Website South Arts
South Arts believes that rural communities deserve great art and can require specialized support to make that vision viable. Distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis, Express Grants support rural organizations and communities with expedited grants of up to $3,000. To be eligible for funding, applicants must program arts experiences featuring a Southern artist.
Express Grants are an opportunity for organizations in South Arts’ nine-state region to receive fee support to present Southern guest film directors, visual and performing artists, or writers from inside or outside of the presenter’s state. Artist fee support is awarded for:
- film (documentary, fiction, experimental, and animation),
- performing arts (theater, music, opera, musical theater, and dance),
- literary arts (fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry),
- traditional arts, and
- visual arts (crafts, drawing, experimental, painting, photography, sculpture, and mixed media).
Projects must include both a public presentation (film screening, performance, reading, or exhibition) and an educational/community engagement component. Based on the artist fee, the maximum request is $3,000. The grant requires a dollar-for-dollar cash match (for example, an applicant that requests $3,000 must provide a $3,000 cash match for a project with a $6,000 artist fee).
South Arts is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. We have prioritized this commitment to ensure that Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) led organizations, LGBTQIA+ led organizations, and organizations representing persons with disabilities are represented as both applicants and grantees. In addition, we encourage applications for projects that engage BIPOC artists, LGBTQIA+ artists, and artists with disabilities.
New applicants are encouraged to contact program director Nikki Estes at 404-874-7244 x816 to discuss eligibility before applying.
Important Dates & Deadlines
- Applications open May 15, 2024 and are accepted on a rolling basis.
- Applications must be submitted at least 60 days prior to the project start date.
- Applicants will be notified by email within four weeks of submission.
- Projects must take place between July 1, 2024 and June 30, 2025.