Artists 360 to Award $300,000 in Grants to Northwest Arkansas Artists
By Elizabeth Snell
Applications for the seventh cohort of Artists 360, a program of Mid-America Arts Alliance (M-AAA), open today with more funding, peer networking, and professional development, thanks to increased funding from the Walton Family Foundation.
Artists 360 ignites the careers of artists of all disciplines in Benton, Carroll, Crawford, Sebastian, and Washington counties by providing money, strategic management, and mentoring.
With expanded grant categories, more funding, and a shift from project-focused support to a practice-centered support, Artist 360 fellows will have the flexibility to allocate their grant funds according to their individual creative needs. The practice-based support model includes using awards for needs such as equipment, travel, studio space, child care, professional services, research, supplies, and contingency savings.
“Moving from project-based funding to practice-based funding is a game changer,” says Diane Scott, director of M-AAA’s artists services. “We’re deeply grateful to the Walton Family Foundation for not just expanding the grant amounts, categories, and numbers of artists funded for the Artist 360 program, but for trusting artists to self-direct their awards to best support their individual creative practices.
“Over the past six years, the $1 million dollars of support has created a strong and supportive community of artists in the region. I can’t wait to see the impact this additional investment will make for this community.”
Watch our latest video about the vibrant arts ecosystem in Northwest Arkansas.
The revised program will allocate monetary awards across five categories to benefit 31 artists from Northwest Arkansas. Notably, the inclusion of both undergraduate and graduate student grants will expand opportunities for emerging talents.
In addition to financial assistance, Artists 360 offers learning opportunities aimed at developing entrepreneurial skills, building enduring creative practices, and creating a network of leading regional artists in Northwest Arkansas.
This year’s grant categories and amounts include:
- Five $2,500 Undergraduate Student grants
- Five $5,000 Graduate Student grants
- Fifteen $10,000 Practicing Artist grants
- Five $17,500 Community Activator grants
- One $25,000 Creative Impact Award
Application Timelines
- Artists 360 Undergraduate Student Artist, Graduate Student Artist, Practicing Artist, and Community Activator grant applications open April 22, 2024, at 9:00 a.m. and close June 10, 2024 at 5:00 p.m.
- Artists 360 Creative Impact Award Nominations open April 22, 2024, at 9:00 a.m. and close May 24, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. Nominees will be invited to apply between May 29, 2024, and June 24, 2024, at 5:00 p.m.
- Free information sessions will be conducted at various locations in Northwest Arkansas as well as virtually from April 18 through May 9. These sessions, as well as open office hours from April 29 through June 10, can help guide interested applicants through the application process and learn about the new practice-based grant model. Learn more and register at artists360.art/apply.
Links to register for the free information sessions are listed below:
Monday, April 22, 2024, 3:00–4:30 p.m., Eureka Springs, AR
Tuesday, April 23, 2024, 5:30–7:00 p.m., Springdale, AR
Wednesday, April 24, 2024, 5:30–7:00 p.m., Fayetteville, AR
Thursday, May 9, 2024, 12:00–1:00 p.m., Virtual
Full application guidelines and eligibility may be found at artists360.art/apply.
Program alumni convene annually for an Alumni Retreat and the public Full Circle Showcase, fostering community engagement and showcasing creative endeavors with the broader Northwest Arkansas community.
Artists 360 is made possible through philanthropic support from Steuart Walton and Tom Walton through the Walton Family Foundation.
From its inception in 2018, Artists 360 has awarded a total of $1 million to six cohorts of 138 artists in Northwest Arkansas and the River Valley. The Walton Family Foundation provided $300,000 in funds for Mid-America Arts Alliance’s Artists 360 grant awards this year, up from $230,000 in 2023.
About Walton Family Foundation
The Walton Family Foundation is at its core, a family-led foundation. Three generations of the descendants of our founders, Sam and Helen Walton, and their spouses, work together to lead the foundation and create access to opportunity for people and communities. We work in three areas: improving education, protecting rivers and oceans and the communities they support, and investing in our home region of Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta. To learn more, visit waltonfamilyfoundation.org.
Header photography: Artists 360 grantee Tram Colwin at the Fall Retreat. Photography by Stephen Ironside.