Dear Friends of Vermont Arts,
In every corner of Vermont, artists and cultural organizations have embraced change with remarkable courage over the past year. Dancers enlivened an abandoned quarry; drummers and painters engaged school students in creative projects; museums and theaters presented stunning art exhibits, concerts, plays and poetry readings. Together they provided the spark of inspiration we all needed to face an uncertain future.
Transformation is alive throughout the Arts Council’s FY2022 annual report. Our cover image is the “Phoenix of Transmutation,” a mural painted by Juniper Creative Arts in collaboration with Stowe middle and high school students, supported by an Arts Council Animating Infrastructure grant. The words on the mural are from writer Lalah Delia: “Whenever you feel crushed, under pressure, pressed, or in darkness, you’re in a powerful place of transformation/transmutation…trust the process.”
Inside the report, you can explore these stories and more:
- A Vermont Arts Council Creation Grant was pivotal for author Ann Dávila Cardinal, helping her to shift her creative practice and try writing for a younger audience. The result is a middle grade horror novel, Dry Bones, currently on submission to publishers.
- Teaching artist Susan Rosano re-invented herself when she suddenly lost her job at age 55, and now guides seniors through the process of telling their stories, charting the twists and turns in their own life paths.
- Digital media presents new challenges and opportunities for engaging cultural audiences. With state funding, we launched a program of direct grants and workshops to help cultural organizations develop effective and inclusive online programming.
The year ahead will also bring transformation to the Arts Council, as we embark on a leadership change that is both bittersweet and exciting. We are grateful to all of our partners, donors and colleagues for your confidence in us, your support, and all you do to keep Vermont’s arts landscape strong and vibrant.
With apprecation,
Cover image: “Phoenix of Transmutation” mural by Juniper Creative Arts whose concept was designed in collaboration with Stowe Middle School students as part of the Lamoille Art & Justice Project. The Current was awarded an Animating Infrastructure Grant in FY22 to lead this project. Photo by Alexa Herrera Condry.
Across Vermont
A total of $2,923,181 in Arts Council funding was awarded in FY2022 (July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022). Grants were awarded to 121 individual artists and 217 organizations in every county and 121 towns across Vermont.
The larger the circle on the map, the greater the number of grantees in that location. Visit the map online for an interactive experience.
Image: A map of Vermont is dotted up and down with colors representing the locations of FY2022 grantees.
A Place for Transformation
Transmutation is a process almost as old as the birth of the universe some 13.7 billion years ago when the first particles became atoms, which coalesced into galaxies of stars, which fused the elements into existence. As the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic subsides, the Vermont arts and culture landscape is undergoing its own kind of alchemy as organizations emerge from pandemic-induced hibernation, ramp up operations, and re-engage audiences.
This year, the state legislature and the governor made an unprecedented investment in its creative sector – the allocation of $9 million of American Rescue Plan Act funds to the Vermont Arts Council for grants to creative sector nonprofits and for-profit entities to help them recover from the pandemic. Funding allocated in the last legislative session was deployed statewide to transform and expand traditional arts and cultural programming into the new digital space. New philanthropic partnerships increased the size and scope of Arts Council grants to artists and cultural organizations, helping to strengthen the state’s cultural landscape in its pandemic recovery and to build the long-term sustainability of the state’s vibrant creative sector.
Indeed, Vermont is a place that invests in its artists, cultural organizations, and creative enterprises.With historic new investments in the creative economy, Vermont has the potential to transform and spin up into gold.
Image: "Sculpture in Sunset" by Leah Greenberg. Photo by Susan Calza.
Aging Artistically
Experienced teaching artists specially trained to create skill-based, instructional art lessons for older adults comprise the Council’s new Creative Aging Teaching Artist Roster – teachers like Susan Rosano of Guilford, VT. Rosano turned a sudden job loss at age 55 into a new opportunity to help seniors. Drawing on her more than 20 years as a teaching artist primarily with aging populations, Rosano created Wisdom in Our Community, a program to help seniors connect to their life histories using composition and visual arts to tell their stories. An exhibit of works at the program’s end aims to raise awareness of the importance of seniors and their knowledge and historic pasts.
One of the program’s activities is the life path project where participants create a visual map of their significant life events. Other activities include making a personal history shadow box to display a photo along with meaningful objects or composing a story for display on a poster plus visual elements. Along the way, a person trained to use the curriculum guides the activity by asking thoughtful questions and by close listening.
Rosano described working with a World War II veteran who had never shared with anyone terrifying details of being on a ship in the Pacific that was bombed during the war. Slowly over time, working with Rosano, he was able to tell the story through art and composition.
“There is a very deep vein of wisdom in our communities,” Rosano said. “My goal is to transform negative ideas about aging in our culture into positive beliefs about the strength, wisdom and contributions of senior citizens to their communities by documenting their personal histories through visual arts and storytelling, then exhibiting the results at a public venue.”
Rosano was one of 25 individuals selected as a 2021-2022 Creative Community Fellow: New England to help develop her program. The 10-month fellowship from National Arts Strategies includes a $10,000 stipend to help support art-based projects that drive positive change in New England communities.
A mosaic artist, Rosano also contributed art activities in the Central Vermont Council on Aging’s Creative Care Kit project. Read more about the Arts Council’s Creative Aging Initiative.
Image: Teaching artist Susan Rosano.
Digital Revolution
In response to the challenges of the pandemic, many arts and culture organizations increased their digital capacity and expanded online programming. A total of $1.15 million in one-time funding from the legislature enabled the Arts Council to offer a new digital capacity program, which supported grants and technical assistance to help build the digital capacity of Vermont cultural organizations.
Online programming presents new challenges, everything from purchasing new equipment for digital content, paying for streaming platforms, enhancing websites and social media, to hiring new staff. Digital programming also presents new opportunities as more audiences can be reached, including those with disabilities and transportation challenges
A total of $1,088,625 in Digital Capacity grants was awarded to 45 arts and humanities nonprofit organizations to help them meet increased demand for online programming and engagement since the pandemic.
