 8 - November 5 | 12 PM - 3 PM EST
Zoom
The Artichoke Ambassadors program symbiotically aligns environmentally conscious art making with climate and environmental justice action at collective and individual levels. This educational and mentorship program guides young people to become creatively active in climate change.
Webinar: U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Art in Architecture Program
September 13 | 1 PM
Webinar
The National Endowment for the Arts is hosting an informational webinar about the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Art in Architecture program and upcoming opportunities on Tuesday, September 13, at 1 pm ET. The Art in Architecture Program oversees the commissioning of artworks for federal buildings nationwide. These artworks enhance the civic meaning of federal architecture and showcase the vibrancy of American visual arts. GSA and NEA are collaborating to increase awareness for this program and promote relevant opportunities to artists that reflect the diverse communities of the nation.
The Dots Between: FINANCIAL COACHING FELLOWSHIP
Deadline: September 15
6-Months | Free | Virtual
The Dots Between is a financial coaching program for artists who are motivated to address their financial practices, nurture their relationship with money, and establish the structures that will support their long term fiscal health. The program meets monthly for workshops on overall financial literacy and managing uneven income, followed by deep dives into home ownership, reducing debt, retirement planning and financial planning for family members.
Common Field’s WHAT NOW? Towards Artist-Led Movements
September 30 – October 2
Washington Hall, Seattle & Online
WHAT NOW? Towards Artist-Led Movements is a regionally-focused, 3-day hybrid gathering in Seattle, Washington, that envisions the transformative possibilities birthed in moments of uncertainty. This gathering, designed by a Seattle team of artists and organizers in partnership with Common Field, is organized to strengthen creative ecosystems by building collective power and mutual awareness towards activating shared visions and strategies to transform structural inequities.
Funding & Open Calls
Reliable funding opportunities from outside collectives and institutions.
NYC Mural Arts Project
$20,000
Deadline: September 9
Brooklyn Community Services is seeking applications from muralists to work on the NYC Mural Arts Project. The program uses a collaborative mural-making process as a tool to raise awareness and eliminate the stigma associated with mental illness. Three selected artists will receive a $20,000 honorarium on a deliverables-based contract.
LMCC’S Manhattan Arts Grants
Marta Blair, UMEZ Arts Engagement 2022.
Up to $10,000
Deadline: September 13 at 5 PM EST
Since 1983, LMCC’s Manhattan Arts Grants have supported Manhattan-based artists, arts groups and community-focused organizations in sharing rich arts activities with the public. These projects have been integral to the cultural vibrancy and arts-driven resiliency of Manhattan. In this spirit, the 2023 Manhattan Arts Grants are designed to support Manhattan artists and organizations in accessing public funds for presentations that respond to the current needs of our local communities and amplify the cultural breadth and identity of our city.
The Laundromat Project: Create Change Residency & Fellowship
Honorarium: $15,000
Project Production: Up to $10,000
Deadline: September 14
The Create Change Fellowship program is for artists and cultural producers who are interested in developing and deepening a collaborative, community-based, and socially-engaged creative practice. The Fellowship is philosophically grounded in peer-learning around art making, power analysis, and community building.
Teiger Foundation Call for Proposals
Courtesy of Teiger Foundation.
Up to $150,000
Deadline: September 15
Teiger Foundation has launched its first-ever Call for Proposals, a new grantmaking initiative supporting innovative curatorial projects in contemporary art. Successful applicants will receive individual grants of up to $150,000 and the opportunity to be involved in the Foundation’s Climate Action pilot program, which offers tailored support for curators to embed sustainable practices into their work. The Call will award up to a total of $3.5 million USD on an annual basis.
National Sawdust Hildegard Commission
$5,000
Deadline: September 19 at 6 PM EST
The Hildegard Commission is National Sawdust's leading mentorship initiative highlighting outstanding, early career composers representing women and other marginalized genders, supporting them with a commission, visionary mentorship, and access to a network of leading working collaborators. In addition to a $5,000 cash prize, a commission for Pierrot-plus ensemble, a professional performance, and a live recording, the five winning composers will receive one-on-one mentorship with established figures in the field who also serve as judges for the competition
Pioneer Works RESIDENCY
Benjamin Torres’ Studio, 2015.
Deadline: September 30
Pioneer Works encourages radical thinking as evidenced by providing an interdisciplinary cast of practitioners a free space to work, tools to create, and a platform to exchange ideas. This residency for visual arts, tech, and music artists provides free studio space, access to important tools, resources, and mentorships, and opportunity to exhibit at Pioneer Works. They are seeking candidates who demonstrate artistic excellence in work outside the existing models and norms of their field.
Call for Proposals: Face to Face 2023
Application Deadline: October 3 at 11:59 PM ET
Online Conference Dates: April 3 – April 11
In-Person Conference Dates (location TBD): April 12 & 13
NYC Arts in Education Roundtable seeks proposals for 90 minute conference sessions to be formatted as workshops or panels for Face to Face 2023, taking place from April 3rd to April 13th. All conference presenters will be offered a $150 honorarium and full registration to the conference (virtual and in-person).
NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre
$20,000 - $50,000
Deadline: November 1
The NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre provides grants to encourage and support the creation of digital, film, music, television, and live or online theatre content that reflects the voices and perspectives of all who identify as women. The Women’s Fund, administered by the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) in partnership with the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME), is part of a groundbreaking series of initiatives that address the underrepresentation of women in film, music, television and theatre.
