Paid Opportunity: Present at ThriveFest 2024!
Octavia Project Summer Institute, 2023 BAC Grantee. Photo by Emmanuel Abreu.
Proposal Deadline: December 29, 2023
March 23, 2024 | 1:30 – 7:30pm | BRIC
Our first ThriveFest, attended by hundreds in-person and virtually, was amazing! So in the spirit of community design, we are widening our doors for the next one with a special invitation… Do you want to present at ThriveFest 2024?
Are you a coach, financial advisor, designer, or otherwise creative whose work helps to accelerate financial thriving for individuals, businesses, organizations and/or communities? Then Brooklyn Arts Council wants to hear from you!
Featuring panels, presentations, maker stations, wellness exercises performances and digital innovation stations, Thrive Fest 2024 will be a collective cypher on abundance. We’re trading techniques and strategies for financial resilience; we’re besting old models of surviving with new riffs on equity and sustainability; we’re responding to resources on investing with calls for tools on income diversification and collective ownership.
Click here to learn more about our 2024 Thrive Suite categories. Please let us know what you’d like to present by filling out this short form. Selected presenters will receive an honorarium. This proposal form is super easy and informal so hop in!
We're accepting applications until December 29, 2023 but will begin reaching out to folk as soon as they submit. If we're aligned, we'll give you a call to dig a little deeper.
Join Us in Fueling Brooklyn’s Artistic Future!
Siren – Protectors of the Rainforest perform at Brooklyn FAM 2023: Festival of Arts and Music, BAC Grantee. Photo by Gregory Horan.
For 57 years, Brooklyn Arts Council (BAC) has played a vital role in supporting the creative forces that drive our borough’s artists. Through grants, programs, and services, BAC has helped shape Brooklyn into a global hub of creative innovation and cultural liberation. Your support of BAC is crucial to continuing to nurture the artistic and cultural fabric that defines Brooklyn as such a quintessential place to call home.
This holiday season, join us in making a significant difference in the lives of Brooklyn artists and the cultural vibrancy of our beloved borough. Together, we can further strengthen Brooklyn’s art ecosystem in ways never before seen.
Our Favorite Moments from Hard2Earn Live
Photos by Sean Bell, 2023.
Thank you to those who joined us for “Hard2Earn Live: Celebrating the 30th Anniversary of Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)”, presented by Hard2Earn Podcast, Brooklyn Arts Council, and The Billie Holiday Theatre. It was fantastic to meet, mingle, and connect with you in celebration of Wu-Tang’s legendary album and its impact on the Hip Hop industry.
Click here to view photos from the event.
Be sure to follow and tag us (@bkartscouncil), The Billie (@billieholidaytheatre), and Hard2Earn (@hard2earnshow) on Instagram as well as the talented photographer Sean Bell (@shotsbyseanbell).
Events, Workshops, & Professional Development
Art in DUMBO's First Thursday Gallery Walk
December 7 | 6-8pm | DUMBO
On the first Thursday of every month, DUMBO’s galleries stay open late for a night of art, gallery openings, artist talks, and live performance. Visitors enjoy incredible views of the East River and the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges as they walk along the waterfront from one gallery to the next and can enjoy local drink specials at DUMBO stalwart Superfine. Free and open to the public!
Family Day: BRIC Winter Wonderland
December 9 | 12 - 5pm | BRIC House
Step into BRIC’s Winter Wonderland on December 9! BRIC House unveils a wintry realm brimming with family fun, where art, music, dance, and interactive media weave a magical tapestry. Craft delightful winter-themed cookies, embark on a festive scavenger hunt bursting with snowy surprises, and move to the electrifying beats of Teen DJ Annie Red. Marvel at the rhythms of Victory Music Dance, design your own winter-inspired tee with the celebrated Camella Elhke, and ‘freeze’ moments with polaroids, thanks to the artistic touch of Stephanie Alvarado. Mark your calendars for wintertime memories at BRIC House!
Established Gallery presents: “making meaning mine”
Now - December 10 | Established Gallery
Established Gallery presents “making meaning mine", a solo exhibition by artist Beverly Crilly. The exhibit is inspired by Crilly’s time spent in and around mines in southwest Colorado. A lifelong collector of rocks, Crilly recently visited a decommissioned limestone mine and was deeply moved by the experience. Her works, made using cold wax, oil, and pastels on paper or boards, emulate the colors and textures of natural rocks and stones.