The projects funded include website accessibility improvements, live streaming equipment upgrades, and new online learning platforms.
The program included large, multi-year collaborative grants. Two such grants of $120,000 were awarded to Catamount Arts in St. Johnsbury and Town Hall Theater in Middlebury. At Catamount Arts, funds will be used to enhance the digital capacity of foundational, regional production services for more than 40 partners in the towns and communities of the Northeast Kingdom, Vermont’s most remote region. At Town Hall Theater, funds will be used to create the Addison Art Media Partnership (AAMP), specifically supporting a multi-camera, shared media hub at the theater for its network of resident companies, Middlebury Community Television, community partners, and audiences.
The Council awarded seven special digital capacity grants to nonprofits that can provide specialized digital programming support and services to artists in their networks.
In addition to grants, the program provided a wide range of free technical assistance workshops and webinars, now available as videos on the Vermont Arts Council website. Topics include inclusive and accessible digital programming, production and editing, website analytics and e-commerce, legal issues and more. Content was provided in partnership with Inclusive Arts Vermont, the Media Factory, and the Vermont Small Business Development Center.
Read more about the Digital Capacity Program.
Image: Musician Kat Wright filming at Big Heavy World. Photo by Luke Awtry.
Community Engagement
The talented Vermont muralists at Juniper Creative Arts transformed the recreation path and a 25-foot exterior wall at the middle school in Stowe with support of an Animating Infrastructure Grant awarded to The Current for its work with the Lamoille Art & Justice Project. Both murals were inspired by a series of facilitated community engagements about social justice, equity, and inclusion in Lamoille County.
A total of five projects were awarded Animating Infrastructure Grants in FY22, including the Howard Center in Burlington to support a public art installation in Burlington’s South End with artwork by artists living with and affected by mental illness and/or addiction; the Orleans County Historical Society in Brownington for public art installations along the Alexander Twilight Trail; the Town of Lyndon for an artistic sculpture and light installation at the Sanborn Covered Bridge; and the Town of Springfield to design, fabricate, and install a monumental sculpture of David M. Smith’s mid-late 1800s clothespin in Comtu Cascade Park.
Animating Infrastructure grants support community art projects in which public art is integrated into existing or proposed infrastructure improvements. Applicants are encouraged to think beyond the ordinary, envisioning new buildings, roads, bridges, and other public spaces that have the potential for artistic enhancement that creates unique places where people want to live, work, visit, and play. The intent is to enhance a sense of community pride and identity, to foster social connections, and to improve the liveability and vibrancy of Vermont downtowns, villages, and neighborhoods.
For this year’s competition, the Council received 20 letters of interest with project ideas for communities from across Vermont. After initial review of the submissions by an external panel of reviewers, eight applicants were invited to develop full proposals for funding consideration.
Read more about Animating Infrastructure Grants.
Image: A Juniper Creative Arts ground mural on the Stowe Recreation Path. Photo by Alexa Herrera Condry.
Children's Lit for Change
In FY2022 the Council awarded 23 Creation Grants, our program funding new work by individual artists. Among them was novelist and Vermont College of Fine Arts director of recruitment Ann Dávila Cardinal, who discussed her many upcoming books on episode nine of our podcast, Vermont Made. A self-described “Gringa-Rican” from Manhattan who has lived in Vermont for 30 years, Cardinal weaves her mixed background into her stories no matter what ages she’s writing for–and she knows the importance of doing so for young readers. Dry Bones, her Creation Grant-supported, middle grade horror novel, features Latinx and nonbinary main characters living in her own hometown of Morrisville, VT, and is on submission to publishers now.
In Dry Bones, a young girl named Mara from New York City moves to Morrisville after her father has died, and she has to adjust to living in rural Vermont while solving the mystery of a demon living under her house who threatens to take revenge on the town. Along the way she befriends Maverick, a nonbinary student a grade above her, and the two find solace in each others’ differentness.
“I have great faith in Gen Z. I can’t wait for them to run the country,” said Cardinal. “They’re a little bitter, but they have good reason to be. I love writing stories for them because they’re more accepting of things like diversity and gender as a spectrum, and they have no problem with pronouns, they just adapt. They’re rolling with it. Their perspective is wise.”
A prolific writer, Cardinal’s other works in progress and upcoming publications include Breakup From Hell, a Young Adult horror romcom set in Stowe and available Jan. 3, 2023 from HarperTeen; The Storyteller’s Death, a magical realist murder mystery for adults following generations of a Puerto Rican family, out Oct. 4, 2022 from Sourcebooks; and The Ecstasy of Terre Sanchez, about a 60 year-old woman who makes a pilgrimage to Avila, Spain, to explore her ancestor, the levitating St. Theresa of Avila. Hear Cardinal discuss all of them and more in her episode of Vermont Made.
Image: Novelist Ann Dávila Cardinal. Photo by Carlos Cardinal.
Toward a World We Wish to See
2022 marks two years since the Council formed a staff committee devoted to pursuing inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility (IDEA) in all our activities. In June, we reached a major goal, the establishment of a network of IDEA advisors from the field. Our IDEA Advisory Network brings together creative leaders, community organizers, and working artists with expertise and lived experience in pursuing social justice in and through the arts. Meeting twice a year and consulting the Council as needed, the network will help set and pursue our IDEA priorities and disseminate the work to diverse communities.
At the first meeting of our IDEA Advisory Network, members were asked to respond to three prompts. First, “What do you love about your experience with the arts in Vermont? What has been challenging about your experience with the arts in Vermont?” Second, “After reviewing background materials about [our work], what is one question you’d like to ask the Council about our IDEA priorities?” Third, “What is the most important priority for this advisory network in the next two years.” These questions led to a robust conversation with several issues identified that will guide our IDEA work in the immediate future:
- What more can we do to incentivize our grantees and support the cultural sector to engage in accessibility practices and make use of the resources and training available for this work?