DeVos Institute GLOBAL ARTS MANAGEMENT FELLOWSHIP
Photo by Lisa Helfert
Deadline: November 18
The DeVos Institute’s Global Arts Management Fellowship provides full scholarship training and support for arts executives from across the United States and around the world over a three-year, cohort-based engagement. Fellows attend a four-week residency in Washington, D.C. for three consecutive years. The Fellowship includes intensive, practical training in artistic & strategic planning, marketing, fundraising, board development, and finance; access to leaders of cultural institutions around the world; and collaborative group work. Designed for individuals who have dedicated themselves to management, the program supports leaders in positions of decision-making authority in developing, implementing, and refining organizational strategies in a collaborative setting.
nars Studio Relief Residency
Deadline: Rolling
NARS’ mission is geared towards creating community while fostering expansion and exchange of artistic and cultural practices. In March 2020, in response to COVID, we dedicated part of the NARS Studios to NY based artists who were in need of a space but were otherwise unable to afford it. Each subsidized studio space is available for 3 months, as a work-space only. Throughout this time, artists have 24/7 access to their spaces and are be able to liaise with a diverse artistic community.
the Awesome Foundation On the Water Grant
$1,000 per month
Deadline: Rolling
The Awesome Foundation is a global community advancing the interest of awesome in the universe, $1000 at a time. Each fully autonomous chapter supports awesome projects through micro-grants, usually given out monthly. This grant awards $1,000 per month to a water-focused project that brings creativity, culture, and inclusion to the water or provides a new way of thinking about the water. Applicants can be based anywhere in the world.
Eyebeam Center for the Future of Journalism
$500 - $5,000
Deadline: Rolling
ECFJ is an experimental grant-making program that supports artists producing innovative and revelatory journalistic work for major media outlets. With the belief that artists are central in the invention and design of our shared future, and also critical in shifting public debate, ECFJ will support the execution of pieces that focus on reimagining the way stories are told, particularly around technology and society.
Foundation for Contemporary Arts’ Emergency Grants
Ivy Baldwin, performance still from Emergency Grants-supported Quarry, at MANITOGA/The Russel Wright Design Center in Garrison, NY, 2019. Photo by Maria Baranova.
Deadline: Rolling
$500 - $3,000
Created in 1993 to further FCA's mission to encourage, sponsor, and promote work of a contemporary, experimental nature, Emergency Grants provide urgent funding for visual and performing artists who:
Have sudden, unanticipated opportunities to present their work to the public when there is insufficient time to seek other sources of funding
Incur unexpected or unbudgeted expenses for projects close to completion with committed exhibition or performance dates
The Adolph & Esther Gottlieb Emergency Grant
Adolph and Esther Gottlieb at East Hampton studio, 1973.
Up to $15,000
Deadline: Rolling
The Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Emergency Grant program is intended to provide interim financial assistance to qualified painters, printmakers, and sculptors whose needs are the result of an unforeseen, catastrophic incident, and who lack the resources to meet that situation. Each grant is given as one-time assistance for a specific emergency, examples of which are fire, flood, or emergency medical need.
Resources
decentralized pictures: Democratic Film Financing & Production Support
Decentralized Pictures (DCP) is a 501c(3) nonprofit organization based on an idea that artistic talent may be discovered in innovative ways. Through user consensus we have set up a democratic film fund, online community of creatives, film-fans, and industry professionals who will decide who is most deserving of our support. Submit your idea, and if the world agrees with you, we’ll help you make it. We’ll help finance it, and introduce you to the people who will help you execute it in a professional way.
Dance Industry Census
Closes: October 31
LMCC is excited to partner with Dance/NYC, on the launch of the Dance Industry Census. We’re asking for your help to ensure every member of the dance workforce gets counted. The Dance Industry Census will let our City’s leaders know that dance workers are demanding the recognition and representation we deserve.
US DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Deadline: October 31
Because of a COVID-emergency program from the US Department of Education, many federal student loans are being forgiven for government or nonprofit workers in NYC. But the program expires October 31, 2022. 250,000 New Yorkers working in government or nonprofits are now eligible. 5,000 New Yorkers have already been forgiven an average of $63,935.
What We're Reading
Have you encountered an inspiring or engaging read related to the COVID-19 era lately? Tell us about it at webmaster@brooklynartscouncil.org.
The Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation. “The Black Panther Party: Service to the People Programs.” 2008.
Read
Jessy Edwards. “Et Alia Theater Company Uplifts Immigrant Women in Productions Where the ‘Other’ Feels at Home.” BK Reader, August 2022. Et Alia Theater is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee.
Read
Dean Spade. “Mutual Aid: Building Solidarity During This Crisis (and the Next).” The Anarchist Library, 2020.
Read
Etty Yaniv. “Jesse Pallotta – QT Art Camp.” Art Spiel, August 2022. QT Art Camp is a 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund grantee.
Read
Etty Yaniv. “Ellpetha Tsivicos + Camilo Quiroz-Vázquez.” Art Spiel, August 2022. Ellpetha Tsivicos & Camilo Quiroz-Vázquez are 2022 Brooklyn Arts Fund and Creative Equations Fund grantees.
Read
Cover Image: Taxilandia by ¡Oye! Group's Modesto Flako Jimenez. Photo by Maria Baranova, 2021. ¡Oye! Group is a 2022 Creative Equations Fund & Local Arts Support grantee.
Empowering Artists. Empowering Communities.
The arts are a lifeline to sustain wonder, inspiration, healing, and a sense of community in our lives. Please join Brooklyn Arts Council in our mission to empower Brooklyn artists and arts organizations that bring life and joy into our home borough.