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May 16, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Cassandra Erickson, Chief Grants Officer
(603) 271-7926
cassandra.erickson@dcr.nh.gov

State Arts Council Awards Project Grants to 15 Organizations  

CONCORD, NH - At its May 15 th meeting, the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts voted unanimously to award $45,000.00 in project grants to fifteen New Hampshire organizations representing six counties. A six member panel of peer experts had reviewed the grant applications in April and yesterday the panel’s recommendations were presented to the Arts Council for approval. All of the grants require a minimum dollar for dollar match from earned or donated resources.

Applications were submitted in three categories; Organizational Support, Traditional Arts and Community Arts. Each category shares similar funding criteria in the areas of administrative capacity, clarity and feasibility of project plans, community support and engagement of New Hampshire artists. Additional, specific criteria characterize the three different categories. Organizational Support Projects focus on strengthening arts organizations through capacity building projects. Applicant arts organizations are evaluated on their stability and the relationship of the project to their long-range plans. Traditional Arts Projects seek to preserve the state’s living cultural heritage and increase public appreciation of authentic artistic traditions. Community Arts Projects encourage community participation in art making and building partnerships between arts and community organizations.

The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts was impressed by the range and quality of the projects. The State Arts Council expressed the hope that people in New Hampshire will support the artists involved in these projects and the state’s creative economy by attending or participating in one of the festivals or arts programs that have been awarded these public funds. The fifteen Project grants went to the following organizations:

Community Arts Projects

Arts in Reach: Encouraging Growth through the Arts, Dover; to support a six-week summer arts program for adolescent girls

Henniker San-Ramon, Henniker; to support a student created comic book about Henniker for a cultural exchange with a Nicaraguan sister community

Traditional Arts Projects

American Independence Museum, Exeter; to support the American Independence Festival including a traditional arts village

Canterbury Shaker Village, Canterbury; to support Harvest Day and Christmas celebrations with traditional crafts and music

Concord Community Music School, Concord; to support the 7th Annual Mandolin Festival

Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum, Warner; to support “Roots of Tradition: 1200 Years of American Indian Cultural Expression”

Newmarket Main Street Corporation, Newmarket; to support the Newmarket Heritage Festival

Organizational Support Projects

Bach with Verse, state-wide; to present double bass virtuoso Richard Hartshorne’s “One Man Show” at four New Hampshire State Prisons

Capitol Center for the Arts, Concord; to support the pilot year of the Spotlight Café Series

Monadnock Music, Peterborough; to support three concerts: “Ancient Voices”, “Off the Beaten Path” and “Dreams and Prayers: Music of Devotion”

North Country Studio Workshops, Deerfield; to support intensive master classes, taught by nationally renowned faculty, for professional New Hampshire craftspeople

Saint Kiernan Community Center, Berlin; to support new rotating exhibits featuring works by local artists and artisans

Seacoast Repertory Theatre, Portsmouth; to support the performance of two plays by Shakespeare in area schools

Strathspey & Reel Society of NH, Concord; to update their website for on-line ticket sales and audience expansion

Yellow Taxi Productions, Nashua; to support the production of “The Beard of Avon”, a contemporary play about Shakespeare

The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts awards approximately 175 grants a year. It is funded by state appropriations and a major partnership grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Its mission is to promote the arts to protect and enrich the state’s unique quality of life.

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Last updated: May 16, 2008