- Given that the state is responsible for harm to the Abenaki community, how can the Council as a state organization connect with Indigenous communities in ways that feel safe and ethical?
- Is “racial equity” a better term and goal than “anti-racism?” What are we working for rather than against? Who are we centering?
See a list of our IDEA Advisory Network members at the end of this annual report and on our IDEA web page, where you can keep up with our priorities and find IDEA resources for Vermont arts and cultural organizations.
Image: Mural art from a River Arts project. Photo courtesy River Arts of Morrisville.
Investing in a Creative Future
Advocacy efforts of the Vermont Creative Network, along with the Arts Council, enabled the successful passage of historic legislation that is sure to empower Vermont’s creative sector for years to come. In early June, Governor Phil Scott signed S.11 into law with $9 million for Covid-19 economic recovery grants for creative nonprofits and for-profit businesses.
Vermont Creative Futures grants of up to $200,000 can be used to cover a wide range of regular operating expenses, including payroll and office expenses; rent, mortgage, and utilities; and costs associated with ongoing Covid-19 mitigation and prevention. The grants are supported by Vermont’s portion of funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
In addition to the Creative Futures Grants, advocacy efforts also led to other funding that will help the creative sector, including $19 million for a short-term forgivable loan program through the Vermont Economic Development Authority and $40 million for the Community Recovery and Revitalization Program from the Agency of Commerce and Community Development.
“The creative sector has proven to be an incredibly important part of Vermont's economy -- and these funds will help the broad range of creative economy businesses and nonprofits get back on sound footing again, as we recover from the financial harms caused by Covid-19,” said Rep. Stephanie Jerome, the bill’s co-sponsor.
“A healthy creative sector is essential to the vitality of Vermont’s economy, its downtowns and village centers. The investments in this bill will help creative enterprises build resiliency, invest in infrastructure, and prepare for the future. The creative sector adds immeasurably to the quality of life in Vermont, and this bill represents a significant vote of confidence in its importance,” noted co-sponsor Sen. Alison Clarkson.
The year’s legislative activity was a critical win for the CreateVT Action Plan, which calls for statewide investment in the state’s creative enterprises, recognizing that arts, culture, and creativity are just as essential to Vermont’s future as roads, bridges, and broadband.
In 2022, CreateVT garnered two Plan of the Year awards, from the Vermont Planners Association and the Northern New England Chapter of the American Planners Association.
Read more about the Vermont Creative Network.
Image: A glassblower at Simon Pearce. Photo by Catherine Crawley.
Leaving Vermont a Better Place
At the end of October, we bid a fond farewell to Executive Director Karen Mittelman. Since joining the Council in 2017, Karen’s mark on the Vermont arts and culture landscape has been indelible. Karen has enhanced the Council’s visibility and impact throughout the state, forging new strategic partnerships as well as important alliances with Vermont Humanities and the Vermont Community Foundation.
During Karen’s tenure, the Council’s investment in Vermont artists and cultural organizations has substantially increased, more than doubling the number and amount of grants awarded to artists annually and increasing the scope and size of awards to organizations. For the broader creative sector, Karen helped to secure unprecedented state and private support, including $9 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) aid.
Mittelman’s leadership helped to guide Vermont’s arts and culture nonprofits through the Covid-19 pandemic. Since April 2020, aid from the Vermont Arts Council to Vermont artists and cultural organizations has totaled more than $8 million.
In 2020, Mittelman helped to develop and launch an ambitious action plan for Vermont’s creative sector, CreateVT. Hundreds of Vermonters from all walks of creative industries participated in the formation of the plan, which won the 2022 Plan of the Year from both the Vermont Planner’s Association and the Northern New England Chapter of the American Planners Association. The Plan was instrumental in guiding efforts to secure the additional ARPA funding from the legislature this year.
“It has been a joy and a challenge to lead the Vermont Arts Council for the past five years, to work with our wonderful staff and board, and to support Vermont’s exceptional arts community,” Mittelman said. “I could not be prouder of what we have achieved together. Despite the daunting challenges of the pandemic, the future vision for Vermont’s creative sector is brighter than ever.”
Karen leaves Vermont a better place, and she will be greatly missed.
Image: Outgoing executive director Karen Mittelman.
In Closing
We hope you’ve enjoyed this snapshot of our journey through FY2022. The support we were able to provide sustains the vital creative work of hundreds of artists, performers, and cultural organizations, like Theatre Adventure in West Brattleboro, which works to empower youth and adults with developmental disabilities through expressive arts programming. The organization was awarded a Digital Capacity grant to expand its online classes and theatrical productions.
“The continuation of the pandemic has demanded that all of us change our usual routines, schedules, and daily activities in order to remain healthy. And yet, more than ever, we need each other, we need to create theater together. Your support helps to keep our students connected and engaged and feeling like they have purpose and a caring community.” - co-directors Laura Lawson Tucker and Darlene Jenson.
Image: Two youth actors perform on stage. Photo by Laura Bliss.
Grantees
Fiscal Year 2022 (July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022)
Animating Infrastructure Grants support community projects that integrate art with infrastructure improvements. Descriptions of award projects are available at the link.
Howard Center, Burlington, $9,200
Orleans County Historical Society, Brownington, $11,000
The Current, Stowe, $15,000
Town of Hyde Park, Hyde Park, $10,000
Town of Lyndon, Lyndonville, $15,000
Town of Royalton, South Royalton, $10,000
Town of Springfield, Springfield, $15,000
Art in State Buildings Grants promote the work of Vermont artists and enrich the state’s cultural landscape through public art installations. The following are design awards, the first step of a public commission. Full details can be found at the link.
Department of Health, Zampieri Building, Burlington
Finalist honorarium grants support the preparation and presentation of preliminary concepts.
Phillip Godenschwager, Randolph, $500
Dan Gottsegen, Woodstock, $500
Kathryn Wiegers, Rutland, $500
Noa Younse, Richmond, $500
Design Grant
Dan Gottsegen, Woodstock, $3,000
Department of Mental Healthy Recovery Residence, Essex
Finalist honorarium grants support the preparation and presentation of preliminary concepts.
