The Vermont Arts Council awarded Creation Grants to fifteen artists across the state, enabling recipients to spend more time in the studio, purchase materials, or rent rehearsal space--all with the goal of creating new work. For example, Brett Stanciu received support to write a nonfiction narrative about heroin addiction in a small town in Vermont. Evan Premo will use his grant to create a musical composition based on Hans Christian Andersen's Thumbelina. For Dona Ann McAdams, the funding will support the compilation of a photographic memoir entitled Still Time: A Photographic Memoir in Thirty-six Exposures.
Thanks to the generous contributions of Arts Council donors, an additional five grants were awarded in the FY2020 round. "The depth and breadth of artistic talent in Vermont is awe-inspiring," noted Executive Director Karen Mittelman. "We are pleased that this year we were able to increase by fifty percent our support of a wide range of creative endeavors in our state. Our aim is to continue to increase this funding pool so that we can bring more of these diverse and inspiring projects to life.”
Grantees from prior years have demonstrated that the need met by Creation Grants goes beyond money. One of the Council’s previous Creation Grant recipients, writer Miciah Gault, said in a recent press interview, “The actual financial support is really important . . . [but it’s also] the honor of it, the sense of being recognized by your state and a panel of artists. Just the emotional support, the sense that your work is important enough . . . it really matters.”
More than one hundred and fifty applications were received for the highly competitive FY2020 Creation Grant round. The fifteen recipients were selected by an independent panel of practicing artists and arts professionals. Each grantee will receive $4,000. Find more information about the Creation Grant program.
FY2020 Creation Grant Recipients:
Kristian Brevik (Burlington) to support the creation of illuminated sculptural lanterns representing fifty-two endangered species in Vermont
Steve Budington (Shelburne) to support the creation of a series of paintings based on the Dymaxion Map and other world map projections
David Cooper (Burlington) to support the creation of the second musical album by A2VT entitled Twenty Infinity
Glynnis Fawkes (Burlington) to support the creation of a young-adult graphic novel that follows a family of artists in the late Bronze Age
Wylie Garcia (Burlington) to support the creation of large paintings that focus on the lives of queer/nonbinary/trans-identifying people
Kate Gridley (Middlebury) to support the creation of a metaphorical portrait of a mind involving one hundred oil paintings and an electronic music soundscape
Dona Ann McAdams (Arlington) to support the creation of a photographic memoir entitled Still Time: A Photographic Memoir in Thirty-six Exposures
Carol Potter (Tunbridge) to support the creation of a book of poems entitled The Good Math
Brittany Powell (Plainfield) to support the creation of twenty-seven photographic portraits that are part of the Debt Project
Evan Premo (Northfield) to support the creation of a musical composition based on Thumbelina
James Shea (Montpelier) to support the creation of a manuscript of constraint-based poetry entitled Plot to Escape the Morning
Brett Stanciu (Hardwick) to support the creation of a nonfiction narrative about heroin addiction in a small town in Vermont
Vaune Trachtman (Brattleboro) to support the creation of a series of photographic images entitled Now is Always
Bira Vanara (Middlebury) to support the creation of an episodic musical web series entitled Bira Music
Mary Zompetti (Grand Isle) to support the creation of new prints in a cameraless photographic series entitled Remnants
About the Vermont Arts Council
The Vermont Arts Council envisions a Vermont where all people have access to the arts and creativity in their lives, education, and communities. Engagement with the arts transforms individuals, connects us more deeply to each other, energizes the economy, and sustains the vibrant cultural landscape that makes Vermont a great place to live. Since 1965, the Council has been the state's primary provider of funding, advocacy, and information for the arts in Vermont. www.vermontartscouncil.org.