Arts + Creative Industries Update - In the time of COVID-19 | View in browser
More than 70 grants made - the need continues for artists and creative businesses
Region 9 Minigrants
Hillsdale, Jackson, Lenawee, Livingston, Monroe & Washtenaw Counties
Round II - $4,000 Arts & Cultural Projects
** deadline Jan. 15**
The Arts & Cultural Projects minigrant program provides support for locally developed arts and culture productions and presentations that promote public engagement, diversity, lifelong learning. These shared creative experiences strengthen communities while building powerful connections and understanding between people and cultures. Visit our website to learn more or view the FY2021 Project Minigrant Guidelines
Michigan K-12 School $1,500 Arts Ed Equipment Grants
rolling grant applications close Apr. 16, 2021
Michigan K-12 schools are eligible for grants of up to $1,500 to pay for arts equipment (including repairs of arts equipment) or supplies being used within the classroom/school setting. Michigan K-12 teachers in any arts discipline may apply for the grant including creative writing, dance, film/video, music, visual arts and theater. Grants are awarded on a reimbursement basis. Visit our website to learn more or view the Arts Ed Equipment Grant Guidelines here.
Be a Decider and Make an Impact in Your Community
Serving as a minigrant reviewer is a fabulous way to learn about grant writing and reviewing from the funder’s perspective. Past reviewers have reported that serving on a panel improved their grant writing and helped them learn about arts and cultural programs and projects in their regions. Apply by Jan 12 to be a reviewer here!
SBA Funding to Facilitate Second Round of PPP Loans
As a part of the latest COVID-19 relief bill, the number of businesses eligible for PPP has increased. While the guidelines and specifics are being confirmed, business owners interested in submitting a loan application may contact the SBA directly to learn more about the loan process. We will continue to update you as more information becomes available.
For more information and to receive an invitation to apply for a PPP loan, please visit: http://go.sbaloangroup.com/PPP
$15 Billion Save Our Stages Bill
The Saves our Stages (SOS) act gives hope to the arts + creative presenters, producers and exhibitors. According to the New York Times, "The bill allows independent entertainment businesses, like music venues and movie theaters, along with other cultural entities, to apply for grants as high as $10 million from the Small Business Administration to support six months of payments to employees and for costs including rent, utilities and maintenance. Applicants must have lost at least 25% of their revenue to qualify, and those that have lost more than 90% will be able to apply first, within the first two weeks after the bill becomes law" (Sisario, Cochrane, 2020).
Eligibility includes for profit and nonprofit:
- venue operators, promoters, theatrical producers, performing arts groups, movie theaters and talent representatives
- Nonprofit museums, botanic gardens, historic homes and zoos
Baseline Criteria:
- Entities must have been fully operational as of February 29, 2020.
- Demonstrate a 25% reduction in a 2020 quarter's earned revenue compared to the same 2019 quarter.
- Section 324 applicants cannot also apply for PPP loan
SOS Grant Information:
- $2 billion initial funding towards entities with 50 or fewer employees
- Grants will be the lesser of 45% of entity's gross revenue in 2019 or $10 million.
Sites to watch for developing details
The SBA is still working out details. For updates, watch the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) and Creative Washtenaw websites. for updates.
MI Save Our Stages - $3.5 Million included in $465 Million COVID Relief Bill
Not much is yet know about how the MI SOS funds are to be distributed. Stay tuned for updates. Check out Rep. Ronnie Peterson's session below. He may have updates.
Rep Ronnie Peterson
Virtual Conversation, Jan. 6 from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Small Businesses & Hospitality Community:
Learn more about State and Federal Relief Packages
Virtual Community Conversation with Rep. Peterson, Wednesday, January 6 from 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Meeting ID: 916 4622 6727
Passcode: 305595
State Representative, Ronnie Peterson, will be hosting a virtual meeting to update the small business and hospitality community about recently passed State and Federal relief packages, grant and loan programs, the Frontliners Free College Tuition Program and the status of the unemployment insurance program. Click the hyperlink to be taken to Zoom meeting link. Use ID and Passcode to enter.
Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA): Extends and phases out PUA, a temporary federal program covering self-employed and gig workers, to March 14 (after which no new applicants) through April 5, 2021.
Provides additional weeks for those who would otherwise exhaust benefits by extending PUA from 39 to 50 weeks— with all benefits ending April 5, 2021.
New PUA program eligibility requirements: New and active claimants must provide documentation to substantiate employment (not just self-certification as is currently the case) starting at the end of January.
Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (PUC): Provides all unemployment recipients with an additional $300 per week from Dec. 27 through Mar. 13, 2021.
Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC): Extends and phases out PEUC, which provides additional weeks when state unemployment runs out, to March 14 (after which no new applications) through April 5, 2021.
Provides additional weeks for those who would otherwise exhaust benefits by increasing weeks available from 13 to 24—with all benefits ending April 5, 2021.
LATEST UPDATE 1.4.21 - Vaccinations are continuing with Phase 1A and have begun with priority groups 2 and 3 (within 1A). Check back here for frequent updates.
In Washtenaw county, access to the COVID-19 vaccine is being prioritized for those individuals in Phase 1A who are serving in health care settings who have the potential for direct or indirect exposure and are not able to work from home. This also includes residents of long-term care facilities. If you are not receiving the vaccine from your employer, please complete this survey. There is no cost to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
According to the official report from Michigan.gov:
Phase 1A includes paid and unpaid persons serving in health care settings who have direct or indirect exposure to patients or infectious materials and are unable to work from home, as well as residents of long-term care facilities. Phase 1B includes frontline essential workers and individuals 75 years of age and older. | |
Phase 1C includes other essential workers, persons 65 to 74 years of age, and individuals 16 to 64 years of age with underlying medical conditions. | |
Phase 2 is a mass vaccination campaign for all persons age 16 years or older. | |
For a live statistics update on statewide vaccine distribution, click here.
For the official Michigan.gov report on vaccine prioritization, click here.
Enjoy programs and presentation from your arts + creative community
The Barickuda Gallery at TrustArt Studios is hosting Drawdown: Pathways Out of Global Warming, a traveling group exhibition featuring the work of several local artists including our member Leslie Sobel. By appointment through Jan. 9.
The 44th Ann Arbor Folk Fest - watch streamed performances from cherished #ArkFamily and friends. Friday, Jan. 29, and Saturday, Jan 30. 20-40 minute sets. Learn more here.
SphinxConnect 2021 - "UNITY" celebrates and empowers leadership through a transformative convening of musicians, industry leaders, educators, funders, diversity advocates, and administrators. Join Sphinx for three days of virtual panels and discussions about the future of the performing arts. Jan. 28-30. Learn more here.
Stamps School of Art & Design The Pandemic Circle by Raqs Media Collective - An online exhibition and screening of new videos commissioned by Stamps Gallery, Penny W. Stamps School of Art & Design, and presented in partnership with EXPO CHICAGO. The films are available until Jan. 31 on U-M Stamps YouTube channel.
Adrian Center for the Arts - Call for Art: Learn more about the Out of This World "Celestial Bodies" juried exhibition here. Deadline Feb.12, 2021. Welcoming work from artists in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana.
Chelsea's 12 Annual SculptureWalk Call for Art - 14 commissions. Selected artists receive an $850 award and a year-long highly visible platform throughout Chelsea and more. Learn more here. Deadline Feb.19, 2021.
A2SF Presents Scott Silven's The Journey - an awe-inspiring virtually transportive theater experience about storytelling and personal experiences. Presale begins Monday, Jan.18 and Tuesday, Jan.19. Performance dates run Feb. 23 - 28. Learn more here.
Saline Arts & Culture Committee Launches New Bixby Marionette Website - after receiving a grant from MCACA to digitize Bixby's archives, the committee created a website to honor the life and legacy of local resident and famed puppeteer Meredith Bixby. Read about it here.
