Creative Work Fund projects feature one or more artists collaborating with 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organizations. The Fund encourages the artists and organizations to “come together” for the sake of this collaboration: An artist should not submit a request to collaborate with an organization if he or she serves on its staff or board of directors.
The Fund encourages artists to collaborate with nonprofit organizations of all kinds.
The principal collaborating artists must live in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, or Stanislaus County and have lived there for at least two years prior to submitting a letter of inquiry. Collaborating organizations also must be based in one of the 14 counties.
In fall 2011, interested media and performing artists and collaborating organizations are invited to submit three-page letters of inquiry. A media or performing arts project may culminate in any form, but it must feature a lead artist with a strong track record as a media artist or a performing artist. The Creative Work Fund defines these eligible artists as:
Media artists create narrative, documentary, animated, or experimental time-based works using audio, digital, film, and/or video media. Computer arts also are included in this category. (Please note that the Fund considers still photography in its visual arts category.)
Performing artists create or execute work in dance, opera, performance art, theater, and vocal and instrumental music. (Please note that the Fund considers spoken word artists in its literary arts category.)
In either category, artists and organizations should plan projects and prepare and sign letters of inquiry together. If project partners plan to use a fiscal sponsor, that sponsor also should review and sign the letter.
Artists and organizations may submit one proposal per category per deadline and may receive no more than one Creative Work Fund grant every three years. (For 2011 consideration, artists and organizations that received Creative Work Fund grants in August 2009, July 2010, or October 2011 are ineligible.)
Past Creative Work Fund grant recipients who are reapplying also must have finished their projects and completed approved final reports before submitting new letters of inquiry.
Projects in which the creation of an artwork is central
Projects in which the artist functions primarily as an artist, not as a teacher, an art therapist, or in another capacity
Projects in which an active, authentic working partnership between the artist or artists and the organization is central to the work’s development
Projects that engage the organization’s constituents in the artist’s work
Projects that draw upon artists’ creativity and problem-solving abilities
Projects through which the making of art can strengthen a community, draw attention to an important issue, or engage audiences in new ways
Projects that challenge artistic imagination and organizational thinking
Projects that will be presented in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, or Stanislaus County
Projects that designate at least two-thirds of the grant funds to the principal artists and their direct expenses for creating the work.
Applications that involve artists and organizations in imagining, honoring, and revitalizing locations through high-quality arts projects
Projects that deepen public understanding of community needs
Projects in which artists and nonprofits are aligning their work with local community and economic development strategies
Art making collaborations that address changes taking place in rural, small town, suburban, or urban at a time of economic, environmental, and demographic shifts
Commissions of new works by artists in which the applicant organization and artists are not collaboratively engaged in the making of those works
Projects in which the lead artists and collaborating organization are not based in the eligible counties or those with multiple artists, most of whom are based outside of the 14 counties
Projects that do not feature the artist(s) centrally as demonstrated by the project descriptions and budget allocations
Projects from lead artists or organizations that were awarded Creative Work Fund grants in August 2009, July 2010, or October 2011
Projects from artists or organizations that have not completed projects and final reports for previously awarded Creative Work Fund projects
Applicants that are receiving significant grants (for the very same project) from ArtPlace, The James Irvine Foundation, or The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation; or that have been awarded a commissioning grant from the Wallace Alexander Gerbode and The William and Flora Hewlett foundations are less likely to be supported.
For ArtPlace/Creative Work Fund grants, the Fund is particularly interested in projects coming from counties that receive fewer foundation dollars than others in the region. Those counties are: Contra Costa, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, San Joaquin, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, and Stanislaus.