With generous support from the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation and the San Francisco Arts Commission Cultural Equity Grants Program, ACTA launches its free 2009 Traditional Arts Roundtable Series at various Bay Area venues with sessions for traditional artists, organizations, and community groups:

• Sacred Work In A Secular World: Faith-Based Traditional Arts – August 30 (10:00 am to 12:00 pm)
• Communications Strategy with Salvador Acevedo – October 3 (2:00 pm to 5:00 pm)
• Performing Diaspora Symposium @ CounterPULSE – November 7 (10:00 am to 5:00 pm)
• The Way To One’s Heart: Traditional Foodways – November 19 (6:00 pm to 9:00 pm)

ACTA’s Traditional Arts Roundtable Series strengthens San Francisco Bay Area intercultural traditional arts networks and leadership, and offers opportunities for traditional artists and arts advocates to learn from one another through intimate discussion, technical assistance, networking, and sharing community-based arts and culture.

Visit ACTA’s website for locations and details for these Traditional Arts Roundtables, and stay tuned for more sessions later this fall.

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Central Valley Library Honors Native California Heritage

Master Yokuts basketweaver Lois Connor is featured in a new exhibit at California State University, Fresno’s Henry Madden Library, which uses state-of-the-art digital technology to bring a historic tradition to life in a genuine and realistic format. Photo Courtesy of FresnoState Magazine

The recent multi-million dollar renovation of California State University, Fresno’s Henry Madden Library includes exhibitions and architectural features that pay tribute to local Native Californian culture.  For three years, the University worked in consultation with the Table Mountain Rancheria Tribal Council and the Table Mountain Rancheria Cultural Resources Department to ensure the accuracy of the cultural heritage and history of the tribes of Central California that are represented throughout the new facilities.

In the first installation of its kind in the United States, basketweaver Lois Connor (Mono, Chukchansi) is featured in a real-time video showing the weaving of a traditional gaming tray from start to finish.  Filmed over 12 months, the installation is the longest performance art film ever made.  The installation features a 700-square foot transparent screen, visible from both inside and outside the library, on which footage of Connor weaving is shown.  Inside the library, LCD displays feature close-up high quality digital images, showcasing Connor’s facial features, hands, and the basket; over time, visitors are able to watch the basket’s various phases of development.  (Lois Connor is a previous master artist in ACTA’s Apprenticeship Program.)

Visit ACTA’s website for more information about the new Henry Madden Library.

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In Memoriam: Ustad Ali Akbar Khan

“My father taught me music the way most parents teach their children to speak.  He was 110 years old when he died, and until that time he played constantly, sometimes 23 hours a day ” – Ali Akbar Khan Photo Courtesy of the Ali Akbar Khan College of Music

By Lily Kharrazi, Living Cultures Grants Program Manager
Including excerpts from the Ali Akbar Khan College of Music website

Master artist, composer, and esteemed teacher Ali Akbar Khan died on June 18, 2009, surrounded by his family and students in San Rafael, California, at the school he established over four decades ago.  Considered a “National Living Treasure” in India and having received the highest commendation from the National Endowment of the Arts as a National Heritage Fellow in 1997, there is little argument that the musical genius and career of Ustad Khan paved the way for many non-Indians to appreciate and learn a musical tradition whose accessibility would have been gained only through being part of a gharana (school) or family lineage.

Ali Akbar Khan was admired by both Eastern and Western musicians for his brilliant compositions and his mastery of the sarode, a 25-stringed Indian instrument.  The late Lord Yehudi Menuhin, concert violinist, called Ali Akbar Khan, “An absolute genius... the greatest musician in the world,” and many have considered him the “Indian Johann Sebastian Bach.”

Visit ACTA’s website to read more about Ustad Khan’s life and career.

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ACTA's Traditional Arts Development Program makes contracts up to $1,500 to support consultancies, mentorships, and travel opportunities that foster a new level of growth for individual folk & traditional artists and organizations engaged in this field in California.  Requested services may be focused on organizational, program, and/or artistic development goals.  Individual artists and cultural practitioners, as well as organizations, whether incorporated or not, may apply.

A sampling of past contracts include:

Artistic Mentorships

Gen Taiko (San Francisco), an organization dedicated to promoting, preserving and presenting Japanese traditional arts including taiko (traditional Japanese drumming), traditional folk dance, and folk song forms. Its artistic director, Melody Takata, was trained by National Heritage Fellow Madame Fujima Kansuma to learn the Nihon Buyo (Japanese classical) dance called Kojo No Tsuki (Moonlit Castle Ruins). Ms. Takata taught the dance to four of her students and performed it at Gen Taiko’s 10th Anniversary Concert in November 2005.

