We have all been there. You have the innovative idea for a new project. You have the collaborators.  You have the skills. You also have no money, no rehearsal/studio space, and no gallery or theatre to show your work in.  What does this mean for you and your project?  Before you throw in the towel let's take a look at some funding sources for art projects, groups, and individual artists.

SUPPORT

Support can come in the form of grants, residencies, fiscal sponsorship, and in-kind donations just to name a few resources.  Artists can even find personal health insurance through arts groups as well as personal expense emergency funds and arts exchange for doctor visits. 

HUNTING FOR PROJECT FUNDING 
Let's talk about some of the basics to get started in your hunt for project funding.  First know what you have to offer.  I suggest writing out anartist’s statement or a mission statement that is specific and has actionable points.   You want to have some clear goals you can work towards and they will also act as a point of reference as you continue your work.  

Do your research.  Have an idea of other artists who are working in your field and have similar missions and statements.  You'll want to do this to stay current and connected to peers/colleagues but also so you can speak clearly on how your project will fit into this section of the art world.  

Outline a plan.  Have clear ideas on the many possible ways your work can change the community it is in.  Why this project?  Why now?  Make an effort to see your work from the point of view of other artists, of funders, and of the audience who will see it and try to see your work from their perspective.  What are the weak areas of your proposal from the point of view of funders? What might confuse your audience or alienate your peers?  Work out the answers to the questions you generate from this exercise before you move forward with pitching your project to the public.  I recommend writing all of this down and keeping it on your computer in a format that you can easily pull to either use as a check-in point while you are writing grants or to perhaps use as a foundation for questions that might come up on applications. 

BUDGET

Another thing you'll need to be clear on before you get started on fund raising is the budget you will need to work with.  In my experience there are a few different ways that people approach this aspect of funding.  There are those who will look at the project and find every way they can cut back on costs and build a budget around that.  Then there are others who let their dream project get even bigger and more expensive as they work on the budget.  You've already been so thorough as to write out an artists statement, a statement of purpose AND a mission statement so why not create a dream budget AND a cut-rate budget?  

Once you have done this aim high and set your fund raising goals for the dream budget.  Either you raise all the funds you need for your dream budget or you fall a little short but you already have a back-up budget to work with and your project will still live on.  This might be unique advice since even the popular crowd funder, Kickstarter, will only give projects their funding if they meet their goal because working with an insufficient budget on a project, "sucks," (that is an exact quote from the Kickstarter network, I'd never be so crass!) You can make up your own mind but I do recommend the dream budget and the less-desirable-but-doable budget.  If you're set on crowd sourcing then Indie GoGo will give you the funds even if your project doesn't make the set goal. 

So go on and take a look at your goals as an artist.  Write a statement of purpose if you don't already have one.  Define your proposed project and take a look at it from a variety of angles and view points.  Find the pitfalls in your pitch and come up with some solutions.  Set your dream budget and then take a look at it with a critical eye and make some cuts.  Once you do this you'll be ready to set out and start fundraising, which means you'll want to check in again with The Art Haus SLC for the next steps in your funding efforts.   

-Sara Moncivais
Co-Founder

I have often walked through contemporary art galleries or sat through an avant guard version of, say, The Master and the Margarita and found myself saying "I don't get it."  And I have an undergraduate degree in Art History and a graduate degree in Arts in Education.  With all that education, I think I'm supposed to "get it."
 
What I have learned through my advanced studies and over time is that all art is a form of expression and a vehicle for sharing a thought, an idea or a message.  What makes art unique is the communication that happens during the experience of viewing art; it's an unspoken communication between artist and viewer.  Once the artwork is complete, the artist hands his/her interpretation over to us (the viewer) to connect to it however we may and draw our own conclusions. 
 
During this communication between what the artist presents and what the viewer sees, the work inspires a reaction: small, big, intense or soft.  It is the voice and we are the ears and eyes that receive that message.  However art is a bit of a puzzle and in order to piece it together, it requires us to take time noticing all the details from the piece, to spend a moment digesting what we've seen, and to ask ourselves questions about the work.  So it requires a little bit of work on our part to "get" that message, and it will be slightly different for every viewer.
 
To give an example of this process, recently there was a huge controversy in Boston over a mural painted by Os Gemeos (twin brothers Otavio and Gustavo Pandolfo from Brazil) who recently finished a colorful mural on the side of a ventilation building in Dewey Square, a location in downtown Boston. I had the pleasure of performing on the opposite side of the building one weekend and watched a bit as the mural took shape.  Several days later, I read about a huge reaction from members of my community about the work.  I'll post that picture now, so that you can see the mural and begin to formulate some ideas about the work:

During the local Fox 25 coverage of the newest mural in downtown Boston, one particular observer voiced an opinion that it looked "like a terrorist."  Fox went on to post the image to their Facebook site asking what its viewers thought it looked like. Additionally the posting included an image with a large mechanical crane in front of the mural, leading people to make assumptions that it was a gun. With a few more Facebook postings about a the mural looking like a terrorist, it caused a conflagration on their page from commenter agreeing, disagreeing, commenting and arguing with each other.
 
I stated already, art inspires a reaction.  And that every person bring their own background into forming an opinion about what they see.  Since September 11th, America is understandably weary of terrorist groups that may potential bring more harm to our shores.  And we have every right to be.  And artists have every right to create works that highlight injustices that they believe should be changed.  Art gets us talking and that it is what makes it such a powerful medium.  But we have the responsibility to truly look at what is being shared, to spend a moment trying to puzzle over what the artist is trying to say and what it triggers in us.  

In order to understand how to read art,  I'll use this "controversial" image and ask to name one thing you see (feel free to post comments on the blog of what you see).  No assumptions, just take a moment and what do you see? 

To me, and to many others, this mural has nothing to do with terrorism.  The bright colors and patterns are more indicative of a boy in his pajamas who happens to be covering his head with a red shirt (you can see the sleeve of that shirt hanging down his chest), perhaps pretending to be a Luchador fighter or any other masked crusader often featured in many American blockbuster films.  Much of the art we see require us to think; it is not really a passive experience.  My hope is that by each of us learning to really look, to take a moment and collectively see, we can begin to puzzle together a new image for this work, to create a new understanding and a new voice for this work of art.

Anne Wright
Co-Founder