Alabama State Council on the Arts Announces $257,500 In Fellowships and Cultural Facilities Grants

MONTGOMERY – At its June meeting in Montgomery, the Alabama State Council on the Arts (ASCA) awarded sixteen fellowship grants including one arts administration fellowship totaling $80,000, and seven Arts and Cultural Facilities grants totaling $177,500, for a grand total of $257,500. Fellowship grants are awarded to individual artists and are based on merit of work, career achievement, professional development and service to the state. Arts and cultural facilities grants are awarded for planning, design or construction of an arts space. All projects must involve top professionals with demonstrated expertise in urban and/or community planning, architecture, landscape design or historic preservation. This round of grants will support activity taking place between October 1, 2016 and September 30, 2017.

The arts and cultural facilities grant program provides support to organizations large and small in an effort to enhance spaces for arts creation and

Al Head, Executive Director of the Council

presentation. In all cases where a grant is awarded, evidence of community support is a key element. Al Head, Executive Director of the Council said, “In the past eleven years since the inception of the program for cultural facilities, the Council has provided support for diverse projects in communities from all parts of the state. This year’s support includes the communities of Elba, Mentone, Montgomery, Selma, Hartselle and Birmingham. All of these facility oriented projects represent important initiatives to enhance spaces where arts programming will involve all of the community.”

Fellowships are grants awarded to outstanding individual artists from Alabama who create important works of art and make valuable contributions to the entire state. Dora James, Chairman of the Council emphasized, “Our state is fortunate to have so many artists from every artistic discipline producing works of the highest caliber.”

Fellowships are given to individual artists working in arts administration, crafts, dance, design, media/photography, music, literature, theatre, and visual arts. These awards recognize artistic excellence as well as professional commitment and maturity. Recipients may use funds to set aside time to create art, improve their skills, or to do what is most advantageous to enhance their artistic careers.

These grants are in response to applications submitted under a March 1, 2016 deadline and are awarded for the 2017 fiscal year beginning October 1, 2016 and extending through September 30, 2017.

Dora James of Opelika chairs the 15-member Council which makes final decisions on all grants awarded. The next deadline for the submission of fellowship and arts and cultural facilities applications is March 1, 2017. For more information, visit www.arts.alabama.gov.

ARTS & CULTURAL FACILITY GRANTS

ArtsRevive in Selma was awarded $25,000 in an art & cultural facilities grant for phase III Carneal Cultural Arts Center. The organization has done an excellent job completing previous projects connected with the restoration of this building. Arts Revive has taken a leadership role in downtown revitalization of Selma and their sequential projects to restore the Carneal Building is an example of what can be accomplished with vision, organizational leadership and fund-raising.

Birmingham Civil Rights Museum in Birmingham was awarded $4,500 in an art & cultural facilities grant for the first step in planning for a cultural arts facility. Thoughtful planning by the BCRM has a dedicated area set aside for the arts. The museum current serves some children who would otherwise not have access to the arts and could reach even more with the space proposed.

Foundation 154 in Elba was awarded $30,000 in an art & cultural facilities grant for design and restoration of the historic Elba Theatre and to operate it as a performing arts center. By restoring this historic landmark the downtown of Elba will continue its revitalization.

  Hartselle Fine Arts Center in Hartselle was awarded $8,000 in an art & cultural facilities grant for window replacement in Burleson School, a historic building. This step will make the building weatherproof until other restoration plans can be drafted. This facility will be a place to showcase stage productions, art classes, community events and an art gallery.

Selma-Dallas County Historic Preservation in Selma was awarded $30,000 in an art & cultural facilities grant for architectural design and renovations to Tremont School. This building is important to the community and having it used as a performing arts and cultural facility will enhance quality of life for citizens in the area.

Mentone Cultural Arts Center in Mentone was awarded $50,000 in an art & cultural facilities grant for construction of a cultural arts center that will enrich the community through exhibition, performance and arts education spaces. This facility will also serve as a resource center for area artists and cultural events.

The Arts Council, Inc. in Huntsville was awarded $30,000 in an art & cultural facilities grant for a renovation of Old Grissom School, a well-recognized landmark in Huntsville. The renovation has strong support from the city, the Arts Council and local arts groups. The school reflects a model partnership that will help to create a vibrant center for the arts.

FELLOWSHIPS

Doug Bristol of Montgomery was awarded a music fellowship in the amount of $5,000. His fresh and experimental compositions fill a niche in the area of music for lower brass instruments. Bristol composes for professional musicians as well as young emerging musicians and has a broad audience appeal.