Organizational Consultancies:

Kwashi Amevuvor (Los Angeles), a master drummer from Ghana, West Africa, worked with consultant Janet Planet, who assisted him with marketing and web design to develop professional promotional materials to publicize the work of the artist and the traditional cultural arts of Ghana. In addition, Ms. Planet’s consultancy supported Mr. Amevuvor’s efforts in organizing a cultural study tour of Ghana.

Travel Opportunities

The Eszterlánc Hungarian Folk Ensemble (Foster City) traveled to Southern California to perform for an audience of over two thousand at the annual Magyar Sajtónap (Hungarian Press Day) hosted by the newspaper California Hungarians. At this event Eszterlanc dancers had the opportunity to perform with members of the Karpatok Folk Ensemble of Southern California, which is led by Istvan Szabo.

Requests for organizational consultancies, artistic mentoring, and travel support may be submitted to ACTA at any time.  Download the application and application instructions from ACTA's website or call (559) 237-9812 to request a copy be mailed to you.

ACTA's Traditional Arts Development Program is supported by grants from the California Arts Council, the Walter and Elise Haas Fund, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

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Native Arts @ NEFA
The National Native Artists Exchange
New England Foundation for the Arts

Deadline – Ongoing

The Native Artist Exchange, a program of the New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA), provides support for Native artists residing in any of the 50 United States to travel to different regions of the country so that they may exchange artistic knowledge and skills. This fund is designed to encourage and assist American Indian, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian artists, and provides an opportunity for Native artists to teach, learn, and collaborate in traditional and/or contemporary Native art forms through travel from one region to another across the nation.

For more information, including guidelines and application materials, visit the New England Foundation for the Arts’ website.

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The Guitar Center Music Foundation

Deadline – Ongoing

The Guitar Center Music Foundation’s mission is to aid nonprofit music programs across America that offer music instruction so that more people can experience the joys of making music.

The Guitar Center Music Foundation accepts grant applications throughout the year from 501(c)(3) organizations that offer music instruction programs to participants of any age.  The applicant program must successfully enhance the state of music education in the United States.  The Grant Committee reviews all applications three times yearly, and grant awards range from $500 to $5,000.

For more information visit the Guitar Center Music Foundation’s website.

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San Francisco Creative Capacity Fund

Deadline: In 2009, the 15th of Each Month
Restricted to San Francisco

The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) and Grants for the Arts (GFTA), have joined together to establish the San Francisco Creative Capacity Fund, a special field-building initiative to support professional development and peer learning opportunities for San Francisco artists and arts administrators.

Launched in 2009 as a pilot program, the Creative Capacity Fund (CCF) will provide scholarship reimbursements to eligible applicants, including individual artists and arts administrators of small and emerging arts organizations, to attend classes and workshops that will enhance their knowledge and administrative skills and help sustain their work in the arts.  A number of service organizations and workshop providers will be involved as partners in this endeavor, and the Fund will be administered by the Center for Cultural Innovation (CCI), a California training and financial services incubator for the arts, in San Francisco.

For more information, including guidelines and application instructions, visit the San Francisco Creative Capacity Fund’s website.

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Cultural Exchange Fund
Association of Performing Arts Presenters

Deadlines: July 31, 2009; November 16, 2009; May 14, 2010; November 15, 2010

The Cultural Exchange Fund (CEF) is a travel subsidy program supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to assist U.S. based presenters in building partnerships and collaborations with international touring artists, companies and their collaborators and in seeing the work of artists from around the world in its cultural context.

The Association of Performing Arts Presenters will award travel subsidies to individual presenters, presenting organizations and to groups of presenters traveling to see the work of artists, companies and/or to develop and advance projects with international artists and their collaborators.  All applicants must be active members of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters

For more information, including guidelines and application forms, visit the Association of Performing Arts Presenters’ website.

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Living Cultures Grants Program
Alliance for California Traditional Arts

Deadline: August 1, 2009

ACTA’s Living Cultures Grants Program funds nonprofit organizations to support exemplary projects in the traditional arts in California.  Approximately 40 grants of up to $7,500 will be made in this funding cycle.

Guidelines and application forms are now available online.  Alternatively, please call (415) 346-5200 to request a copy be mailed to you.  The postmark deadline for submission of proposals is August 1, 2009.  ACTA staff is always available to discuss the program and is happy to work with first-time grant seekers.

