After a long wet winter, May is here with her rich energies of expansion, renewal, and abundance. In confluence with the season, the arts in May are bursting with opportunities, calls for artists, grants, and so much more!
ARTS brief is designed to intrigue you while sharing events and current news related to arts in our region. If you like what you see here, please forward this to your friends and encourage them to join our email list and subscribe.
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Artstra: advancing the arts |
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Open Studios is our yearly juried art event offering a unique opportunity for artists to gain further recognition, open their studio doors to the public, and show and sell their work. Artstra invites Clark County artists and artisans to apply online for this fall’s event.
New this year is the Christine Rice Memorial Scholarship, created to support young artists' career paths. Emerging artists ages 20-30 are encouraged to apply. Recipients will receive a $500-1000 stipend, mentorship from a seasoned Open Studios artist, plus the option to be hosted in another artist's studio.
2023 Open Studios tour is accepting applications through May 31.
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GiveBIG is a statewide campaign May 2-3 to help people give where they live.
While there are many worthy groups that you're sure to hear from this week, we ask that you also consider supporting the arts with a generous donation to Artstra.
The arts heal, connect, and transform us. Please help us to keep bringing this "good medicine" to our community; this is the foundation of our programming. We are so thankful for all our volunteers and for the generous and ongoing support from our community! We couldn't do it without you.
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Music for the Soul!
Southwest Washington Center for the Arts hosts an evening of Soul! May 17 at 6 p.m. at Kiggins Theatre. Soul! is one of several musical events created as part of the Center for the Arts’ Arts for a Cause initiative. It is also a fundraiser for their July 11 Uplift project which was developed in partnership with Artstra along with several other local nonprofits and businesses.
Uplift will offer children from Boys and Girls Clubs of Southwest Washington and Friends of the Children a chance to shop at a local Walmart and to participate in a collaborative art project with take-home art kits provided by Artstra’s Creative Relief program and much more.
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Arts around the community |
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Washougal Studio Artists Tour May 13-14 |
Washougal area artists open their studio doors to offer an art-filled family outing for Mother’s Day weekend from 10 a.m. to 4 pm.
The tour will include nine stops with 25 local artists.
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Call for art: Vancouver Art and Music Festival |
The inaugural Vancouver USA Arts & Music Festival is coming to Vancouver, Washington, August 4-6 and there are many opportunities to get involved!
Columbia Art Network seeks volunteers and multiple calls for artists to show their work, including vendor booths,festival poster competitions, and juried national and regional art exhibits.
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Seedlings? Well, no, but... |
Clark County Poet Laureate Armin Tolentino won't be holding his Seedlings workshops this month, but he'll be sprouting up all around the county:
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Sammuel Murry-Hawkins
on preserving historic music
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Tomorrow evening (Thursday 5/4), Sammuel Murry-Hawkins, Executive Director of the Historic Music Preservation Project will speak on "Preserving Historic Music for Future Generations." Admission is $5. Doors open at 5 p.m. and the event begins at 7 p.m.
Clark County Historical Museum
1511 Main Street, Vancouver
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Meet the Vancouver Culture, Arts & Heritage Commission |
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Step through a magical portal into the Narnia-themed Valiant Ballroom and meet members of the Vancouver Culture, Arts and Heritage Commission. Learn more about how you can get involved in three exciting arts-focused initiatives, the Vancouver arts hub, the Vancouver USA Arts & Music Festival and the 2023 Culture, Arts & Heritage Grant Program. First Friday, May 5 from 5 to 8 p.m.
Valiant Ballroom
111 W Ninth St., Vancouver
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Culture, arts and heritage grants
The City of Vancouver is accepting applications for culture, arts, and heritage grants. Grant funding totaling $100,000 is available to non-profit or government organizations in Vancouver in 2023.
The deadline to apply is 3 p.m., May 17.
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Four ways to support our cause |
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1- Donate
2- Declutter
Give usable items to Nifty and Thrifty at 6607 E. Mill Plain Blvd. And when those items sell, the money is split 50/50 with participating nonprofits. Just let them know your items are donated to benefit Artstra.
3- Shop
Link your Fred Meyer Rewards Card to Artstra using our code #84120. Just by using your rewards card number, and at no cost to you, you'll help Artstra earn a quarterly donation from Fred Meyer every time you shop.
4- Volunteer
Artstra is an all-volunteer organization. We'd love to talk with you if you have specialized skills, especially in fundraising, outreach, and marketing.
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Editorial Policy and submission guidelines
ARTS brief is intended to be useful to readers by offering a curated selection of stories and announcements related to the growth of arts in our region. Submitted items should be newsworthy. This means that arts-related items for content consideration must perform well in at least two of the following five areas: timing, significance, proximity, prominence, and human interest. Please submit materials to [email protected], no later than the 25th of each month. Note that submission does not guarantee publication. We evaluate each submission to determine how it fits our goals for ARTS brief and whether the item under consideration aligns with the mission and vision of Artstra. We do not accept materials that primarily have a commercial objective.
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About Artstra
Artstra is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization advocating for the arts in Clark County and southwest Washington. We envision a vibrant arts economy in our region, north of the Columbia River, with public/private investments and facilities that sustain artists and enrich community. Our mission is to elevate the arts, build greater arts awareness, reward creative excellence, and expand arts accessibility.
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