Michael Cerulli Billingsley, Plainfield, $500
Valerie Hird, Burlington, $500
Carol Langstaff, Sharon, $500
Kathryn Wiegers, Rutland, $500
Design Grants
Carol Langstaff, Sharon, $2,000
Kathryn Wiegers, Rutland, $2,000
Artist Development Grants support professional development for artists at all stages of their careers.
Clare Adams, Chester, $2,000
Juli Badics, Burlington, $800
Rachel Bell, Brattleboro, $1,992
Rachel Bernsen, Windsor, $1,450
Susan Bettmann, North Middlesex, $1,650
Heidi Bielenberg, Morrisville, $2,000
Naomi Bindman, North Bennington, $1,000
Francesca Blanchard, Burlington, $2,000
Brian Boyes, Plainfield, $2,000
Ian Burton, Marshfield, $2,000
Stefani Capizzi, Morrisville, $1,500
Bill Cole, Thetford Center, $2,000
Webb Crawford, Brattleboro, $1,400
Lawuo Cummings, Passumpsic, $1,176
Matthew Dickerson, Bristol, $1,850
Kim Diehnelt, Burlington, $580
Arlene Distler, Brattleboro, $850
Sylvia Dodge, Lyndonville, $531
Sara Doncaster, Coventry, $2,000
Michelle Dussault, Manchester, $1,646
Martha Elmes, Lyndonville, $450
Samirah Evans, Brattleboro, $1,950
Gin Ferrara, South Burlington, $900
Hiromi Fukuda, Burlington, $2,000
Erik Gillard, Plainfield, $2,000
Dennis Goodhue, St. Johnsbury, $1,450
Becky Graber, Brattleboro, $2,000
Susie Gray, South Royalton, $800
Layton Hahs, Brattleboro, $2,000
Rebecca Hall, West Townshend, $2,000
Maryam Hand, Jeffersonville, $731
Tracy Haught, Montpelier, $350
Sean Heaney, Newport, $2,000
Millie Heckler, Burlington, $2,000
Diana Henry, Newport, $2,000
Marcie Hernandez, Burlington, $1,000
Paula Higa, Williston, $2,000
Kelly Holt, Burlington, $700
Daniel Houghton, East Arlington, $579
Ashleigh Howard, South Burlington, $525
Nora Jacobson, Norwich, $2,000
Karen Kevra, Montpelier, $2,000
Sarah King, Ripton, $2,000
Ivan Klipstein, Burlington, $2,000
Mary Kim Lavery, South Hero, $1,230
Phoebe Lo, Burlington, $2,000
Jill Madden, Weybridge, $1,020
Nick Mayer, Lincoln, $2,000
Ana Mayhew, Burlington, $651
Jennifer McCandless, Burlington, $2,000
Mary Kathleen Mehuron, Waitsfield, $1,000
Christine Mitchell Adams, Shelburne, $2,000
Clay Mohrman, Burlington, $1,485
Brian David Mooney, Brattleboro, $750
Taraneh Mosadegh, West Halifax, $750
Denis Mueller, Burlington, $1,500
Madeleine Murray, Burlington, $750
Rodrigo Nava, Putney, $2,000
Xander Naylor, Winooski, $800
Elizabeth Nelson, West Glover, $500
Phyllis Odessey, Marlboro, $600
Erin Kelly O'Neal, Burlington, $1,350
Christianna Orcel, Newport, $2,000
Caitlin Owen, Burlington, $1,699
Nola Parker, Montpelier, $850
Hunter Paye, Bradford, $2,000
Alana Phinney, Montpelier, $919
Robin Piya, Middlebury, $1,200
José Rivera, Pownal, $2,000
Kate Ruddle, Montpelier, $1,552
Jamie Ruggerio, Brandon, $2,000
Dayna Sabatino, Bethel, $1,950
Michelle Saffran, Moretown, $1,800
Hanna Satterlee, Montpelier, $2,000
David Schein, Burlington, $1,400
Eben Schumacher, Burlington, $1,339
Luna Shen, Burlington, $875
Elaine Sklar, Newport Center, $1,350
Isadora Snapp, Barre, $2,000
Sandy Sokoloff, Grand Isle, $2,000
Ida Specker, Andover, $2,000
Ashley Strobridge, Montpelier, $1,000
Landa Townsend, Charlotte, $1,500
Vaune Trachtman, Brattleboro, $2,000
Cara Trezise, Brattleboro, $640
Luis Vivanco, Burlington, $1,050
Peggy Watson, Montpelier, $399
Misuk Weaver, Underhill, $2,000
Benjamin Wiggins, Burlington, $2,000
Julie Winn, South Burlington, $600
Kat Wright, Winooski, $2,000
Noa Younse, Richmond, $289
Bianca Amira Zanella, Rutland, $1,940
Special Artist Development Grant
Clemmons Family Farm, Charlotte, $15,000
Artists in Schools Grants help schools develop in-class residency relationships with Vermont artists.
Academy School, Brattleboro, $2,700
Addison Northwest School District, Vergennes, $1,500
Beeman Elementary, New Haven, $1,880
Bishop John A. Marshall School, Morrisville, $2,500
Cabot School, Cabot, $2,500
Capstone Community Action, Barre, $2,500
Cavendish Town Elementary School, Proctorsville, $2,100
Chamberlin Elementary School, South Burlington, $2,500
Champlain Elementary, Burlington, $2,200
Edmunds Middle School, Burlington, $3,000
Expeditionary School at Black River, Ludlow, $2,500
Green Street School, Brattleboro, $2,100
Hartland Elementary School, Hartland, $1,350
Hiawatha Elementary School, Essex Junction, $2,500
Hiawatha Elementary School, Essex Junction, $1,000
Hinesburg Community School, Hinesburg, $2,500
Killington Mountain School, Killington, $1,000
Mary Hogan School, Middlebury, $1,850
Sharon Elementary School, Sharon, $2,500
The Newton School, South Strafford, $2,500
The Putney School, Putney, $2,750
Thetford Academy, Thetford, $2,500
White River Valley Supervisory Union, Royalton, $4,000
Windham Elementary School, Windham, $2,500
Winooski Middle High School, Winooski, $2,350
Special Artists in Schools Grants
Clemmons Family Farm, Charlotte, $5,000
Inclusive Arts Vermont, St. Albans, $13,100
Arts Impact Grants support nonprofit organizations, municipalities, and schools in their efforts to add vibrancy to Vermont communities and provide general operating funds to arts nonprofits. Arts Impact Grants were supported in part by the Vermont Community Foundation’s Arts Endowment Fund.
