LAMusArt Awarded California Arts Council Local Impact, Youth Arts Action, and Artists in Communities Grants
State funds support Tuition-Free Music Ensembles Program, Playmaking Program, and a new Latinx/Chicanx Music in East LA Project
Los Angeles, CA – Today the California Arts Council announced a grant award of $58,000 to LAMusArt as part of the 2020-2021 programs of Tuition-Free Music Ensembles, Playmaking and a new community-based project.
With support from the California Arts Council, LAMusArt will provide over 150 young performers with free instruction in Music in 2020-2021. Through the Playmaking program, a cohort of creative students ages 9-11 will create original one-act plays to be performed on a professional stage. The CAC Artists in Communities grant program will support a series of public performances exploring Latinx/Chicanx Music in East LA.
“This partnership through California Arts Council grants gives hundreds of young artists a voice,” says Executive Director, Manuel Prieto. “They deserve the chance to learn without barriers. We look forward to strengthening our current programs through these grants while innovating for the changing needs of our community.”
LAMusArt 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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The Los Angeles Music and Art School is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization whose mission is to provide the community of East Los Angeles, specifically its K-12 population, with equitable and affordable access to multidisciplinary arts education programs. We aim to provide opportunities for underserved youth in East LA to partake in high quality arts instruction regardless of race, gender, aptitude, or financial standing so they are afforded creative tools for success and social change. The organization has been serving East Los Angeles for 75 years.
Those seeking to support the Los Angeles Music and Art School can visit www.lamusart.org/athome.
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.