Jenny Fine of Birmingham was awarded a visual arts fellowship in photography in the amount of $5,000. Her work is deeply rooted in Alabama and explores memory and relationships through a lens of southern symbology. Fine’s core work is photography , but she has masterfully integrated installation and performance art into her exhibitions.

Alan Goldspiel of Montevallo was awarded a music fellowship in the amount of $5,000. Goldspiel’s compositions exhibit a variety in thematic melodies that are well suited for musicians and audiences. His work is imaginative and explores new musical ideas.

Christopher H. Greenman of Montgomery was awarded a visual arts fellowship in crafts in the amount of $5,000. Greenman creates beautiful, rustic Asian-inspired ceramic forms that reflect his study of ancient ceramic traditions; a knowledge that he willingly shares with his students and community.

   Chad Johnson of Huntsville was awarded a visual arts fellowship in the amount of $5,000. Johnson’s work delves into deep issues of southern identity, but his use of bright colors and non-traditional materials such as sequins and glitter combine to form beautiful compositions that create space for dialogue with the underlying issues.

Jerry Johnson of Troy was awarded a visual arts fellowship in design in the amount of $5,000. Johnson’s work reflects images that are sophisticated and well-crafted due to his skillful computer detailing. He actively collaborates with another Alabama artist to produce work that is educational as well as artistic.

Alana Litsey of Birmingham was awarded a theatre fellowship in the amount of $5,000. His work as a playwright reflected characters that were colorful and three-dimensional with well-timed dramatic incidents. The language used was intelligent, yet very accessible. As a theatre educator, Litsey is a seasoned playwright and qualified to develop his next theatre project covering human trafficking.

Martha Beasley Lockett of Selma was awarded an arts administrative fellowship in the amount of $5,000. Over the years, Lockett has demonstrated a clear commitment to arts administration and community culture development. Using her fellowship funds, Lockett plans to attend leadership training through the National Arts Strategies program. The NAS program offers opportunities to explore issues that impact growth and efficiency of a community arts organization and to explore how community arts development can be used as a vehicle to bring about substantive change within a community. Lockett is the Executive Director of ArtRevive in Selma.

Michael Medcalf of Montgomery was awarded a dance fellowship in the amount of $5,000. His choreography structure is clear and dynamic in shape and design. His performers appear to be skilled, expressive and aware of content. Medcalf demonstrates an ability to capture major works of recent years on film for use in professional and academic settings.

Branan Mercer of Gardendale was awarded a visual arts fellowship in crafts in the amount of $5,000. Mercer’s work is very focused, modern and fresh. His body of work reflects a very consistent, cohesive and compelling control of clay and glazes.

Carlton J. Nell of Opelika was awarded a visual arts fellowship in the amount of $5,000. Nell’s large paintings blur the lines of realism and abstraction. His current work is a departure from his previous work with small canvases. The new work introduces Nell’s skillful use of texture and clever mastery of light in his paintings.

Ash Parsons of Auburn was awarded a literary arts fellowship for fiction in the amount of $5,000. Parsons specializes in young adult fiction and just published her first novel, Still Waters with Penguin/Random House and has another one Flying, Not Falling, forthcoming in 2017. Parson writes with authority in a strong, authentic voice that appeals to young adult audiences. She was recently selected as a PEN Literary Award Winner for the Phyllis Naylor Working Writer Fellowship.

Johnathan Purvis of Birmingham was awarded a visual arts fellowship for photography in the amount of $5,000. His work utilizes gum bichromate printing, a nineteenth century photographic process. Portraits from around Alabama are combined with experimental processes to create unique compositions.

Shelia Rubin of Birmingham was awarded a dance fellowship in the amount of $5,000. As the artistic director of Natyananda, she teaches, choreographs, and performs Bharatanatyam, a classical dance form of India. Rubin has a long track record of high accomplishment and plans to develop major new work.

Greg Thornton of Montgomery was awarded a theatre fellowship in the amount of $5,000. Thornton’s professional work is unparalleled in the discipline of theatre. His career achievement and artistic prowess indicates his ability to break through to new levels in his career.

Jacqueline Allen Trimble of Montgomery was awarded a literary arts fellowship in poetry in the amount of $5,000.  Dr. Trimble is the chair of the department of Languages and Literature at Alabama State University.  Her work, which explores themes of race and gender, has been characterized as “poetry of witness,” a genre of social and public engagement.  A collection of her poems is scheduled for publication by New South Books in November of 2016.