Ann Arbor Society for Musical Arts 2021 Spring Concert Series - Wednesday Morning Musicales - performances run March through May. All concerts begin at 10:30 a.m. Learn more and purchase tickets here.
Riverfolk Music & Arts Organization Receives $10,000 grant to address community needs - read more here.
Edgefest: Ann Arbor’s Premiere Avant-Garde Jazz Festival runs through Mar. 26 every Friday at 7:30 p.m. Concerts are free and donations are strongly encouraged. Learn more here.
Host a Private Screening at the Michigan State Theatre - view film of your choice, maximum capacity in largest theater is 26 individuals. Fill out rental request form and learn more here.
Our monthly gathering to unwind and share in collective creativity
Creative Washtenaw Happy Hour #13
Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2021
4:30 – 6 p.m.
Join us by Zoom
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88334999090?pwd=Rm4wVDZkN2RxcENhamdqdlo5Rm9UQT09
Join by phone: 9292056099 | Meeting ID: 883 3499 9090 | Passcode: 192857
NATIONAL
Sony $5,000 Grant for Women Videographers
Sony's mission to support the growth of underrepresented voices in photography, videography, and filmmaking and provide a platform for creators across the artistic spectrum furthering this mission with their work. Deadline Feb. 15. Apply here.
Sphinx Tank Grant - $25,000
Identifying the next great cultural entrepreneur. This innovative virtual event will showcase emerging arts & cultural entrepreneurs of color as they “pitch” their projects to a panel of experts who themselves are all successful cultural entrepreneurs. Deadline Feb. 20. Apply here.
Ongoing - Mellon Foundation Announces Second Round of Art Museum Futures Fund Grants
One-third of U.S. museums are at risk of permanent closure. The Art Museum Futures Fund will offer grants to 14 small art museums with ties to community and social justice. Learn about grants and the application process here.
Ongoing - Herb Alpert National Relief Grants
The Herb Alpert Foundation supports several organizations and programs that directly support musicians, actors, nonprofits and arts + education programs. Read more about these organizations and their grant and relief offerings here.
LOCAL
Michigan Council for Arts & Cultural Affairs Region 9 Minigrants Still Available - Deadlines Fast-Approaching
Visit the Arts Alliance mini grants webpage here for more details.
Ann Arbor Film Festival will Pay Artists To Show Their Films in Upcoming Competition for the 59th AAFF
(March 23 - 28, 2021)
Along with the AAFF’s commitment to BLM and BIPOC filmmakers, the AAFF hopes this will help in further tipping the scales toward equity and fairness for all. Read more about the opportunity here.
Call for Artists: Raise Money for Michigan Music Alliance
Perform a Virtual Set. Learn more here. Apply here.
Michigan Humanities - $15,000 Humanities Grants
Humanities Grants emphasize collaboration among cultural, educational and community-based organizations and institutions in order to serve Michigan’s people with public humanities programming. There are two steps to this grant program. Find all the details here.
- Now - March 2021 project proposal accepted and feedback provided.
- March 18, 2021 - Final grant application due.
Michigan Humanities - $1,500 Bridging Michigan Grants
For Michigan nonprofits producing and presenting public humanities programs. Open until funds expended. Apply here.
Upcoming Conversations to Help Small Businesses Navigate Relief Packages
Latest resources from the MDHHS on the Restaurant Meal Program and Epidemic Orders.
COVID-19 Vaccine Information - Learn about vaccine distribution and prioritization in Washtenaw county. Visit our website here to learn more about COVID-19 resources.
National Council of Nonprofits COVID-19 Response Webinars - January 6, 1:00pm-2:00pm. Learn how to shift culture and strategy to support organizations during the pandemic. Suited for board leadership. Learn more about other upcoming events here. Includes 2 rotating presentations on strategy and social justice.
Washtenaw
County Office of Community and Economic Development in partnership
with United Way of Washtenaw County, has launched a Financial Navigator
program to help residents manage the financial impact of COVID-19.
