LAX Leader

The City of West Hollywood has opened application opportunities for its 2023 Arts Grant Program. Grant opportunities are available to individuals and nonprofit arts organizations. Arts grants are for varying amounts and they include funding for City arts projects, individual artists, and organizational development.

The City will host four Arts Grant Program informational workshops for those who are interested in applying to learn more about the City’s grant-eligibility requirements and application process, as well as to ask questions. First-time grant applicants and returning organizations with new development personnel are strongly encouraged to attend an Arts Grant Program informational workshop to become familiar with the application process.

Three informational workshops will cover the same general information about the Arts Grant Program. These workshops will take place on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 at 10 a.m.; Thursday, June 9, 2022 at 12 p.m.; and Wednesday, June 22, 2022 at 2 p.m. One informational workshop, on Thursday, June 23, 2022 at 7 p.m., will be dedicated to specific information about the WeHo Artist Grant category. All workshops will take place via the Zoom platform; register in advance at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/arts-grant-program-workshops-tickets-306056582477.

The City of West Hollywood encourages artists and organizations representing diverse populations and diverse artistic disciplines to apply for its 2023 Arts Grant Program. As defined in the Cultural Equity Statement, diversity includes all ways in which people differ, including but not limited to, race, ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, education, age, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, ability, geography, citizenship status, religion, language, physical appearance, and the intersection of these various identities. The City commits to ensuring cultural equity in all arts policies and practices.

Arts Grant Program categories with open application processes for 2023 are as follows:

Arts Project Grant — Supports the production, performance, or presentation of art projects that take place in the City of West Hollywood and that serve the West Hollywood community. The Arts Project Grant category is a match grant (a match grant requires that for every dollar requested from the funding source, the equal amount is matched – through in-kind donations, private donations, and/or other grants) and is awarded in a two-year cycle. The maximum grant award is $20,000 per grantee ($10,000 per year). The deadline for this category is Friday, July 1, 2022.

Community Arts Grant — Supports non-profit arts organizations with a history of supporting BIPOC and/or female artists and audiences. Proposed projects should take place in West Hollywood in 2023. Proposed presentations can include programs celebrating heritage months, social justice centered art presentations, educational and participatory programs (workshops), and art projects which engage BIPOC and/or female artists and audiences. Community Arts Grants are reviewed by the Performing Arts and Cultural Affairs Subcommittee as well as the Arts and Cultural Affairs Commission. The maximum grant award for this category is $3,000. The deadline for this category is Friday, July 1, 2022.

Organizational Development Grant — Supports both the organization’s mission to provide arts programming and the organization’s capacity by directly supporting technical assistance to improve its ability to fundraise, develop audiences, and build its administrative infrastructure. This grant category is not a match grant and, with one application, an organization can be funded for three years. The maximum grant is $4,000 per grantee ($3,000 per year dedicated to technical assistance). This award includes enrollment in the West Hollywood Artists Bootcamp, a professional development series for artists about the business of art. The deadline for this category is Friday, July 1, 2022.

Transgender Arts Initiative Grant — Supports and enhances the presentation of artworks in West Hollywood by transgender artists and non-profit organizations with a history of supporting transgender artists. The maximum grant award is $6,500 for both artists and non-profit arts organizations. This award includes enrollment in the West Hollywood Artist Bootcamp. The deadline for this category is Friday, July 1, 2022.

WeHo Artist Grant — Supports the long-term development of an artist’s ideas by providing funds that increase the capacity for artists to realize work, advance the conditions of creation, and navigate the complexities of both making art and making a career. The maximum grant award is $5,000 per year for three artists. Eligible artists must reside in the City of West Hollywood. The deadline for this category is Friday, July 1, 2022.

The City of West Hollywood also offers funding through its WeHo Pride LGBTQ Arts Festival (formerly One City One Pride LGBTQ Arts Festival) Grant intended for arts projects taking place from May 22 through June 30, 2023 as part of the City’s WeHo Pride LGBTQ Arts Festival. For Pride 2023, this grant application will open in July 2022 and close in September 2022.

Artists and organizations interested in applying may visit www.weho.org/arts for additional information.

For more information about the City of West Hollywood’s Arts Grant Program, please visit www.weho.org/arts or contact Eva Angeloff, City of West Hollywood Grants Coordinator, at (323) 848-6354 or at eangeloff@weho.org. For people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, please call TTY (323) 848-6496.

The City of West Hollywood remains in a declared local emergency in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. West Hollywood City Hall is open for in-person transactions by appointment; to make an appointment, visit www.weho.org/appointments. City Hall services remain accessible by phone at (323) 848-6400 and via the City’s website at www.weho.org. City of West Hollywood coronavirus updates are available at www.weho.org/coronavirus. For up-to-date news and events, follow the City of West Hollywood @wehocity on social media, sign up for news updates at www.weho.org/email, and visit the City’s calendar of meetings and events at www.weho.org/calendar.

For reporters and members of the media seeking additional information about the City of West Hollywood, please contact the City of West Hollywood’s Public Information Officer, Sheri A. Lunn, at (323) 848-6391 or slunn@weho.org.