The Living Cultures Grants Program is a project of the Alliance for California Traditional Arts in partnership with The Walter & Elise Haas Fund, The William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, and The James Irvine Foundation.

For More Information Contact

Lily Kharrazi
Living Cultures Grants Program Manager
(415) 346-5200
Email

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Creative Connections Fund
James Irvine Foundation

Deadline: August 3, 2009

The Creative Connections Fund supports creativity and the expansion of diverse, relevant cultural offerings in local communities across California and primarily outside San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. The Fund targets small and midsize arts organizations and offers project grants of up to $50,000, over a maximum of 24 months, through an open, competitive review process.

The Creative Connections Fund aims to support small and midsize arts organizations with a diversity of projects and ideas.

For more information visit the James Irvine Foundation’s website.

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Access to Artistic Excellence
National Endowment for the Arts

Deadline: August 13, 2009

Access to Artistic Excellence encourages and supports artistic creativity, preserves our diverse cultural heritage, and makes the arts more widely available in communities throughout the country. While projects in this category may focus on just one of these areas, the Arts Endowment recognizes that many of the most effective projects encompass both artistic excellence and enhanced access.

For more information, including guidelines and application instructions, visit the National Endowment for the Arts’ website.

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Playwright Collaboration Awards
Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation & The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

Restricted to the San Francisco Bay Area

Deadline: August 20, 2009

The Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation and The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation are pleased to announce their 2009 Playwright Collaboration Awards Program.  The foundations will provide up to six grants of $75,000 each for the creation and production of new plays by California playwrights, in collaboration with other artists.

These playwright collaboration grants are part of a three-year $1,350,000 initiative by the Gerbode and Hewlett foundations to support fresh, dynamic collaborations in contemporary dance, theater and music.  In 2008, grants were made for choreographer collaborations.  Grants for composer collaborations will be made in 2010.

These grants will be available to nonprofit Bay Area arts organizations. They will be aimed at innovative and highly gifted California playwrights, each working in close collaboration with other California artists of their choosing (choreographer, composer, digital media artist, filmmaker, designer or other). The resulting works will have their world premiere public performances in the Bay Area between December 2010 and December 2012.

Each grant will be divided into three parts: $25,000 will go to a California playwright; $25,000 will go to one or two California collaborators; and the remaining $25,000 will go to the presenting organization for expenses related to the creation and world premiere of a full-length play.

Proposed commissions for original plays in any genre will be accepted. Applicant organizations must be nonprofit, and based in the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, Santa Clara, San Francisco, San Mateo, Solano or Sonoma.

For more information, guidelines and application instructions are available online.

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American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Funding
Los Angeles County Arts Commission
City of Los Angles Department of Cultural Affairs

Deadline: August 17, 2009

The Los Angeles County Arts Commission and the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) have each received $250,000 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). In accordance with the NEA guidelines, these funds will provide grants to nonprofit arts organizations in the region to preserve jobs in the arts sector.

All applicants must demonstrate the need for job support and eligible jobs must be central to the organizations’ artistic mission.  Arts organizations eligible to apply must have received a grant from either agency within the last three fiscal years (FY 2007-08, 2008-09 and/or 2009-10).

The brief electronic grant application form and guidelines for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds can be found on the Arts Commission’s website, or the Department of Cultural Affairs’ website.

For more information contact the Arts Commission via email or the Department of Cultural Affairs via email.

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American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Funding
California Arts Council

Deadline: August 21, 2009

The California Arts Council received $502,400 of American Recovery and Reinvesement Act of 2009 (ARRA) funding from the National Endowment for the Arts to redistribute to California arts organizations to sustain jobs in the arts and creativity sector.

The NEA’s ARRA funds are to be used to increase the number of employed Americans.  The ARRA/NEA funding is directed to the:

• Preservation of jobs
• Reinstatement of jobs lost
• Extension of contract jobs

An arts organization is eligible to apply to the CAC funds only if it was a qualified grantee for our regular programs in any given year since 2002-2003.  Check eligibility within the list provided through on the CAC’s website.

Guidelines will be available from the CAC’s website beginning July 23, 2009.

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Space for Change
Leveraging Investments in Creativity

Deadline: August 24, 2009

Through a funding collaboration between the MetLife Foundation and the Ford Foundation, Leveraging Investments in Creativity (LINC) announces Space for Change: Building Communities Through Innovative Art Spaces.

