Burlington City Arts has announced the recipients of its 2022 Elevation Grants that provide financial support to artists whose other funding sources are soon to expire. The awards, of up to $5,000, may be tailored to recipients' needs at any stage of the artmaking process to help them reach their creative goals.
The one-year pilot program was open to a wide pool of artists working in a variety of artistic disciplines, including music, theater, visual arts and more. The selection process was highly competitive, with applications reviewed by a panel of artists, arts professionals and community members.
"Burlington City Arts is proud to be able to provide support to these talented artists and look forward to seeing the impact of their work in their artistic career and the wider Burlington community," said Colin Storrs, the organization's public art and grants program manager.
Following is a list of Elevation Grant recipients and the project toward which their grant will go:
- Corrine Yonce, multidisciplinary visual artist, affordable housing advocate and documentarian — support the cost of labor, documentation, printing and marketing for the public art series “Longing Is Just Our Word for Knowing.”
- Frances Cannon, artist, writer and teacher — organize and host the ZAP! Fest festival in Burlington.
- Josie Bunnell, printmaker — start a collaborative printmaking practice by producing fine art prints with local, contemporary artists in Burlington who are not typically working in print media.
- Mellisa Heather Cain, sketching and sketchnoting artist — take classes in graphic facilitation and notetaking, and improving skills in sketchnoting, to better facilitate teaching.
- Michael (Mikahely) Razafy, singer-songwriter — create a film about global conservation issues in Burlington and the broader Vermont community to share with Malagasy communities in Madagascar, especially school children.
- Priscille Lokossou, designer and painter — travel to the West African country of Benin to purchase African fabrics and learn new sewing techniques that will be used to create Vermont-made clothing and accessories.
- Raphaella Brice, digital artist — create a series of immersive live digital-art experiences titled “Rebirth.”
- Marianne DiMascio, member of the Burlington-based sketch comedy troupe Stealing from Work — write, produce and direct a three-episode sketch comedy web series.
- Trish Denton, writer and director for the stage, and Marcie Hernandez, singer-songwriter — cover an array of costs needed to create a short film and music video.