Operating Grants
77ART, Rutland, $6,000
Art in the Neighborhood, Brattleboro, $3,000
The Arts Bus, Randolph, $6,000
Epsilon Spires, Brattleboro, $4,500
Get Thee to the Funnery, Brattleboro, $4,500
Lost Nation Theater, Montpelier, $3,000
Middlebury Acting Company, Weybridge, $3,000
Milton Artists' Guild, Milton, $3,000
Sundog Poetry Center, Johnson, $3,000
Theatre Adventure, Brattleboro, $6,000
Vermont Arts Exchange, North Bennington, $4,500
Vermont Jazz Center, Brattleboro, $3,000
Project Grants
Artistree Community Arts Center, South Pomfret, $2,774
Cabot Arts, Cabot, $4,000
Greater Falls Community Justice Center, Bellows Falls, $3,000
Integrated Arts Academy, Burlington, $3,000
Media Hour Ltd, East Arlington, $4,000
New Music On The Point, Leicester, $4,000
Retreat Farm, Brattleboro, $4,000
Shidaa Projects, Montpelier, $2,050
The Root Social Justice Center, Brattleboro, $4,000
Vermont Family Network, Williston, $3,000
Arts Partnership Grants support the annual operations of Vermont arts organizations through three-year grants.
Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Brattleboro, $12,600
Brattleboro Music Center, Brattleboro, $10,100
Burlington City Arts, Burlington, $14,400
Carving Studio and Sculpture Center, West Rutland, $7,200
Catamount Arts, St. Johnsbury, $14,400
Chandler Center for the Arts, Randolph, $11,300
Dorset Theatre Festival, Dorset, $11,300
Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, Burlington, $14,400
Generator, Burlington, $12,600
Inclusive Arts Vermont, St. Albans, $9,000
In-Sight Photography Project, Brattleboro, $5,400
Kingdom County Productions, Barnet, $8,100
Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival, Leicester, $5,400
Music-COMP, Duxbury, $5,400
New England Center for Circus Arts, Brattleboro, $14,400
Next Stage Arts Project, Putney, $7,200
Northern Stage Company, White River Junction, $14,400
Paramount Theatre, Rutland, $13,000
River Arts of Morrisville, Morrisville, $9,000
Rural ARTS Collaborative, Greensboro, $8,100
Scrag Mountain Music, Marshfield, $5,400
Southern Vermont Arts Center, Manchester, $13,000
T.W. Wood Art Gallery, Montpelier, $5,400
The Current, Stowe, $7,200
Town Hall Theater, Middlebury, $11,300
Vermont Stage Company, Burlington, $7,200
Very Merry Theatre, Burlington, $8,100
Weston Theater Company, Weston, $13,000
Yellow Barn, Putney, $14,400
Young Writers Project, Burlington, $5,400
Covid-19 Cultural Recovery Grants provide organizational support to arts and humanities organizations facing financial hardship due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Grants were made in partnership with Vermont Humanities.
AHA Abenaki Helping Abenaki, Shelburne, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Art in the Neighborhood, Brattleboro, $5,000 (VAC)
Barre Historical Society, Barre, $5,000 (VH)
Barre Opera House, Barre, $10,000 (VAC)
Bella Voce Women's Chorus, Essex Junction, $5,000 (VAC)
Bennington Museum, Bennington, $15,000 (VAC $7,500; VH $7,500)
Bennington Performing Arts Center, Bennington, $10,000 (VAC)
Big Heavy World, Burlington, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Billings Farm and Museum, Woodstock, $15,000 (VH)
Brattleboro Literary Festival, Brattleboro, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Brattleboro, $10,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $5000)
Brattleboro Music Center, Brattleboro, $15,000 (VAC)
Bread and Puppet Theatre, Glover, $10,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $5,000)
Briggs Opera House, White River Junction, $5,000 (VAC)
Brighton Community Forum, Island Pond, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Bryan Memorial Gallery, Jeffersonville, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Burlington City Arts, Burlington, $15,000 (VAC)
Cabot Arts, Cabot, $5,000 (VAC)
Cabot Historical Society, Cabot, $5,000 (VH)
Cambridge Arts Council, Cambridge, $5,000 (VAC)
Carving Studio and Sculpture Center, West Rutland, $10,000 (VAC)
Catamount Arts, St. Johnsbury, $15,000 (VAC $10,000; VH $5,000)
CATV Inc., White River Junction, $10,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $7,500)
Center for Arts and Learning, Montpelier, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Center for Cartoon Studies, White River Junction, $15,000 (VAC $7,500; VH $7,500)
Chaffee Art Center, Rutland, $5,000 (VAC)
Chandler Center for the Arts, Randolph, $10,000 (VAC)
Chittenden Community Television, Burlington, $10,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $7,500)
Circus Smirkus, Greensboro, $15,000 (VAC)
Clemmons Family Farm, Charlotte, $10,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $5,000)
Community of Sound, Burlington, $5,000 (VAC)
Craftsbury Public Library, Craftsbury Common, $5,000 (VH)
Dorset Players, Dorset, $5,000 (VAC)
Dorset Theatre Festival, Dorset, $15,000 (VAC)
Epsilon Spires, Brattleboro, $5,000 (VAC)
Ethan Allen Homestead Museum, Burlington, $5,000 (VH)
Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium, St. Johnsbury, $15,000 (VH)
Fairfield Community Center Association, East Fairfield, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Fleming Museum of Art, Burlington, $15,000 (VAC $7,500; VH $7,500)
Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, Burlington, $15,000 (VAC $10,000; VH $5,000)
Friends of the Cobleigh Library, Lyndonville, $5,000 (VH)
Friends of the Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, $5,000 (VH)
Gallery at the VAULT, Springfield, $5,000 (VAC)
Generator, Burlington, $10,000 (VAC)
Governor's Institutes of Vermont, Winooski, $15,000 (VH)
Greater Barton Arts, Barton, $5,000 (VAC)
Green Mountains Review, Johnson, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Green Mountain Youth Symphony, Montpelier, $5,000 (VAC)
Haskell Free Library, Derby Line, $5,000 (VH)
Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History, Middlebury, $10,000 (VH)
Heritage Winooski Mill Museum, Winooski, $5,000 (VH)
Highgate Library and Community Center, Highgate, $5,000 (VH)