The Space for Change program seeks to highlight the production of artist spaces in an emerging framework of cultural equity, where artists are key stakeholders and contributors in community building and revitalization.

This program kicks off with the MetLife Innovative Space Awards (ISA), an awards program that recognizes and promotes successful artist spaces that exhibit innovation, affordability, sustainability and positive community impact.  Winning projects will demonstrate the role that affordable artist spaces play in community revitalization and socially progressive development, as well as replicable and sustainable models for artist space development.  In November 2009, up to five winning projects will receive awards ranging from $10,000 to $50,000.

A second component of the program, the Ford Foundation Space for Change Predevelopment Grants, will award grants to new projects in the early stages of planning that demonstrate the same commitment to creating affordable artist spaces.  Guidelines for these grants will be made available in spring 2010.

To learn more about Space for Change, read the ISA guidelines, and submit an application, visit LINC’s website.  For more information contact LINC via email or (646) 731-3275. 

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Native Insight Competition
Alaska Federation of Natives

Deadline: September 15, 2009

The Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) is launching a new national initiative in the tradition of its successful Alaska Marketplace Competition.

Native Insight: Thoughts on Recession, Recovery & Opportunity is a writing competition crafted to tap the wisdom and ingenuity of Native communities, and to encourage Native thinkers to go public with their perspectives on the challenges and opportunities in the current economic and political landscape.

When the competition winners are announced in October 2009, $60,000 will be distributed among three Alaska Native winners and three Native Hawaiian/Lower 48 winners, with opportunities for their winning essays to be published in Native journals and magazines across the United States. A FN is partnering with the National Congress of American Indians and the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement to reach Native communities across the nation.

The competition is open to Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and American Indians of all ages; 500-1,600 word essays are due September 15, 2009.  Essays must address one or more of three writing prompts focused on how the Native community can support economic renewal, what it will take for the American economy to rebound, and what the American leadership can do to jumpstart recovery.

For more information on the Native Insight: Thoughts on Recession, Recovery & Opportunity, contact the Alaska Federation of Natives at (907) 274-3611, or via email.

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Opportunities & Resources

California Cultural Data Project Reports Training

Now that you have entered your organization's data into the California Cultural Data Project, let the California CDP help you make the most of your organization's information using the California CDP's reporting features.

Join the California CDP for an upcoming Reports training session to learn more about how to use CDP reports to track your organization's progress over time and compare your organization to others in California, Pennsylvania and Maryland.  Better yet, as other states adopt the Cultural Data Project you will be able to compare your organization to others in Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and Ohio.

Upcoming Reports Training Sessions:

Tuesday, August 4, 2009 – 10:00 am
Reuben H. Fleet Science Center
San Diego, California
Register

Wednesday, August 5, 2009 – 10:00 am
Reuben H. Fleet Science Center
San Diego, California
Register

For more information visit the California Cultural Data Project’s website.

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Disaster Relief Assistance
Craft Emergency Relief Fund

The Craft Emergency Relief Fund (CERF), a national organization supporting craft artists, would like to make sure that any professional craft artists who may have been affected by California’s wildfires is aware of the disaster relief assistance available from CERF.

CERF’s programs include:

• Grants up to $1,500

• Loans up to $8,000

• Booth fee waivers at craft shows

• Discounts on materials and equipment from craft suppliers

• Assistance with business development

• Disaster forums to facilitate craft community disaster preparedness and recovery

For more information visit CERF’s website.

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Americans for the Arts Archived Webinars

Americans for the Arts produces a series of webinars presented by field experts; topics range from leadership succession in the arts to arts in rural communities to the election’s impact on the arts.  Americans for the Arts has recorded and archived each webinar produced from September to December 2008 and has made them available for purchase and download.

The webinars are flexible enough to meeting demanding schedules and affordable enough for multiple use.  Each webinar is $85 for members and $125 for non-members.

For more information visit Americans for the Arts’ Webinars website.

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Health Insurance for Artists: Information and Resources

According to the Urban Institute's 2003 study, Investing in Creativity: A Study of the Support Structure for U.S. Artists, access to quality, affordable healthcare is one of the most difficult challenges facing artists today in the U.S.  Indeed, it is one of the most difficult challenges facing many Americans.  Artists in the workforce, in particular, exhibit a clear need for better information about healthcare and health insurance options, and about how to improve access to resources locally.

