Applications are open for 2023 BIPOC Arts Network & Fund (BANF) grant opportunity.
Donor Name: BIPOC Arts Network & Fund
State: Texas
County: Selected Counties
Type of Grant: Award
Deadline: 02/17/2023
Size of the Grant: up to $20,000
Details:
The Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) Arts Network & Fund (BANF) is a multi-year initiative dedicated to providing resources that support the vibrant BIPOC arts community of Greater Houston in fully displaying their power, values, and traditions. Established in 2021 as a collaborative community effort, BANF is guided by the very artists, nonprofit organizations, and local leaders it seeks to serve through grant funding, advocacy, and community-building networking initiatives.
These awards are an investment in the artists and their commitment to Houston’s communities of color. This funding provides significant support to individual artists who contribute to the rich BIPOC cultural
legacies of Houston – past, present, and future – and demonstrate a substantial contribution to their
chosen community.
Funding Information
The 2023 BANF Artist Awards is a initiative that will provide a one-time investment of up to $20,000 each to 50 artists who are members of Greater Houston’s Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian Pacific Islander, Middle Eastern and/or other community of color (BIPOC).
Uses of Funds
The following is a nonexclusive list of costs that are eligible expenditures for this award:
- Artist Fees/Salaries
- Research
- Paying off organizational debt/financial solvency
- Equipment and infrastructure
- Existing or new programming
- Training and expertise building
- Rent, mortgage, or down payments
- Insurance
Award Determination
Over the next three years, BANF will invest $1 million in 50 artists in the Greater Houston Area. This first round of artist awards will name 25 individuals of different media and communities whose artistic careers and creative practice have demonstrated transformative service to Greater Houston’s communities of color. As arts leaders, these awardees’ commitment to supporting their communities and learning from each other will serve as a significant investment in Greater Houston’s BIPOC arts ecosystem. The process to name the next 25 awardees will begin by the fall of 2024.
Eligible Applicants
- This round is open to artists who reside and work in the Greater Houston area. The BIPOC Arts Network and Fund does not have a strict definition of the term “artist” and believes that the awardees will reflect multiple disciplines, media, processes, and ways of working. They encourage artists, creative individuals, community organizers who employ creative techniques, culture workers, culture bearers, and any self -defined artist who can demonstrate a history of creative process and/or product and meets the criteria to apply.
- The BIPOC Arts Network and Fund is a regional partner for the Ford Foundation’s America’s Cultural Treasures (ACT). Over its five years, BANF aims to resource and nourish the arts sector that celebrates and serves the Black, Latinx, Asian, Indigenous, and other communities of color in the Greater Houston Region. The BANF Artist Award invests in artists who have demonstrated consistent and ongoing creative engagement and interaction that has benefitted Greater Houston’s communities of color through arts and creative service. We believe that by investing in these artists, the greater Houston community will also benefit.
Applicant must:
- Demonstrate continuous residency in the 9-county region (including Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, and Waller Counties) of Greater Houston for a minimum of 2 years. Be at least 21 years of age by January 1, 2023.
- Individual artists who are affiliated with BANF Round 1 Grantees are eligible to apply. Reviewers will be notified of the association and may take that into consideration in identifying final awardees.
Review Criteria
Awardees will share these characteristics and experiences:
- Artists who self-identify as a member of Greater Houston’s Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian Pacific Islander and/or other communities of color will receive particular consideration.
- Artists whose creative work has been recognized by local, regional, or national cultural organizations, leaders, artistic professionals, or other community advocates and leaders1.
- Artists have demonstrated a history of service and support for and with a community of color in Houston.
- Artists have demonstrated a history of and commitment to artistic activity/production.
- Artists have demonstrated a commitment to learning, offering expertise, and engaging with others in a productive and active manner.
For more information, visit BIPOC Arts Network & Fund.