Bloomington Arts Commission October 2011 Arts Project Grant Recipients

For Immediate Release

October 24, 2011

For more information, please contact:

Miah Michaelsen, Assistant Economic Development Director for the Arts, City of Bloomington, 349.3534

Bloomington Arts Commission Announces October 2011 Arts Project Grant Program Recipients

The City of Bloomington Arts Commission announces its October 2011 grant recipients. Grants are made available to nonprofit organizations participating in arts activities that align with current areas of focus of the Arts Commission: to cultivate a community in which residents appreciate the value of personal and collective artistic activity; to encourage collaboration in and diversification of artistic activities that include participants from across the community; to enhance and support a high level of artistry; and to support the economic vitality and interests of local artists and arts organizations. 21 organizations in the Bloomington community submitted grant applications for specific arts programs and were evaluated in four categories: artistic quality, community impact, organizational capacity and project history. The following 13 organizations received the highest ranking and were granted funding for the October grant round:

• BCT Management, Inc., $618.60 for the 2012 PRIDE Film Festival.
• Bloomington Chamber Singers, $557.50 for their performance of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis.
• Bloomington Playwrights Project, $595.69 for their MiniPlay Contest and Camp that will engage local students in the writing and production of their own plays.
• Bloomington Symphony Orchestra, $656.79 in support of their annual side-by-side concert with the Hoosier Youth Philharmonic that will include a special performance by Windfall Dancers.
• Boys & Girls Club, $565.14 to bring performing artists into their art program.
• Cardinal Stage, $500.00 for the hiring of an American Sign Language interpreter for performances of Annie and Big River.
• Center for Sustainable Living, $534.60 for the 2012 Trashion Refashion Show featuring clothing made from recycled materials.
• GalleryWalk Group, $641.51 for support of the 2012 Downtown GalleryWalk and GalleryWorks programs.
• Jazz from Bloomington, $534.60 in support of the creation of a venue for young instrumentalists to practice improvisation and the performance of jazz music.
• Lotus Arts & Education Foundation, $640.00 for the Lotus Blossoms Collaborative Art Project that will involve local students in the creation of several community art projects.
• Musical Arts Youth Orchestra, $534.60 in support of the "Elements" project which increases the accessibility of orchestral music to underserved youth.
• Southern Indiana Wind Ensemble, $510.00 for their May 2012 concert that will feature the premier of a piece composed by the winner of their Composition Contest.
• Windfall Dancers, $610.97 for a collaborative project that features local musicians, singers, acrobats, and dancers in the presentation of "Leonardo Dreams of His Flying Machine".

The next cycle of applications for Arts Project Grants will be due April 1, 2012. For more information on the Bloomington Arts Commission or its grant program, visit [http://bloomington.in.gov/bac].

For more information, contact Miah Michaelsen, Assistant Economic Development Director for the Arts, at [mailto:michaelm@bloomington.in.gov] or (812) 349-3534.