Hinesburg Artist Series, Hinesburg, $5,000 (VAC)
Inclusive Arts Vermont, Essex Junction, $10,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $5,000)
Island Arts, North Hero, $5,000 (VAC)
Jericho Historical Society, Jericho, $5,000 (VH)
Kingdom County Productions, Barnet, $10,000 (VAC)
Lake Champlain Maritime Museum at Basin Harbor, Vergennes, $15,000 (VH)
Latchis Arts, Brattleboro, $5,000 (VAC)
Londonderry Arts and Historical Society, Londonderry, $5,000 (VH)
Lost Nation Theater, Montpelier, $10,000 (VAC)
Lost Shul Mural, Burlington, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Lyric Theatre Company, South Burlington, $10,000 (VAC)
Main Street Arts, Saxtons River, $5,000 (VAC)
Main Street Museum, White River Junction, $5,000 (VH)
Maquam Bay of Missisquoi, Swanton, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Mercy Connections, Burlington, $10,000 (VH)
Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival, Leicester, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Migrant Justice, Burlington, $10,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $7,500)
Milton Artists' Guild, Milton, $5,000 (VAC)
Monteverdi Music School, Montpelier, $5,000 (VAC)
New England Center for Circus Arts, Brattleboro, $15,000 (VAC)
New England Youth Theatre, Brattleboro, $10,000 (VAC)
Next Stage Arts Project, Putney, $10,000 (VAC)
Northeast Kingdom All Stars, St. Johnsbury, $5,000 (VAC)
Northeast Kingdom Arts Council, Hardwick, $5,000 (VAC)
Northeast Kingdom Collaborative, Craftsbury, $5,000 (VH)
Northern Stage Company, White River Junction, $15,000 (VAC $10,000; VH $5,000)
NorthWoods Stewardship Center, East Charleston, $10,000 (VH)
Norwich Historical Society, Norwich, $5,000 (VH)
Off Center for the Dramatic Arts, Burlington, $5,000 (VAC)
Opera Company of Middlebury, Middlebury, $5,000 (VAC)
Orleans County Historical Society, Brownington, $10,000 (VH)
Out in the Open, Brattleboro, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Outright Vermont, Burlington, $15,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $10,000)
Paramount Center, Rutland, $15,000 (VAC)
Pentangle Arts, Woodstock, $10,000 (VAC)
Preservation Trust of Vermont, Burlington, $15,000 (VH)
Pride Center of Vermont, Burlington, $15,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $10,000)
Retreat Farm, Brattleboro, $15,000 (VAC $7,500; VH $7,500)
River Arts of Morrisville, Morrisville, $10,000 (VAC)
River Gallery School of Art, Brattleboro, $10,000 (VAC)
Robert Frost Stone House Museum, Shaftsbury, $5,000 (VH)
Rockingham Arts and Museum Project, Bellows Falls, $5,000 (VAC)
Rokeby Museum, Ferrisburgh, $5,000 (VH)
Rural ARTS Collaborative, Greensboro, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Ruth Stone House, Goshen, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Saint Albans Museum, St. Albans, $5,000 (VH)
Sandglass Theater, Putney, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Scrag Mountain Music, Marshfield, $5,000 (VAC)
Seven Stars Arts Center, Sharon, $5,000 (VAC)
Shelburne Craft School, Shelburne, $5,000 (VAC)
Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, $15,000 (VAC $7,500; VH $7,500)
Simpson Memorial Library, Craftsbury, $5,000 (VH)
Snelling Center for Government, Shelburne, $10,000 (VH)
Society of Vermont Artists and Craftsmen, Ludlow, $5,000 (VAC)
South End Arts and Business Association, Burlington, $5,000 (VAC)
Southern Vermont Arts Center, Manchester, $15,000 (VAC $10,000; VH $5,000)
Springfield Community Players, Springfield, $5,000 (VAC)
Spruce Peak Arts Center, Stowe, $15,000 (VAC)
St. Johnsbury History and Heritage Center, St. Johnsbury, $5,000 (VH)
Stage 33 Live, Ltd, Bellows Falls, $5,000 (VAC)
Studio Place Arts, Barre, $5,000 (VAC)
Sundog Poetry Center, Johnson, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Swanton Arts Council, Swanton, $5,000 (VAC $3,000; VH $2,000)
T.W. Wood Art Gallery, Montpelier, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Taconic Music, Manchester, $5,000 (VAC)
The Current, Stowe, $10,000 (VAC)
The Foundry Workshop, Lyndon, $5,000 (VAC)
The MINT Rutland Makerspace, Rutland, $5,000 (VAC)
Theatre Adventure, Brattleboro, $5,000 (VAC)
Town Hall Theater, Middlebury, $15,000 (VAC $10,000; VH $5,000)
Upright Steeple Society, Lyndon, $5,000 (VAC)
UVM Lane Series, Burlington, $10,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $5,000)
Vermont Arts Exchange, North Bennington, $10,000 (VAC)
Vermont Council on World Affairs, Burlington, $10,000 (VH)
Vermont Dance Alliance, Burlington, $5,000 (VAC)
Vermont Folklife Center, Middlebury, $10,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $5,000)
Vermont Granite Museum, Barre, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Vermont Historical Society, Barre, $15,000 (VH)
Vermont International Film Festival, Burlington, $10,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $5,000)
Vermont Jazz Center, Brattleboro, $10,000 (VAC $5,000; VH $5,000)
Vermont Ski Museum, Stowe, $5,000 (VH)
Vermont Stage Company, Burlington, $10,000 (VAC)
Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, $15,000 (VAC $10,000; VH $5,000)
Vermont Symphony Orchestra, Burlington, $15,000 (VAC $10,000; VH $5,000)
Vermont Youth Orchestra Association, Colchester, $10,000 (VAC)
Vermont Youth Theater, Barre, $4,000 (VAC)
Westminster West Public Library, Putney, $5,000 (VH)
Weston Theater Company, Weston, $15,000 (VAC $10,000; VH $5,000)
Wheelock Mountain Farm, Greensboro Bend, $5,000 (VH)
White Pine Association, West Braintree, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Worcester Historical Society, Worcester, $5,000 (VH)
Yellow Barn, Putney, $15,000 (VAC)
Young Tradition Vermont, Fairfax, $5,000 (VAC)
Young Writers Project, Burlington, $5,000 (VAC $2,500; VH $2,500)
Creation Grants support the creation of new work by Vermont artists. Creation Grants were supported in part by the Vermont Community Foundation’s Arts Endowment Fund. Descriptions of award projects are available at the link.
