Columbia County Grant for Individual Artists
The Columbia County Creative Catalyst Grant is made possible by the Columbia County Legislature through an annual allocation of funds in the county budget.
COLUMBIA COUNTY
CREATIVE CATALYST GRANT
Creative Catalyst Grant Program seeks to empower individual artists in Columbia County. Its fundamental goal is to ensure access to the arts, recognizing their pivotal role in community enrichment, economic vitality, and overall well-being. This program is funded by the Columbia County government and administered by CREATE Council on the Arts.
INITIATIVE HIGHLIGHTS
Lottery-Based Selection: Utilizing a lottery system to choose grant recipients eliminates the need for traditional judging panels and expediting the process to fund artists.
Inclusive Review: Prioritize inclusivity by not dismissing applicants based on writing skills, focusing instead on ensuring all applications meet requirements.
Considerations Based on Income: A grant opportunity that prioritizes applicants within a specific income range to maximize impact of the grants.
Space for Exploration: Allowing artists the autonomy to pursue their chosen projects.
FAQs
Who is eligible to apply for this grant?
- Individual artists; must be 18 years old or older
- Columbia County is their primary residence
- Maintains an active creative practice
- Cannot have received a grant through NYSCA SCR (Statewide Community Regrant) grant in the most recent cycle
- Priority is given to applicants that are at or below 80% of the median income for the county
- Cannot have received a Creative Catalyst Grant in the past two years
What are the eligibility requirements?
- A complete application
- Proof of county residency (ie. lease, mortgage statement, utility bills that show your full time residence is in Columbia County)
- Present example of current creative practice activities
- Proposal of public presentation of new work or completion of a project
- Reference from a Community Partner in the form of a letter, audio or video submission answering 2024 Creative Catalyst Reference – Prompts. A Community Partner is an organization or business related to the arts in Columbia County.
- Proof of income. Priority will be given to applicants of 80% or less of median income for Columbia County (Based on HUD chart ).
What is the income limit and how is it determined?
Applicants with an income 80% or less of median income for Columbia County will be prioritized. Refer to the chart on the top of page 4.
The income calculations are based on HUD (Department of Housing and Urban Development) estimates of median family income, with adjustments based on family size. HUD calculates a median family income for each metropolitan area and each nonmetropolitan county throughout the country.
7 of 9 awards will be given to applicants with an income 80% or less of median income for the county.
Who is considered a Community Partner that can write a Letter or Call of Reference on your behalf?
CREATE defines a Community Partner as a business, organization, or affiliate established in Columbia County that also carries out some activity within the arts community (ex. venue, gallery, community organization with an arts component, bookstore). THE COMMUNITY PARTNER MUST BE BASED IN COLUMBIA COUNTY.
Please instruct your Community Partner to answer 2024 Creative Catalyst Reference – Prompts. This document lists questions that should be addressed in their voice note, letter, or video recording.
Community Partners can submit (PDF, MP3, or MP4 file):
- Letter (on letterhead from their organization or business)
- Audio file/voice note
- Video recording
What are examples to demonstrate creative practice or artistic activities?
CREATE welcomes any documentation that indicates public or private performances, readings, shows, exhibits, or other presentations of creative work for an audience (ex. event flyers, online promotional materials, live event recordings, photographs of an exhibition or your portfolio, music scores, video excerpts).
What are the important dates and deadlines for applicants?
- Applications are open from July 5 – August 21, 2024.
- Applicants will be notified by September 4, 2024.
- Grant ceremony will be hosted September 18th, 6pm, at the Claverack Library in Claverack, NY. Funds will be distributed at the award ceremony 2024.
- Project period: Sept 18, 2024 – Oct 1, 2025
What is required if I receive a grant?
- PUBLIC PRESENTATION: Grantees will be required to present their work in a public form. CREATE’s definition is flexible and depends on your medium. It can be anything from a studio tour, publishing a newsletter, creating a website experience, public performances or readings, gallery exhibition that is open to the public, live physical or virtual demonstrations of your work, or many other ways to make creative work available for community members to view or experience. We are open to hear your ideas!
- CREDITING: Grantees must include the following language on any advertising program or other printed matter announcing or describing a service supported by CREATE, or in any publication, book, catalog, film, videotape, exhibition or other service or product assisted by these funds.
“This project received funding from the Columbia County Legislature and administered by CREATE Council on the Arts”.
- REQUIRED CHECK-IN with CREATE: Grantees are required to attend a Zoom meeting on February 4, 2025, 6pm. This meeting will be a group meeting for all 2024/25 grantees where all will have an opportunity to share about their projects. If unable to join this meeting, a check-in meeting must be scheduled with the Grants Coordinator prior to this date.
- FINAL REPORT: To be considered for future funding opportunities, a Final Report about the work shared in the public forum must be completed. FINAL REPORTS ARE DUE OCTOBER 15, 2025.
I received a Creative Catalyst Grant last year. Can I apply again?
A grant recipient will be able to apply again after 2 grant cycles are complete.
Example: If you received funds in 2023, you may apply again in 2026.
Learn more about the 2023 grant recipients.