NYWC Presents “Forgive Me Not: Jennifer Baker In Conversation with Caits Meissner”
December 12 | 6:30-8pm | Virtual
Join NY Writers Coalition’s Black Writers Program as they host a virtual conversation between Jennifer Baker and Caits Meissner, editor of The Sentences That Create Us: Crafting A Writer’s Life in Prison, and the former director of Prison and Justice Writing at PEN America. They’ll discuss Baker’s latest YA novel, Forgive Me Not in depth and will open up for an audience Q&A at the end!
DUMBO Holiday Caroling & Projections Crawl
December 13 | 6-8pm | Susan Smith Mckinney Park
Join DUMBO’s first ever Holiday Caroling & Projections Crawl featuring five musical acts, large scale holiday projections, free drinks, dumbo dollars, and indie businesses open late! How it works: Pick up your stamp card at Susan Smith Mckinney Park; Collect your stamps at seven stops; Redeem your free drinks!
2024 BRIC Documentary Intensive Application
Deadline: December 27
This comprehensive four-month filmmaking course will guide you through all the stages of documentary filmmaking, from pre-production to post-production. During the pre-production phase, you’ll receive guidance in pitching your film idea, writing a treatment, and creating a production plan. In the production phase, you’ll get hands-on experience using our cutting-edge equipment and audio tools to shoot and record your documentary. You’ll also have the opportunity to collaborate and assist your peers in their projects. In the post-production phase, you’ll learn how to edit your film using Adobe Premiere Pro, receive feedback from your classmates, and develop a distribution plan. Finally, you’ll get to showcase your hard work at a public screening of your documentary and will air on our New York Emmy-nominated Brooklyn Free Speech television channels!
Artist Opportunities
2024 Governors Island Ice Sculpture Competition
Deadline: December 8
Governors Island Arts and Times Square Arts are pleased to announce a new partnership and open call for Governors Island’s third annual Ice Sculpture Show, taking place on Saturday, February 3. The festive winter event will coincide with the annual Love in Times Square fête on February 14, 2024, which celebrates Valentine’s Day with weddings, surprise proposals, and vow renewals in the square’s plazas. The Ice Sculpture Show provides New Yorkers and visitors from around the world with the singular opportunity to experience live ice carving, alongside all the open space, cultural, educational, and historic resources and attractions that the Island offers year-round.
Tusen Takk Foundation Visual Artist Residency
Deadline: December 15
Open to mid-career and established visual artists, apply for a three- to eight-week solo residencies in 2025. Residents are provided with housing, 24/7 access to studio space, $625/week, and a vehicle for local transportation. Please note that for the 2025 residencies, TTF is only accepting applications from visual artists.
MIXMASTER 2024
Deadline: December 15
MIXMASTER 2024 is an exhibition that seeks to support the Mattatuck Museum's artist members living in New England, New York, and New Jersey. The Mattatuck Museum is a center for art and history located in Waterbury, CT. Each year, our juror chooses a range of submissions to be exhibited in the Mattatuck Museum's galleries. Prize winners are then selected to receive cash prizes and elevated memberships, while the first prize winner will receive a solo exhibition at the Mattatuck Museum in Fall 2024. This year, our juror is Susan Eley, owner and director of Susan Eley Fine Art in New York City.
MAP Fund 2024 Grant Cycle
Deadline: December 19
The MAP Fund invests in artistic production as the critical foundation of imagining and co-creating a more equitable and vibrant society. MAP will distribute $2.8M to more than 90 new live performance projects across the United States, including its territories and Indigenous tribal nations. Each selected team will receive a $25,000 grant for the creation of a performance project, a $5,000 unrestricted general operating grant, and a $1,000 micro-grant to redistribute to an artist in their community.
ISCP Residencies
Deadline: December 28
The International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP) announces an open call for four fully-funded residencies supported by the The New York Community Trust’s Edward and Sally Van Lier Fund. ISCP is currently accepting applications from talented, culturally diverse, and economically disadvantaged young artists based in New York City who would like to engage with ISCP’s dynamic programming and creative community.
