Newsroom

As the COVID-19 crisis reshapes the reality of life in LA and communities across the world, Arts for LA is dedicating our March newsletter to providing advocacy opportunities and resources for artists and arts organizations.

As the COVID-19 crisis reshapes the reality of life in LA and communities across the world, Arts for LA is dedicating our March newsletter to providing advocacy opportunities and resources for artists and arts organizations. Our Creative Communities in Crisis Open Letter is calling for policymakers and grant makers to:

Include artists and arts organizations in relief and recovery funds;
Provide publicly-backed emergency grants and interest free loans to artists and nonprofit arts organizations;
Create protections & provide immediate support for the contract workers that make up over half of Southern California’s creative sector;
Pool relief funds for artists and arts organizations among philanthropic foundations;
Relax grantee requirements/deliverables now unmeetable due to outbreak;
Increase unrestricted, flexible funding by public and private grant makers to allow small & mid sized organizations to adapt to evolving situations.
Los Angeles is the creative capital of the world and Angelenos have always understood that the arts are vital to our economy and the wellbeing of our families. Throughout history, the arts have been essential to Los Angeles’s progress and resilience.

Today, in the midst of an unprecedented crisis, our city’s artists and arts organizations are moving mountains – helping Angelenos unite, find beauty, and forge community. Do not leave us behind.
In this Special Edition of our March Newsletter, we provide ways you can get involved in our advocacy, including: signing our open letter to policymakers and grant makers, posting to your social media with our digital campaign assets, and sharing resources for our community.

Members make our advocacy work possible. If your organization is not yet an Arts for LA member, please consider joining today.

Onward!

Arts for LA

SHOW YOUR SUPPORT: SIGN OUR OPEN LETTER
We must take swift action to support the vital artists and organizations devastated by the COVID-19 outbreak. Join Arts for LA by co-signing this open letter calling on policymakers and grant makers to take action in support of our creative communities. Click the button below to read the letter and show your support.

SIGN OUR LETTER TODAY!
Add Your Name Now!

JOIN THE MOVEMENT: #CREATIVITYINCRISIS
Take Digital Action – In the midst of an unprecedented crisis, our city’s artists and arts organizations are already on the frontlines – helping Angelenos unite, find beauty, and forge community. Do not leave us behind.

Take matters into your own hands and join the digital campaign calling on elected officials and grant makers to offer emergency support for artists and arts organizations.

TAKE ACTION TODAY
Tell us your story – We want to share our members’ stories of resilience, adaptability, and #CreativityInCrisis!

If you or your organization has discovered innovative and creative ways to share, practice, or utilize your art medium during this crisis, we invite you to share those experiences with us, so we can spotlight you on our social media.

Email Development and Communications Associate KC Buller with your narratives!

COVID-19 RESOURCES
LA County Department of Arts and Culture

The LA County Department of Arts and Culture is supporting LA’s Arts and Culture community in any way they can. They have created a COVID-19 resource page that contains a multitude of resources for a variety of communities, including: nonprofit organizations, funders, and artists.

Click Here

City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs

COVID-19 Arts Resources Page. The City of LA Department of Cultural Affairs has compiled a COVID-19 Arts Resources page. Click the button below to access.

COVID-19 Arts Resources Page
NEW! Arts Emergency Relief Fund. The Arts Emergency Relief Fund, from the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs aims to provide relief to a spectrum of LA-based performing artists who were financially affected by the unanticipated disruption caused by COVID-19.

This program provides emergency relief grants to City of Los Angeles-based dance, music, and theatre artists, as well as small ensembles who have had their public performances, shows, or concerts cancelled. Click below to learn more.

Arts Emergency Relief Fund

Americans for the Arts

Americans for the Arts is collecting information about the financial and human impacts that the spread of the coronavirus has had on artists and arts and cultural organizations. The survey collects basic information about the participating organizations and artists so that the data can be parsed by specific geographic regions, artistic disciplines, and budget categories.

This data is very important and can be used to allocate federal funding to local arts agencies and organizations. Respond today to ensure LA’s arts community is well-represented.

Click Here for the Survey

ARTS FOR LA’S UPCOMING PROGRAMS

The Laura Zucker Fellowship for Policy and Research is an opportunity for individuals to research and propose policies that will impact LA’s arts and cultural policy landscape.

The fellowship offers a $3,500 stipend, one-on-one mentorship from Arts for LA leadership, and the opportunity to thoroughly investigate an area of urgent importance. Proposals can include (but are not limited to):
Investigation of structural inequities in the arts and culture workforce, specifically in small and mid-size nonprofit arts organizations, and identification of policy solutions to remove those barriers.

Research and recommend best practices for the arts and culture industry to build resilience and avoid funding fluctuations during periods of economic stagnation.

Identifying policy solutions that would help expand access to paid arts and culture-work based learning opportunities for opportunity youth, ages 16 to 24, such as internships, apprenticeships, or other paid opportunities.
Participants must live or work in Los Angeles County; other guidelines and eligibility can be found by clicking this link.

Click Here for More Info!

ACTIVATE: Arts Innovators applications will open on April 10th! This new, three-session program supports artists, art & culture professionals, and community advocates in the development of an Action Project designed to address an urgent issue facing the Innovator’s community. The program will pair participants with an expert mentor and connect them with the resources necessary to design and launch an Action Project.

The application window will be April 10th through May 15th— stay tuned for more details!

BECOME A MEMBER

In the wake of a global crisis, where arts and culture are key to unifying communities and coping with a new reality, Arts for LA is your only cross-discipline, cross-sector advocacy organization working to give the arts a voice during crucial decision making moments.

When you become a member of Arts for LA, you are joining a movement of artists, arts administrators, arts organizations, and arts advocates united in support of the same goal: ensuring the arts and culture in Los Angeles County are supported, especially in times of crisis.

Our members are vested partners in reinforcing what we advocate for in the arts. Arts for LA is an agent for change. Become a member today and be a part of that change.

Become a Member Today!