Financial Navigators provide one-on-one telephone assistance (at no
cost) navigating critical financial issues and making referrals to other
social services and resources. Click HERE to read more or
call 734-677-7202 to talk to a Financial Navigator.
Michigan Works provides a plethora of support, training and services for job seekers.
COVID-19 Freelance Artist Resource - an iterative, responsive project composed of five freelance producers and culture makers who produce webinars and resources to raise the collective knowledge body of freelance, unaffiliated artists in the U.S.
COVID National Resources for Artists, Creative Workers & Businesses
General Resources for Artists, Creative Workers & Businesses *Some organizations may still be offering COVID relief; please check their websites directly.*
A Musician's Guide to Live-Streaming
Mental Health Resources provided by the Michigan Music Alliance
Arts + Creative Advocates
SaveArtSpace 2021 Open Calls for Artists and Activists- submit impactful art for local and national placement on billboards and public art spaces in Denver, NYC, Los Angeles or Washington D.C. Varying deadlines January-March. Learn more here.
Be An Arts Hero - a grassroots campaign composed of arts & culture workers and unions encouraging officials to allocate relief to the arts & culture sector of the American economy.
The National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) is hard at work running the Save Our Stages campaign which includes over 3,000 venues pushing for legislation changes in Washington. Join NIVA here. Donate to the NIVA Emergency Relief Fund.
Take ACTION - Help secure funding for the National Endowment for the Arts by writing your senators here. It only takes two minutes.
Sign the Petition to Urge president-elect Biden and VP-elect Harris to urge them to support the arts. Includes a proposal to "Put Creative Workers to Work."
A 'Great Cultural Depression' Looms for Legions of Unemployed Performers" - by Patricia Cohen, The New York Times.
"It’s Time For A Dr. Fauci For The Arts" - by Peter Marks, The Washington Post.
"We Need to Treat Artists as Workers, Not Decorations" - by William Deresiewicz, Literary Hub.
"Struggling Museums Are Increasingly Relying on the Generosity of Artists to Convince Private Donors to Bail Them Out" - by Naomi Rea, ArtNetNews.
NonProfitAF - a mobilized support network for non-profit leadership seeking information on funding, grant writing, donor relations, office culture and more. Bring your sense of humor - it's pretty witty! Learn more about their Happy Hours and community forums here.
#ArtsCreateHope Campaign - Spread the hope and stay informed about the great need of arts organizations during the COVID pandemic.
Make a donation to Americans for the Arts to sustain the arts in communities across our nation and help us bring tools, training, research and advocacy to a massive network of artists, administrators, leaders, and educators who need them.
Learn about Michigan’s Coronavirus Racial Disparities Task Force working to increase data reporting transparency and reduce barriers to health care for impacted communities of color.
Why the arts + creative industries matter in Michigan
Why the arts + creative industries matter in Washtenaw County
Contact your Michigan legislators to encourage MCACA funding that is critical to the arts + creative industries.
Join the Arts Action Fund to advance the arts and arts education in your community and across the country.
It's FREE and takes just a minute. Add your name and be counted so Congress know there are millions of arts and creative workers, businesses and citizens who insist that arts and creativity are critical to our country. Join here for updates and calls to action.
Annual membership is free and your online benefits include:
- Membership to vote on the legislative policy platforms
- Breaking news and legislative alerts from the E-Advocacy center
- Quarterly updates through Arts Action eNews
- Exclusive access to the member's only Arts Action Fund PAC
Check out these additional AFTA COVID-19 Resources
The Economic Impact of Coronavirus on the Arts and Culture Sector - Dash Board
CAREs Act Table of Funding Opportunities for the Arts and Artists
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resource and Response Center with constantly updated information for:
– For creative organizations & businesses
– For artists and creative workers
– For arts + creative education, including school openings and closings
– Field tools and research
– Equity and mental health- Reopening and resources
The COVID-19 Audience Outlook Monitor Survey
WolfBrown developed a worldwide tracking study of audience attitudes about attendance at arts and cultural programs during and after the COVID-19 Crisis. Find timely and essential data to the sector’s decision-making about when and how to resume programming here Audience Outlook Monitor.
