Our Programs and Grants
Supporting the region with funding, exhibitions, learning, and more
At Mid-America Arts Alliance, our mission is to strengthen and support artists, cultural organizations, and communities throughout our six-state region of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, and beyond. We are dedicated to bringing more art to more people. For over fifty years, we have crafted our offerings to meet the needs of our community.
Our Opportunities
Click the accordion items below for a list of our grants and programs, most of which have annual application cycles.
Opportunities for Artists
M-AAA provides grants, business training, leadership development, and peer connections to artists in our region, and beyond, through these programs.
- Artist INC – Regional and beyond
- Artist Leadership Fellows – Regional and beyond
- Artistic Innovations – Regional
- Artists 360 – Northwest Arkansas
- Catalyze – Central Arkansas
- Interchange – Regional
- Jazz Road (with South Arts) – National
- National Leaders of Color Fellowship (with Creative West) – National
- Walking Together (with Mid Atlantic Arts) – National
Opportunities for Organizations
More Opportunities for Organizations and Communities
M-AAA strengthens those who support arts and creativity through grants and organizational services. Bring more art to more people, and bring touring artists to your state, with programs that offer and support traveling exhibitions.
- Artistic Innovations – Regional
- ArtsHERE – Regional and National
- Creative Forces Community Engagement Grants – National
- Cultural Sustainability – Regional and National
- Culture of Health–Advancing Together (CHAT) – Houston
- Engage – Regional
- ExhibitsUSA – National
- Folk and Traditional Arts Initiative – Regional
- Regional Touring Program – Regional
- Walking Together (with US RAOs) – National
Empower Your Community Through Art
Mid-America Arts Alliance serves individual artists and organizations in the lower Midwest and beyond.
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Artists Grants & Fellowships
Many individual artists and creatives are eligible for Mid-America Arts Alliance grants, fellowships, professional development, and support. If you engage in a creative practice, you are an artist. Our definition of “artist” is broad and includes, but isn’t limited to, creative workers,… -
Community & Organization Grants
Many nonprofit organizations are eligible for Mid-America Arts Alliance programs and grants. We support those supporting the arts in their communities, through grantmaking, organizational development, and deeply discounted arts and humanities exhibitions. Visit the pages below to examine our offerings… -
Exhibitions
We support those supporting the arts in their communities with deeply discounted arts and humanities exhibitions through ExhibitsUSA (EUSA), the traveling exhibition program managed by Mid-America Arts Alliance. We also support exhibitions, special projects, celebrations, and events at The Culture… -
Discover
Mid-America Arts Alliance seeks to empower, support, and amplify community through art. Learn more about what makes us stand out: the artists blazing new paths, the organizations serving unreached audiences, and the arts communities blooming in places large and small.…
Have a question about our programs and grants?
View our calendar for important dates and deadlines. Contact us for help finding the right program for you.
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Contact Us
To reach M-AAA by phone, please call (816) 421-1388. If you know who you’re looking for, visit our Staff page for email addresses by department. Subscribe to the M-AAA newsletter to get monthly updates on opportunities for artists and arts… -
Get Involved
Partner with us in our vision to provide more art for more people. There are many ways to get involved with M-AAA, and support artists and arts organizations in your community. From serving as a grant reviewer to participating in…
Latest News
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Disaster Recovery Resources for Artists and Arts Organizations
Find Out MoreTornadoes, intense storms, fires, hurricanes, floods, and other disasters have impacts on artists and arts communities throughout the country. The aftermath of such disasters leaves communities grappling with loss, displacement, and uncertainty. Considering the unpredictability of extreme weather events throughout…
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Art in the Heartland Needs You
Find Out MoreIn 1965, through the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act, our country affirmed that the arts and humanities deserved not just freedom but support—that the government had a role in making creative expression possible. That promise is…
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Creative Forces Announces Grants for Projects That Support Military-Connected People
Find Out MoreMid-America Arts Alliance and The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) are pleased to announce the 2025 Creative Forces® Community Engagement grant recipients. Forty-eight organizations have been awarded grants totaling more than $886,000. These community-based arts projects aim to…
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New Cohort of Catalyze Fellows Announced as Program Reaches 31 Arkansas Counties
Find Out MoreThird cohort of artists each receive $10,000 unrestricted funding and mentorship Twenty-five artists in Central Arkansas and the Arkansas Delta have each been awarded $10,000 practice-based fellowships to support their creative work through Catalyze, a program of Mid-America Arts…
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Interview with Photographer Jeanine Michna-Bales about Her Traveling Exhibition Through Darkness to Light
Find Out MoreThey left during the middle of the night—often carrying little more than guidance of the north star. An estimated 100,000 enslaved people between 1830 and the end of the Civil War in 1865 chose to embark on this journey in…
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Underground Railroad Photo Exhibition Opens in Kansas City June 6
Find Out MorePhotographer Jeanine Michna-Bales to Attend First Friday at Culture Lab On Friday, June 6, Kansas City audiences are invited to experience a rare visual exploration of the Underground Railroad. Through Darkness to Light: Photographs Along the Underground Railroad will be…
Header photography: Catalyze grantees at the 2024 retreat in central Arkansas. Photography by R.A. Howard.