Kellam Ayres, Middlebury, $4,000
Rita Banerjee, Montpelier, $4,000
Francesca Blanchard, Burlington, $4,000
Ann Dávila Cardinal, Morrisville, $4,000
KeruBo, Winooski, $4,000
Jesse Kreitzer, Brattleboro, $4,000
Travis Laplante, Putney, $4,000
Jen Lazar, Burlington, $4,000
Mikahely, Burlington, $4,000
Nancy Winship Milliken, Charlotte, $4,000
Modern Times Theater, East Hardwick, $4,000
Xander Naylor, Winooski, $4,000
Liam O'Connor-Genereaux, South Ryegate, $4,000
Danielle O'Hallisey, Burlington, $4,000
Rachel Portesi, Saxtons River, $4,000
William Ransom, Norwich, $4,000
Jes Raymond, Wilder, $4,000
Sonia Scherr, Norwich, $4,000
Ruth Shafer, Brattleboro, $4,000
Bronwyn Sims, Williamsville, $4,000
Rebecca Valley, Cambridge, $4,000
Diana Whitney, Brattleboro, $4,000
Sam Wyatt, Lincoln, $4,000
Cultural Facilities Grants support nonprofit organizations and municipalities to improve the safety, quality, or accessibility of public buildings. Descriptions of award projects are available at the link.
Bennington Museum, Bennington, $15,575
Broad Brook Community Center, Guilford, $30,000
Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium, St. Johnsbury, $26,700
Friends of Dog Mountain, St. Johnsbury, $12,935
Friends of the Union Meeting Hall, Ferrisburgh, $26,400
Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History, Middlebury, $20,067
Main Street Arts, Saxtons River, $26,700
Middlebury Studio School, Middlebury, $10,880
River Arts of Morrisville, Morrisville, $15,034
Sheldon Historical Society, Sheldon, $15,798
Strafford Historical Society, Strafford, $18,040
Town of Fair Haven, Fair Haven, $16,910
Town of Franklin, Franklin, $8,887
Town of Rockingham, Bellows Falls, $21,222
Vermont Granite Museum, Barre, $26,700
Wardsboro Public Library , Wardsboro, $3,606
Digital Capacity Grants help build the digital capacity of Vermont cultural organizations. Descriptions of award projects are available at the link.
Organization Grants
Art on Main, Bristol, $7,500
Bennington Museum, Bennington, $25,000
Brattleboro Words Trail, Brattleboro, $25,000
CATV, Inc., White River Junction, $5,000
Central Vermont Community Radio Corporation, Plainfield, $15,000
Chittenden Community Television, Burlington, $29,000
Clemmons Family Farm, Charlotte, $25,000
Epsilon Spires, Brattleboro, $18,000
Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium, St. Johnsbury, $22,000
Friends of the Vergennes Opera House, Vergennes, $14,000
Generator, Burlington, $12,000
Heritage Winooski Mill Museum, Winooski, $20,000
Inclusive Arts Vermont, St. Albans, $28,000
JAG Productions, White River Junction, $7,400
Lake Champlain Maritime Museum at Basin Harbor, Vergennes, $22,000
Lost Nation Theater, Montpelier, $22,000
Media Hour Ltd, East Arlington, $12,000
Middlebury Community Music Center, Middlebury, $20,000
Montpelier Community Gospel Choir, Montpelier, $20,000
North Branch Nature Center, Montpelier, $25,000
Out in the Open, Brattleboro, $29,000
Outright Vermont, Burlington, $25,000
Pride Center of Vermont, Burlington, $22,000
Rokeby Museum, Ferrisburgh, $11,500
Rural ARTS Collaborative, Greensboro, $25,000
SafeArt, Chelsea, $5,000
Stage 33 Live, Ltd, Bellows Falls, $7,800
Stone Valley Arts, Poultney, $15,000
Theatre Adventure, Brattleboro, $15,000
Vermont Abenaki Artists Association, Burlington, $15,000
Vermont College of Fine Arts, Montpelier, $18,000
Vermont Folklife Center, Middlebury, $25,000
Vermont Historical Society, Barre, $22,000
Vermont Jazz Center, Brattleboro, $22,000
Vermont Symphony Orchestra, Burlington, $25,000
Very Merry Theatre, Burlington, $25,000
Weston Theater Company, Weston, $22,000
Windham World Affairs, Brattleboro, $6,000
Young Writers Project, Burlington, $25,000
Multi-Year Collaborative Grants
Catamount Arts, St. Johnsbury, $120,000
Town Hall Theater, Middlebury, $120,000
Special Grants
Big Heavy World, Burlington, $24,900
Big Heavy World, Burlington, $10,800
Burlington City Arts, Burlington, $30,000
Clemmons Family Farm, Charlotte, $15,000
Vermont Abenaki Artists Association, Burlington, $15,000
Vermont Crafts Council, Montpelier, $5,000
Vermont Dance Alliance, Burlington, $13,725
Head Start Arts Integration Grants support arts-integrated experiences for early education students and teachers in Head Start classrooms.
Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Brattleboro, $5,000
Burlington City Arts, Burlington, $6,000
Catamount Arts, St. Johnsbury, $1,500
Rural ARTS Collaborative, Greensboro, $6,000
Vermont Arts Exchange, North Bennington, $6,000
Special Project Grants support statewide services at the discretion of the Council’s executive director.
Governor's Institute on the Arts, Winooski, $5,000
Vermont Crafts Council, Montpelier, $3,000
Vermont Folklife Center, Middlebury, $40,000
Stages in the Sun Sponsorships
In partnership with the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing and the Vermont Recreation and Parks Association and with funding from the Vermont Community Foundation, we provided $1,500 sponsorships to 21 outdoor events series across the state in the summer and fall of 2021. (These are not included on the grant map or Airtable)
Name and Location of Event
Ballet Vermont, multiple Vermont locations
Bennington Museum, Bennington
Bristol Recreation Department, Bristol
Epsilon Spires, Brattleboro
First: Earth Summer Series, Williston
Friends of the Plainfield Town Hall Opera House, Plainfield
JAG Productions, Norwich
Lyric Theatre Company, multiple Vermont locations
Main Street Arts, Rockingham
Montpelier Parks, Montpelier
Retreat Farm, Brattleboro
Rutland Recreation and Parks Department, Rutland
Scrag Mountain Music, multiple Vermont locations
The Meeting House on the Green, Fairfield
Town of Brattleboro Rec & Parks, Brattleboro
Town of Weathersfield, Weathersfield
Vermont Arts Exchange, Bennington
Vermont International Film Festival, Burlington
Vermont Shakespeare Festival, multiple Vermont locations
Vermont Symphony Orchestra, multiple Vermont locations
Village Harmony, multiple Vermont locations
Panelists and Advisors
Accessibility Advisors
Peter Johnke
Deborah Lisi-Baker*
Katie Miller
Lisa Ryan
Heidi Swevens
*deceased
Cultural Facilities Coalition
Caitlin Corkins
Karen Mittelman
Steve Perkins
Grant Panelists
Genny Albert
Monica Andrews
Sarah Audsley
LN Bethea
Shoshannah Boray
Shawn Brennan
Jason Broughton
David Burnell
Jennifer Carlo
Jackie Cassino
John Churchman
Brian Cohen
Margaret Coleman
Gary Damon, Jr.
Jacqueline DeMent
Tom Dunn
Isaac Eddy
Deb Ellis
Ari Erlbaum
Eric Ford
Rob Freeburg
Sarah Freeman
Lindsay Gacad
Barbara Ganley
Wylie Garcia
Miciah Gault
Heather Geoffrey
Bonny Hall
Zeke Hecker
Jennifer Herrera Condry
Kate Hodges
Kelly Holt
Kathleen Horton
Ralph Irish
Nora Jacobson
Tabrena Karish
Sara Katz
Erin Kaufman
Renee Kelly
Rick Kerschner
Shanta Lee
Brian Leet
Ken Leslie
Phoebe Lo
Harlan Mack
Toby MacNutt
Ornella Matta-Figueroa
Laura McCaffrey
Bridget McGrath
Erin McKenney
Katie Miller
Tracy Montminy
Riki Moss
Joshua Muse
Ryan Newswanger
Susanna Olson
Dawn O’Toole
Christianna Orcel
Troy Parah
Robin Perlah
Estefania Puerta
Dana Robinson
Andrea Rosen
Vera Sheehan
Parker Silver
Lizz Sinclair
Brett Stanciu
Kelly Stoddard Poor
Jenna Struble
Kaylynn Sullivan TwoTrees
Nathan Suter
Margaret Tamulonis
Brian Terhune
Chris Thompson
Vaune Trachtman
Thomas Tran
Eugene Uman
Luis Vivanco
Weiwei Wang
Mary Wesley
Linda Whelihan
Kevin Wiberg
Jane Williamson
Mindy Wong
Dana Yeaton
Jack Zeilenga
IDEA Advisory Network Members
Karen Abdul-Malik
Judy Dow
Vera Escaja-Heiss
Vera Longtoe Sheehan
HB Lozito
Toby MacNutt
Justin Marsh
Katie Miller
Sha’an Mouliert
Jericho Parms
Tamara Waraschinski
Board of Trustees
Emily Bernard
Sabrina Brown
Ed Clark
Sean Clute
Will Kasso Condry
Greg Cutler
Sharon Fantl
Mark Foley
Holly Groschner
Becky McMeekin
Gail Nunziata*
Greg Paus
Tony Pietricola
Stephen Pite
Greg Sargent
Nick Sherman*
*term ended June 2022
Staff
Michele Bailey
Meredith Bell
Deirdre Connelly
Catherine Crawley
Amy Cunningham
Johanna de Graffenreid
Anne Gould
Dominique Gustin
Troy Hickman
Karen Mittelman
Desmond Peeples
Tom Pilon
The Vermont Arts Council is funded, in part, by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, which requires a 1:1 match from the Vermont State Legislature. Council grants, programs, and statewide arts promotion would not be possible without the critical funding provided by these government agencies.
We could not do our work without the support of our wider Vermont Arts Council community. THANK YOU to the hundreds of generous individuals, businesses, and foundations that made vital contributions to our work in the past fiscal year. View FY2022 Contributors.
136 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05633-6001 | 802.828.3291 | info@vermontartscouncil.org