Tax Relief for Entertainment Venues and Small Businesses
Entertainment venues relying on indoor dining/seating can “postpone their monthly sales, use and withholding tax payments due Dec. 20. Payments can be postponed until Jan. 20, 2021, and the state treasury will waive all penalties and interest for 31 days" (Boucher & Shamus, 2020, Detroit Free Press.) Learn more here.
IRS changes reporting of independent contractor payments
The IRS has created a new Form 1099-NEC and
revised Form 1099-MISC for 2020. The major change is that all nonemployee
compensation must now be reported on the new Form 1099-NEC, which was
previously reported on Form 1099-MISC. READ MORE>
Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act Reminder
IRS Loan Forgiveness and Safe Harbor Rules
State and Local Deductions for S Corps and Partnerships
Michigan Treasury announced a Tax Exemption for PPE
Are you paying creative workers a fair wage? W.A.G.E. Certification is a national program initiated and operated by W.A.G.E. that publicly recognizes those nonprofit arts organizations demonstrating a history of, and commitment to, voluntarily paying artist fees that meet our minimum payment standards. If you are interested in becoming W.A.G.E. Certified please read the guidelines below, use the Fee Calculator and then begin an application here.
WEMU 89.1 FM - Local news coverage plus local arts + creative coverage including Art & Soul with Lisa Barry, Cinema Chat with the Michigan Theater's Russ Collins and creative:impact with The Arts Alliance's own Deb Polich.
Bridge Magazine - Michigan's nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that provides passionate and rooted Michigan readers with honest, fact-driven journalism on the state’s diverse people, politics and economy.
All About Ann Arbor - offers local news, feature stories, restaurant news, sports news, latest events in town and more for Ann Arbor residents.
Concentrate Magazine - tells the narrative of Washtenaw County’s narrative people and businesses, new development, cool places to live, and the best places to work and play. The weekly online magazine is published Wednesdays.
For the fastest updates and breaking news!
- Follow The Arts Alliance on Facebook
- Follow The Arts Alliance on Twitter
The Arts Alliance’s COVID-19 Support Page
- Resources– including advocacy, support and affiliation agencies
The Arts + Creative Industries Guide
With links to creative members and businesses.
Featuring hundreds of artists, creative workers, businesses and ally members, this is your guide to what makes Creative Washtenaw, and the greater Ann Arbor area one of Michigan’s strongest and most vibrant arts + creative industry hubs.
Creative Washtenaw is the arts + creative industry authority in Washtenaw County. A regional agency, its mission is to support, assist, aid and act in the interest of artists, creative workers, organizations, businesses, educational and government entities to ensure that the greater Ann Arbor, Michigan, region remains a great place to create, live, work, learn, play and visit.
The intrinsic and aesthetic values of the arts and creativity are determining factors of success for Creative Washtenaw members. They include local artists and creative people – professionals, amateurs, students and industry experts leading the sector locally, nationally and internationally – those with creative practices, businesses and holding creative jobs in profit, nonprofit, educational and government entities. With deep connections to Washtenaw County, they make the greater Ann Arbor area one of Michigan's strongest and most vibrant arts + creative industry hubs.
Creative Washtenaw serves Ann Arbor, Chelsea, Dexter, Manchester, Milan, Saline, Whitmore Lake and Ypsilanti plus the 21 townships in the county. It is committed to, forever evolving and learning about diversity, equity and inclusion. This includes learning how its community defines the intrinsic and aesthetic qualities of art and creativity by the cultural expert, the credentialed scholar, the journeyed or self-taught master and/or the astute consumer of the form.
Creative Washtenaw is supported by its members, the National Endowment for the Arts and the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.
For more information, please go to Creative Washtenaw or contact info@creativewashtenaw.org or call or 734-213-2733.
