Thirteen Artists and Arts Organizations Awarded Artistic Innovations Grants
By Elizabeth Snell
M-AAA awarded a total of $184,000 to artists and arts organizations in its six-state region.
Artists and arts organizations across six states received a total of $184,000 through the annual Mid-America Arts Alliance (M-AAA) Artistic Innovations grant program. Through generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts, M-AAA supports grant awards up to $15,000 for the creation of artworks and creative projects by artists and nonprofit organizations across M-AAA’s region of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas.
Among the 13 grantees selected are a number of first-time grant recipients, among others, including Canterbury Voices of Oklahoma City, Circle Theatre of Omaha, and Moraa Nyaribo of St. Louis. There are several repeat grantees including Allison Orr Dance of Austin, Contemporary Art Museum Houston, and InterUrban Art House of Overland Park.
The grantees represent a wide variety of media and disciplines, with many encompassing participatory collaborative projects.
The Artistic Innovations grant program truly encourages the spirit of experimentation and artistic risk-taking in our region,” says Christine Bial, director of arts and humanities grant programs at Mid-America Arts Alliance. “Seeing the inventiveness from artists and organizations in our region is inspiring every year. Our entire region benefits from the results and achievements of these projects.”
“Receiving the Artistic Innovations grant from M-AAA is an incredible honor,” says Moraa Nyaribo, first-time Artistic Innovations visual art grantee from St. Louis, Missouri. “With this support, I can bring my project, Nyuso, to life, exploring identity and reclaiming traditional African values, culture, and history through an Afrofuturist lens. I’m excited for the opportunity to share my ideas and traditions with a wider audience. Stay tuned!”
Angi Hejduk, CEO of second-time grantee, InterUrban Art House (IUAH) of Overland Park, Kansas, says, “With the invaluable support of grants like Artistic Innovations, InterUrban ArtHouse is able to remain true in our commitment to delivering innovative and enriching arts and cultural experiences to the community—inviting all to participate, whether as an audience member or a creator.”
2024–2025 Artistic Innovations grant recipients (alphabetical order):
Allison Orr Dance, Austin, TX, $15,000
Art Maker LLC, Pawhuska, OK, $14,000
Arkansas Soul Media, Rogers, AR, $10,000
Canterbury Voices, Oklahoma City, OK, $10,000
Circle Theatre, Omaha, NE, $15,000
Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Houston, TX, $15,000
Francisca María Velasco, Lawrence, KS, $15,000
Houston Grand Opera Association, Houston, TX, $15,000
InterUrban ArtHouse, Overland Park, KS, $15,000
Low Key Arts, Hot Springs National Park, AR, $15,000
What If Puppets, Kansas City, MO, $15,000
Moraa Nyaribo, St. Louis, MO, $15,000
Why Arts, Omaha, NE, $15,000
Click here for more information about projects, organized by artistic discipline.
For more information about Artistic Innovations including past grantees, please visit maaa.org/artisticinnovations.
Header photography credit: Image features artwork by Artistic Innovations grantee Francisca María Velasco, using testimony by Joe Martinez: ‘Nothing Left But Memories’, used to reconstruct a house of the destroyed Bottoms neighborhood. Photo credit: Madison Tubbs