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WESTAF News

Jan 30
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WESTAF State Arts Agency Innovation Fund Announcement Featured Image

WESTAF Announces the State Arts Agency Innovation Fund

By Advocacy, Policy, Programs, WESTAF News
WESTAF is thrilled to share the launch of WESTAF’s State Arts Agency Innovation Fund. In an ongoing effort to inspire innovative and transformative practices within the 13-member state arts agencies in the West, the Fund aims to support state arts agency efforts to enhance their service to individuals, families, and communities and the arts and cultural industries in their states in ways that were previously difficult to achieve.  WESTAF has committed an initial $500,000 investment from the $8 million MacKenzie Scott and Dan Jewett gift received in 2021.The Fund has been structured to offer support to the transformative work of...
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Jan 25
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WESTAF BIPOC Artist Fund Announcement

WESTAF Announces the BIPOC Artist Fund

By GO, Grants, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News
WESTAF is thrilled to share the upcoming launch of the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Artist Fund, a new fund designed in partnership with WESTAF’s Leaders of Color Network that provides resources to and for BIPOC artists living and working in the 16 states and jurisdictions in the WESTAF region to advance their own artistic practice and goals. WESTAF is investing in the wellbeing and safety of BIPOC artists, cultural practitioners, and collaboratives by providing no-strings-attached funding and support. Thank you to the design team, which spans across eight different Emerging Leaders of Color cohort years, for their...
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Jan 23
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WESTAF Announces the Launch of the Public Art Archive’s New Engagement Portal

By PAA, Programs, Special Projects, WESTAF News
WESTAF is thrilled to announce the launch of the reimagined and expanded Public Art Archive™ (PAA) website! Designed by Bilberrry, a full service digital agency and product studio behind websites such as David's Bridal and GoFundMe.org, the new site provides an immersive public art experience to better facilitate sustained public engagement with cultural assets across communities. Visitors are greeted with an optimized visual experience on the new home screen, drawing users in from the moment they land on the site. Discover the multitude of artworks spanning lived experience, geographic boundary, subject matter, and worktype in this centralized resource where street...
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Dec 13
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CNMI American Rescue Plan Grant Recipients

WESTAF Announces 2022 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) American Rescue Plan Grant Recipients

By Grants, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News
The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands American Rescue Plan Fund for Organizations (CNMI ARP) is a relief grant program, supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, that provides general operating support to eligible arts and culture organizations and individual artists impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in the Northern Mariana Islands. The program is delivered in partnership with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Arts Council. We are delighted to announce that WESTAF will be awarding grant funding to 32 individual artists and culture organizations across the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Each of the 28...
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Sep 09
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WESTAF Celebrates Launch of Public Art Archive’s 2nd Edition of Have You Seen My Public Art? Map!

By PAA, Programs, Special Projects, WESTAF News
Join the Public Art Archive™ (PAA) as we celebrate the 10th anniversary of our Have You Seen My Public Art? map with a brand new version! The original map was created in 2013 and quickly became the program’s most recognizable visual. Since that time, the PAA team has continued its mission to make public art more public, archiving over 20,000 public artworks around the U.S. in the process. This new map, illustrated by artist Kara Fellows, highlights a diverse array of public artists and their artworks from across the country. The second edition of the map includes 144 artworks across...
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Aug 22
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leaders of color network logo

National Leaders of Color Fellowship Launches with Support from United States Regional Arts Organizations

By Programs, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Leah Horn 720.664.2239 leah.horn@westaf.org   National Leaders of Color Fellowship Launches with Support from United States Regional Arts Organizations August 31 Application Deadline for the Program Dedicated to the Advancement of BIPOC Leaders in the Arts Denver, CO, August 22, 2022—Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) has partnered with its five United States Regional Arts Organization (USRAO) counterparts to support the National Leaders of Color Fellowship, a leadership development program for Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) leaders committed to the advancement of cultural equity in the arts. An expansion of WESTAF’s Emerging Leaders of Color (ELC)…

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Aug 16
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various photos of westaf's completed women's suffrage mural

WESTAF Announces Completion of Women’s Suffrage Mural

By PAA, Programs, Special Projects, WESTAF News

To mark the centennial of the landmark legislation that granted women the right to vote, the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) has commissioned the creation of a mural related to Women’s Suffrage in Denver’s Montbello neighborhood. Created by local artist Adrienne “Adri” Norris (www.afrotriangledesigns.com), the mural is located at the Montbello Branch of the Denver Public Library. The artwork centers an overlooked history and aims to expand the narrative of Women’s Suffrage and the passing of the 19th Amendment to include the larger and more inclusive story of the fight for voting rights for Black, Hispanic, and minority communities. This…

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Aug 01
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Multiple shapes of orange, pink and green float in front of a beige background. Text reads that the six United States Regional Arts Organizations (RAOs) are currently seeking fellows

Leaders of Color Fellowship Application Now Open

By News, Programs, Social Responsibility & Inclusion, WESTAF News
We are thrilled to announce the National Leaders of Color Fellowship (LoCF) application is now accepting applications. The LoCF is a strategic leadership development program for Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) leaders throughout the western region who are committed to the advancement of cultural equity in the arts. Using a cohort structure, the program emphasizes experiential learning, community building, and service to the field. Since 2010, and in partnership with South Arts for the past two years, the Western States Arts Federation’s (WESTAF) Emerging Leaders of Color (ELC) program has promoted diverse, representative leadership and equity in the...
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Jul 06
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WESTAF blue and green Graphing Announcing Pacific Jurisdictions Partnership

WESTAF Announces Partnership with Pacific Jurisdictions

By Advocacy, Policy, Programs, WESTAF News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Leah Horn 720.664.2239 leah.horn@westaf.org WESTAF Announces Partnership with Pacific Jurisdictions New agreement creates pathway for Pacific jurisdictions to join western Regional Arts Organization   Denver, CO, June 30, 2022—To demonstrate its continued focus on equitable grantmaking and diverse arts ecosystems throughout the western region, the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) has partnered with the Pacific Jurisdiction (PJ) region through an unprecedented agreement. Historically, American Samoa, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), and Guam (collectively, Pacific Jurisdictions/PJs) have been underrepresented as a region within the U.S. arts sector and in conversations surrounding arts advocacy. With this new…

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Jun 14
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2022 Arts Leadership and Advocacy Seminar image

WESTAF Announces 2022 Arts Leadership and Advocacy Seminar

By Advocacy, News, Policy, WESTAF News
WESTAF is happy to announce that registration is open for the 2022 Arts Leadership and Advocacy Seminar (ALAS)! This year's virtual event will be taking place on Monday, May 23 and Tuesday, May 24, 2022. Held annually between 2011 and 2017, ALAS brought arts leaders from the West to Washington, D.C. to meet with members of Congress and their staff, engage in briefings regarding the status of and future prospects for federal arts support, and to discuss with the WESTAF trustees ways to generate more state government support for the work of state arts agencies. This year’s ALAS will expand...
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