Past Grant Awards Archives - Arts Council of Anne Arundel County

77 Local Independent Artists Receive GAP Grants to Offset Pandemic Losses

Written by McKenna Kennedy on December 23, 2020. Posted in COVID-19, General, Past Grant Awards. Leave a Comment

77 Local Independent Artists Receive GAP Grants to Offset Pandemic Losses

Anne Arundel County’s independent artists have been hit particularly hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Venue closures, cancellations, and public health restrictions have limited performance opportunities, and thus the ability of dancers, musicians, vocalists, and other performing artists to make a living. Creative artists especially felt the impacts in November-December, when they would normally have generated a large percentage of their annual income at holiday markets, that were instead shuttered due to COVID.

The Arts Council of Anne Arundel County has been able to provide immediate assistance in the form of GAP Independent Artist grants to help offset these losses. Made possible through the CARES Act funding from County Executive Steuart Pittman, these grants were awarded to 77 local artists. These talented and hard-working individuals represent the breadth of artistic vocations that comprise our local arts community and include painters, sculptors, photographers, dancers, singers, musicians, arts instructors, songwriters, cartoonists, artisans, and even a comedian.

For the individual artist, this funding has truly made a difference. Comacell Brown, better known as Cell Spitfire, is a multi-talented artist, painter, graphic designer, and entrepreneur. He offers a wide range of graphic design services including creative logos, marketing brochures, business cards, banners, stationery items as well as custom painted artwork and apparel. For him, the grant “will help in multiple ways, from bulking up on supplies to getting my work printed out for my Maryland Hall exhibition. I’ve also been able to make up for past due internet bills, which is important because I do most of my business online. The rest will be put toward t-shirts and supplies. I’m grateful for this money, which is the first grant I’ve ever received. It will help me start the next year off with the materials I need to keep my business going.”

Dancer Jemma Lehner of Edgewater lost performance, choreography, and teaching opportunities due to COVID. She told us, “This grant allowed me to cover lost wages and continue creating and dancing! Thank you so much to the Arts Council and Anne Arundel County for making these funds accessible to artists – it was a game changer for me. I will be using the funds to cover my rent and meals for the next 2 months. This past year has been extremely difficult on dancers, the place that we usually go to for healing (the studio) is now the cause of our problems. It is nice to know we have our Arts Council and County supporting us!”

Click here for information regarding the Anne Arundel County GAP Grant for Arts Organizations

*Featured Photos Above Courtesy of (L) Artist Cell Spitfire (Comacell Brown) and (R) Dancer Jemma Lehner

54 Anne Arundel County Arts Organizations Receive GAP Grants

Written by McKenna Kennedy on December 23, 2020. Posted in COVID-19, General, Past Grant Awards.

54 Anne Arundel County Arts Organizations Receive GAP Grants

This month, the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County has had the honor and privilege of helping to spread holiday cheer in the form of GAP grants to our local arts community. Made possible by County Executive Steuart Pittman through the CARES Act, these awards were given to 54 creative and performing arts nonprofits and businesses from all over Anne Arundel County, to help offset losses due to COVID-19 related closures, cancellations, and restrictions. The funding came at a critical time, enabling organizations to remain open, pay staff and overhead costs, and access the resources they need to comply with public health guidelines for programming.

These grants also provide organizational leaders with a bit of breathing room, allowing them to focus on what is really important. Chesapeake Youth Symphony Orchestra (CYSO) Executive Director Dane Krich told us, “When I received the email with regard to the GAP grant we were awarded, I felt so honored. We believe now more than ever that music education isn’t a luxury – it’s a necessity. With today’s students and all the challenges facing them due to the pandemic, we feel it is of the utmost importance to provide our youth with the outlet of learning music. I speak on behalf of the CYSO when I say from the bottom of my heart, thank you!

All Children’s Chorus of Annapolis
Annapolis Arts Alliance
Annapolis Arts District
Annapolis Chamber Players
Annapolis Chorale
Annapolis Film Festival
Annapolis Maritime Museum
Annapolis Opera Company
Annapolis Shakespeare Theatre
Annapolis Summer Garden Theatre
Annapolis Symphony Orchestra
Art at Large
ArtFarm
Artsy Partsy
Arundel Vocal Arts Society
Banneker-Douglass Museum
Building Better People Productions
Captain Avery Museum
Chesapeake Arts Center
Chesapeake Children’s Museum
Chesapeake Youth Symphony Orchestra
Children’s Theatre of Annapolis
Colonial Players
Compass Rose Theater
Davy Dance Academy
Extensions of Faith Praise Choir
FILMSTERS
Footworks Percussive Dance Ensemble
Friends of Hancock’s Resolution
Future History Now
Hammond Harwood House
Lillie Pad Studios
London Town Foundation
Londontowne Symphony Orchestra
Maryland Concert Series
Maryland Federation of Art
Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts
Maryland Theatre for the Performing Arts
Muddy Creek Artists Guild
Naptown Sings and Plays!
Naptownmusic
Patuxent Lapidary Guild, Inc.
Performing Arts Center for African Cultures
Prism Annapolis
Providence Center
Severn Records
Shell & Ink
SoCo Arts Lab
Sweet Adelines International-Chesapeake Harmony Chapter
The AngelWing Project, Inc.
The Ballet Theatre of Maryland
The Musical Autist
The Newman Dance Center
The Talent Machine Company

Click here for information regarding the Anne Arundel County GAP Grant for Independent Aritsts

*Featured Photo Above Courtesy of Chesapeake Youth Symphony Orchestra (CYSO) – Students during their JamKazam rehearsal

FY2021 Anne Arundel County Arts and Cultural Resources Grant

Written by McKenna Kennedy on August 28, 2020. Posted in Past Grant Awards. Leave a Comment

The Arts Council of Anne Arundel County is a private, non-profit organization with the mission to encourage and invest in the visual arts, performing arts, and historic preservation for the people of Anne Arundel County. The Arts Council’s vision is to serve as the premier resource for the cultural arts community in the County, providing leadership in advocacy, funding, programming, promotion and information sharing in order to help create and sustain a vibrant cultural community that enriches the quality of life for every county resident.