The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta announces $1 million in grants to 29 small to mid-sized arts organizations awarded through a competitive grant application cycle completed at the end of 2021. Combined with grants announced in October of 2021, this doubles the Foundation’s 2021 arts funding to a total of $2.06 million.

 Grants are made through the Foundation’s Metropolitan Atlanta Arts Fund (Arts Fund) and support artistic pursuits across the sector including dance, design, film, journalism, music and vocal expression, theatre/stage performance and visual arts. These artists work through nonprofit organizations and provide creative outlets ranging from hyper-local and place-based temporary exhibits to more regional museums and performance venues that reach broad audiences.

 The Foundation received 48 applications to compete for this year-end grant cycle, 18 applicants were Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) -led and -serving, and 13 of those (72%) received funding. In total, 45% of funding from this round was awarded to BIPOC organizations. Six organizations are first-time recipients of arts funding from the Foundation. Grants range from $10,000 to $90,000 depending on each organization’s annual operating budget and funds are awarded in either one- or two-year timeframes.

“As we continue to struggle with impacts of the COVID pandemic, we aim to lift up those organizations that bring the light of the arts to our region and provide access to much-needed creative expression of the time at hand,” said Frank Fernandez, president and CEO of the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta. “Our ongoing interaction with the arts community has brought our attention to organizations that haven’t been on our radar before. These artists are producing and performing in new and thought-provoking ways and with a wider array of performers, producers and audiences than we previously experienced. The arts can create indelible moments in time as well as bring together communities around a common story. Our arts sector is strong and holds promise for a bright future ahead.”

The Community Foundation recently launched a five-year strategic plan, TogetherATL, that embraces equity as the Foundation’s top priority. Supporting arts organizations that break down barriers to bring new voices to new audiences rests at the core of this equity path. Arts Fund grantmaking priorities recognize that the arts underpin a critical sector that encompasses education, community participation and creative expression.

Arts organizations awarded in this cycle are:

7 Stages, $35,000

The Actor’s Express, $35,000

Amario’s Art Academy for the Gifted and Talented, $56,000

ATL Collective, $10,000

BronzeLens Atlanta Film Festival, $50,000

Burnaway, Inc. $20,000

ChopArt, $32,000

Dad’s Garage, $35,000

Dance Canvas, $60,000

Flux Projects, $30,000

Found Stages, $15,000

Friends of Atlanta Black Theatre Festival, $15,000

Hammonds House Galleries, $90,000

Horizon Theatre Company, $35,000

Impact Theatre Atlanta, $26,000

Independent Media Artists of Georgia (dba Atlanta Film Society and Atlanta Film Festival), $50,000

Manga African Dance, $25,000

Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia, $25,000

Museum of Design Atlanta, $25,000

PushPush Arts, $15,000

REMERGE, $35,000

The Rialto Center for the Arts at Georgia State University, $35,000

SHOWAbilitiy, $36,000

Soul Food Cypher, $10,000

Synchronicity Theatre, $50,000

Lang Dance, $15,000

TADA Foundation, $10,000

The Theatrical Outfit, $35,000

True Colors Theatre Company, $90,000