In an effort to deliver information and resources to artists, organizations, and communities on options for affordable, local healthcare and health insurance, The Artists Health Insurance Resource Center (AHIRC) and Leveraging Investments in Creativity (LINC), both in partnership with the Actors Fund, have compiled extensive information regarding health insurance and healthcare for artists.  The information is available to everyone without charge.

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Online Training Courses to Master Proposal Writing

The Foundation Center hosts several online training courses in proposal writing.  The Statement of Need helps novice or inexperienced grantseekers master a critical component of proposal writing – preparing a statement of need.  The Project Description is an in-depth look into the preparation and writing of the project description section of a proposal.  The Budget demystifies the preparation of the project budget included in funding proposals.  The Comprehensive Course is a thorough, step-by-step guide to preparing an effective proposal for foundation support, covering every section of the proposal.  The courses include interactive exercises and assignments, case studies, a final exam, and a printable certificate of completion.  Lessons can be taken at any pace, and can be reviewed often.  For more information visit the Foundation Center’s website.

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FEATURES

What's New

Funding

Events

Opportunities & Resources

ABOUT ACTA

The Alliance for California Traditional Arts strives to "ensure California's future holds California's past" by providing programs and services to support the state's diverse living cultural heritage. The Alliance cultivates the growth of traditional arts and culture through Stewardship, Services to Artists, and Connection-Making.

Support ACTA

CONTACT ACTA

Website:
http://www.actaonline.org

Staff:
Amy Kitchener, Executive
Director
akitch@actaonline.org
559.237.9813

Sherwood Chen, Associate Director
sherwood@actaonline.org
415.346.3800

Lily Kharrazi, Living Cultures Grants Program Manager
lilyk@actaonline.org
415.346.5200

Suzanne Hildebrand, Administrative Coordinator
The New Moon Editor stoler@actaonline.org
559.237.9812

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Melanie Beene
President & CEO, Community Initiatives, San Francisco CA
San Francisco, CA

Emmett Castro, V.P. of Finance and Administration
Certified Public Accountant, Castro Accountancy Corporation
Fresno, CA

Jo Farb Hernandez, Secretary
Director, Natalie and James Thompson Art Gallery, School of Art and Design, San Jose State University
Director, SPACES
Principal, Curatorial and Museum Management Services
Watsonville, CA

Joel Jacinto,
Executive Director, Search to Involve Pilipino Americans
Los Angeles, CA

Sojin Kim, Ph.D.
Curator,History Department, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
Los Angeles, CA

Amy Kitchener (ex officio)
Executive Director, ACTA
Fresno, CA

Frank LaPena
Professor Emeritus, American Indian Studies, CSU Sacramento;
Traditional Maidu dance master; Visual Visual Artist
Sacramento, CA

Malcolm Margolin
Founder and Publisher, Heyday Books
Executive Director, Heyday Institute
Berkeley , CA

Libby Maynard
Co-founder and Executive Director, Ink People Center for the Arts
Eureka, CA 

Chike Nwoffiah, V.P. of External Development
Executive Director, Oriki Theatre
Mountain View, CA

Amy Rouillard
Senior Programs Manager, California Council for the Humanities
San Diego, California

Charlie Seemann, Board President
Executive Director, Western Folklife Center
Elko, NV

Daniel Sheehy, Ph.D.
V.P. of Governance
CEO, Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
Washington, D.C.

Deborah Wong, Ph.D.
Professor of Music
University of California, Riverside

Honorary

Bess Lomax Hawes
Retired Former Director, Folk & Traditional Arts Program, National Endowment for the Arts
Woodland Hills, CA

FUNDERS

THE COLUMBIA FOUNDATION

EAST BAY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION

EVENTS

She Made It! – The Tradition of Women’s Arts and Crafts in Santa Clara Valley

The Costumes of Korean Dance and Drumming

The World According to Joyce Gross: Quilts from the Dolph Briscoe Center

Hula for Kupuna

Kumeyaay: Indigenous People of Southern California

J.A.M. Sessions @ The Ford Amphitheater

Seasonal Dishes: Green Curry from Scratch

Chinatown Night Market

Celebrating Peruvian Independence Day

ShastaYama 09: 5th Annual Taiko Festival

Triveni: A Confluence of Three Distinct Styles of Odissi Dance

Diaspora Negra: The African Legacy in Latin America

Culture at the Crossroads – Firewalkers & the Sun

Culture at the Crossroads #2 – Ferenc Tobak Conjures Spirits at the Crossroads

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To subscribe to the weekly CAC Update, please visit their website.