Press Release: Richmond Art Center Awarded Three California Arts Council Grants

Posted on May 12, 2020

State funds support in-school and after-school art programs, as well as a new artist residency at RAC

Richmond, CA: The California Arts Council announced grant awards totaling $57,000 to Richmond Art Center (RAC). The grants RAC will receive are Artists in Communities, Artists in Schools, and Youth Arts Action.

Artists in Schools and Youth Arts Action grants will support RAC’s in-school and after-school art programs in Richmond schools this upcoming school year. The Artists in Communities grant will fund, in part, an artist residency, youth art photography class and exhibition at RAC.

RAC was featured as part of a larger announcement from the California Arts Council of more than 1,500 grants awarded to nonprofit organizations and units of government throughout the state for their work in support of the agency’s mission to strengthen arts, culture, and creative expression as the tools to cultivate a better California for all. The investment of nearly $30 million marks a more than $5 million increase over the previous fiscal year, and the largest in California Arts Council history.

Organizations were awarded grants across 15 different program areas addressing access, equity, and inclusion; community vibrancy; and arts learning and engagement; and directly benefiting our state’s communities, with youth, veterans, returned citizens, and California’s historically marginalized communities key among them. Successful projects aligned closely with the agency’s vision of a California where all people flourish with universal access to and participation in the arts.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the California Arts Council recognizes that some grantees may need to postpone, modify, or cancel their planned activities supported by CAC funds, due to state and local public health guidelines. The state arts agency is prioritizing flexibility in addressing these changes and supporting appropriate solutions for grantees.

“Creativity sits at the very heart of our identity as Californians and as a people. In this unprecedented moment, the need to understand, endure, and transcend our lived experiences through arts and culture is all the more relevant for each of us,” said Nashormeh Lindo, Chair of the California Arts Council. “The California Arts Council is proud to be able to offer more support through our grant programs than ever before, at a time when our communities’ need is perhaps greater than ever before. These grants will support immediate and lasting community impact by investing in arts businesses and cultural workers across the state.”

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Driven by a commitment to our community, the Richmond Art Center seeks to equitably grow and sustain innovative art practices in Richmond, CA. Our mission is to be a catalyst in Richmond for learning and living through art. Our core values of relevance, equity and creativity guide our work.

As the largest visual arts center in the East Bay, we vision and offer opportunities for youth and adults to create, experience and share art. We offer classes for all ages across a range of disciplines at our Richmond facility and in local schools and community spaces. In our four galleries we present rotating exhibitions of work by emerging and established Bay Area artists.

The California Arts Council is a state agency with a mission of strengthening arts, culture, and creative expression as the tools to cultivate a better California for all. It supports local arts infrastructure and programming statewide through grants, initiatives, and services. The California Arts Council envisions a California where all people flourish with universal access to and participation in the arts.

Members of the California Arts Council include: Chair Nashormeh Lindo, Vice Chair Jaime Galli, Larry Baza, Lilia Gonzales Chavez, Jodie Evans, Kathleen Gallegos, Stanlee Gatti, Donn K. Harris, Alex Israel, Consuelo Montoya, and Jonathan Moscone. Learn more at www.arts.ca.gov.

The California Arts Council is committed to increasing the accessibility of its online content. For language and accessibility assistance, visit http://arts.ca.gov/aboutus/language.php.