Introducing Artists 360
By Margaret A. Keough
Artists 360 Will Nurture Artists in Northwest Arkansas
Artists 360, a new program of Mid-America Arts Alliance (M-AAA) made possible with the support of the Walton Family Foundation, kicks off today in Northwest Arkansas. Artists 360 is a three-year pilot program providing individual artists of all disciplines with grant funding and professional development opportunities in the Arkansas counties of Benton, Carroll, Crawford, Sebastian, and Washington. In elevating this network of dynamic artists, Artists 360 brings value to the Northwest Arkansas region overall, creating a place where the arts can thrive.
Over the next three years, a Walton Family Foundation grant from Steuart Walton and Tom Walton will allow M-AAA to implement Artists 360, providing $439,500 in direct grants and professional development services for individual artists. Practicing artists are eligible for $7,500 project grants, and $1,500 grants are available for student artists. All grants will include learning opportunities to develop entrepreneurial skills and build sustainable careers, creating a network of leading regional artists. Artists 360 will reach sixty artists over the course of its first three years. Artist applications open May 1 and are due July 16, and the first cohort of awarded artists will be announced fall 2018.
In the coming weeks, Artists 360 will host a series of workshops to inform and educate artists about the opportunity, taking place in Bentonville, Fayetteville, Fort Smith, Eureka Springs, Rogers, Siloam Springs, and Springdale.
