FRACC awards $25k in Ignition Fund grants to 10 Fall River artists for public-facing works
April 29, 2023 : The Herald News
FALL RIVER — There's going to be even more art to enjoy in the city as this year progresses.
The Fall River Arts & Culture Coalition has announced the recipients of the Ignition Fund mini-grants.
FRACC awarded a total of $25,000 in mini-grants to ten individual creatives.
Funds will be used to sustain, create and restore pandemic-impacted arts-related jobs and arts programming in Fall River.
The Ignition Fund is a pilot grant program that brings a multifaceted approach to advancing the city’s creative economic recovery and accelerated growth from the pandemic to “build back better.” This grant’s cash award encourages recipients to be entrepreneurial.
Starting May 13 with “Nothing But Good Vibes,” and running into early fall, each of the ten artists will implement a public-facing project to benefit and activate the city and small businesses.
The Ignition Fund also delivers technical assistance through four free virtual workshops led by professional artists and creative entrepreneurs, and registration is open to all.
These workshops address the current needs of artists recovering from the ongoing pandemic and inform placemaking projects — including project planning, grant writing, marketing, and handling taxes/grants.
Enrollment is now open for Essential Marketing for Creatives, which will be held on Zoom on June 7, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Register online and for more information visit thefracc.org/ignition-fund.
Past workshops — providing project planning and grant writing — are available to watch for free online.
The Ignition Fund mini-grant recipients and projects include:
Mark Almeida
Traditional Native American Pow Wow Workshop: Educate the community through traditional Native American storytelling and drumming performance.
Brooke Mullins Doherty
Orange Billows: A permanent installation of three wire and fabric sculptures suspended from the entryway of the DCR Fall River Heritage State Park Visitor Center. This artwork will create an ever-changing collaboration of sunlight and art.
Silvana Melo
Incantation: An artist showcase and creative writing workshop. Four current and former Fall River artist residents will speak about their creative process and invite audience participation to investigate creative practice.
Theloni Coleman
Asylum: An exhibition of paintings, drawings, and sculptures to present the emotions and physical appearances of abandoned buildings (i.e., state hospitals) in human form. Artworks intend to evoke public awareness to the condition of abandonment in the hopes of promoting restoration of various buildings left standing in decay.
Stephanie Enloe
Free Art Fridays: This project will provide five free, once-monthly arts and crafts engagements for the youth of Fall River from June to October.
Keith Silva/Rebekah Pontes
KS Choreography Mentorship Event: Providing a series of dance classes implemented by active, relevant, professional choreographers in Fall River. This project will give youth opportunities to overcome the financial burden associated with dance training.
Wendy Robitaille
Prints of Diversity: Community members will have their shoe or hand prints painted on the sidewalk at Kennedy Park by local artists. This display will attract public attention, brighten the park, educate, and ignite conversations about diversity.
Chandler Hearn
Olmsted Mural: A mural to honor Frederick Law Olmstead, the father of landscape architecture and the nation's foremost park-maker, on the side of the maintenance building in Kennedy Park.
Vania Marie Noverça Viveiros
"Nothing But Good Vibes" Second Saturdays Open Studio Event: This project will bring art, culture, and music together during an open studio artist event in May at the Narrows Center from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Dante Pascual
Fall River Contemporary Music Festival: This project aims to draw participants and audiences from historically marginalized communities, such as LGBTQ+, Women, and BlPOC to provide a platform to perform live music in the city.
The Ignition Fund is facilitated by FRACC, a committee of the One SouthCoast Chamber. The Ignition Fund is supported by TDI Creative Catalyst Grant Program, which is administered by MassDevelopment and funded by the Barr Foundation.
