More than $4,000 in community arts grants were approved by the Powell River Council for Arts, Culture and Heritage (PRCACH) on April 30, but efforts to fund public art did not materialize due to time constraints and problems with process implementation, according to council president Nina Mussellam.
“This time we asked for proposals from individuals who might have a community project worth looking at,” said Mussellam. “We were hoping we could get more funds out to public art.”
The arts council received 10 applications totalling more than $10,000 for its latest intake. Six applicants were denied funding.
The council provided $4,090 to four applicants; $990 went to eCouture Wearable Art Fashion Show; $2,000 for Powell River Community Band; Powell River Studio Tour received $500; and Coast Cultural Alliance was granted $600.
Friends of the Public Library (FOTPL) director Pam Brown said she was disappointed that the arts council did not support its application to have Luke Ramsey, an internationally acclaimed Powell River mural artist, create a two-wall image for the new library’s teen section.
“We just thought he was a fabulous fit for the teen mural,” said Brown. “His graphic novel has won tons of awards and is in the teen section. We just thought it would be a real feather in our cap to have him do a mural.”
Brown said FOTPL was told its application for $2,000 was not supported due to the fact that the organization did not put a public call out for artists and over questions the council had regarding match funding. All grants provided by the council require equal amounts of funding from the applicant.
City of Powell River council provided a total of $19,000 for cash grants-in-aid and $20,000 for in-kind use of city facilities this year. None of the grant applications for this intake included request for facilities use.
The city also provided $15,000 through the arts council, though not from the arts grant budget, for Pacific Region International Summer Music Academy, said Mussellam.
City of Powell River council’s grants-in-aid policy disallows the city from giving individuals grant money, but this year the contribution agreement between the city and arts council was changed to allow the arts council to provide funds for individual art projects.
Mussellam acknowledged that despite receiving two applications from individuals, neither request was supported.
“We were under a timeline and unfortunately we had to say no, but we invited them to resubmit,” she said. The arts council has a spring and fall grant application cycle.
The arts council is comprised of a nine-member board that has approximately one week to deliberate on grant applications before the council meets to vote on them. The council decides on which grants to support by a majority vote, she said.
In the future, the arts council will request that applicants either present their grant request to the council personally or be available by telephone to answer questions that may arise, said Mussellam.
She added the arts community applying for grants would benefit from participating in grant-writing workshops to improve the clarity of their requests. Mussellam also said the council provided its reasons to all applications who were denied.
The arts council is currently waiting for recommendations from the city’s grants-review committee, expected by the end of June. It is unknown how the recommendations will affect the arts council’s future.
Although the arts council does not currently list its directors or minutes from its public meetings on its website, Mussellam said those elements will be incorporated into its new website that is currently under construction.
Longtime treasurer Ann Nelson, who founded the arts council in 2007, recently stepped down due to health reasons.