NOT REAL ART Grant
Deadline: January 1 | $2,000
Founded in 2019 and powered by Arterial, the NOT REAL ART Grant for Artists is a $12,000 annual award designed to empower the practice of 6 contemporary artists, each of whom receive $2,000. But, NOT REAL ART Grant winners get more than money. Each recipient gets to share their story and promote with exclusive, in-depth featured interviews on the NOT REAL ART podcast and blog. And, whether or not you receive our grant, every applicant automatically qualifies to be included in future blog stories, newsletters and our artist marketing database!
Saltonstall Foundation for the Arts Residency
Deadline: January 7, 2024
Saltonstall offers free residencies to artists and writers who are year-round residents of New York State and/or one of the Indian Nations located therein. Our residencies are designed for those looking for a quiet, supportive environment in which to focus on their craft. Categories include Poetry, Fiction & Creative Nonfiction, Photography (film or digital) & Filmmaking, Painting, Sculpture, and Visual Arts.
NYSCA FY24 Capital Projects Fund
Deadline: January 11
Up to $37 million in capital funding is available to nonprofit arts and culture organizations through the New York State Council on the Arts' Capital Projects Fund. The Fund has two grant categories: Small and Midsized Capital Improvement Grants and Large Capital Improvement Grants.
National Portrait Gallery Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition
Deadline: January 26, 2024
The National Portrait Gallery’s triennial Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition celebrates excellence in the art of portraiture. Every three years, artists living and working in the United States are invited by the museum to submit one of their recent portraits to a panel of experts. Select works will be featured in a major exhibition in 2025. The first prize winner will receive $25,000 and a commission to portray a remarkable living American for the museum’s collection.
En Foco Media Arts Fund: Works-In-Progress (WIP) Initiative
Deadline: January 27 | $2,000
The Media Fund Works-In-Progress (WIP) Initiative was born out of the need to support New York City early career artists of color who engage with new and digital media technologies and mediums within their art-making processes. This opportunity is for early career artists, which is defined by a 2-9 year artistic working history. The award provides artists with a $2,000 support grant to be used towards the completion of their proposed works. The award also provides artists with professional development opportunities, and a feature in our special Fellowship Issue of Nueva Luz.
NYSCA Stabilization Program for Small Arts Organizations
Deadline (Round 2): February 1
New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) and New York Council of Nonprofits (NYCON) have launched a new pilot NYSCA Stabilization Program for Small Arts Organizations that is designed to help participants to identify and solve a significant concern that is impeding their growth or development. It aims to help address operational issues that often stifle organizations’ long-term planning and sustainability. The program, supported by New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA).
Nonprofit New York’s #WHY15 Campaign
Join the #WHY15 campaign and call on NYC to provide greater clarity on the rationale and impact for the City’s 15% budget cuts, to demonstrate their understanding of the meaningful impact nonprofits have on NYC, and to create opportunities for substantive engagement with organizations that have the expertise and community connections to generate creative, concrete solutions.
To include your voice: (1) Sign the open letter and (2) participate in the storytelling campaign
What We're Reading
“An Archaeological Discovery in Spain Could Turn Ideas About Ancient Gender Roles on Their Head”
by Artnet News
“Climate Activists Disrupt Met Opera’s Opening Night”
by Maya Pontone | Hyperallergic
“Colorful Mural Installation ‘Brownsville Reflections’ Brightens Affordable Housing Construction Site, Celebrates Nabe’s Residents and History”
by Bella Sanchez | Brooklyn Paper
“Museum Workers Are Plagued by Widespread Precarity, New Report Finds”
by Angelica Villa | Art News
Cover Image: Leyya Mona Tawil at La MaMa Moves! in partnership with New York Arab Festival. Cindy Sibilsky, Producer of New York Arab Festival, is a 2023 Creative Equations Fund Grantee. Photo by Lara Atallah.
Fueling Brooklyn’s Creative Future
At the heart of Brooklyn Arts Council lies our unwavering belief in the transformative power of artists as catalysts for social change. Join us in fueling a creative and vibrant future for Brooklyn. Your contribution will be invaluable to our artists and the cultural vibrancy of our beloved borough.