COMMUNITY ARTS GRANTS AVAILABLE FOR ARTISTS AND ARTS ORGANIZATIONS. SEMINAR PLANNED AT THE NEXT PICTURE SHOW

Artists and art organizations can learn about Community Arts Access grants at a workshop at 4 p.m. Nov. 27 at The Next Picture Show, 113 W. First St.

Jennifer Kirker, director of the Freeport Arts Center, will conduct the program. The FAC has been awarded $5,750 through the Illinois Arts Council’s Community Arts Access re-granting program. After the FAC adds a 25 percent cash match to the award, the total amount available for grants will be $7187.50.

These funds are designated to support artists and not-for-profit arts organizations in Stephenson, Jo Daviess, Carroll, Ogle and Lee counties. Community Arts Access grants are available for visual, musical, performing, literary and inter-disciplinary arts projects that provide community-based programming. Projects should employ artists from the northwest Illinois area. Projects or programs must make an effort to serve diverse and underserved audiences.

“We are inviting all interested artists and art organizations to come to this workshop and learn how to apply for a grant,” said Bonnie Kime, director of The Next Picture show. “We have a lot of people and groups in this area who do phenomenal work in arts programming. We want to encourage them to take advantage of this opportunity.”

Requests may equal 50 percent of the total project expenses up to a maximum of $1,000. Applicants are encouraged to seek funding from a variety of sources. Eligible projects are those taking place between Jan. 1, 2008 and Dec. 31, 2008. All eligible grant proposals are reviewed by a peer panel comprised of representatives from each of the five counties.

Applications and guidelines will be available at the workshop. For reservations, call The Next Picture Show at (815) 285-4924.

Grant writing workshops also have been scheduled for: the Palisades Art League in Savanna at 7 p.m. Nov. 12, the Galena Artists Guild in Galena at 7 p.m. Nov. 26, and the Freeport Arts Center at 5 p.m. Nov. 28.

Applications and guidelines also are available at the Freeport Arts Center office or can be downloaded from the website at www.freeportartscenter.org. Completed proposals are due no later than 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 21. Questions about the Community Arts Access grants may be directed to the staff of the Freeport Arts Center at (815) 235-9755 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

The Freeport Arts Center was established in 1975 and shares the visual and performing arts with the people of northwest Illinois. The FAC’s mission is to promote an awareness and understanding of the continuum of art and culture through collecting, preserving, exhibiting, educating and supporting the arts.

The Freeport Arts Center is located at 121 North Harlem Avenue, and is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday.