FM Aerial and Movement Arts studio owner Yvette Reyes’ dream is to ”tell amazing stories” through aerial choreography.
Like many local artists trying to see their dreams to fruition, Reyes turned to a grant funder for support.
The talented movement artist and instructor is one of eight artists located in Fargo, Moorhead and West Fargo who were recently awarded an Individual Arts Partnership (IAP) grant, an annual program run by The Arts Partnership.
Recipients include Annie Hough, playwright; Anne Kaese, calligrapher, Sarah Morrau, singer, Karena Ness, painter, Jon Offutt, glassblower, Yvette Reyes, aerialist, The Wicked Bees, musicians and Richard Worae, filmmaker.
A key aim of the program is to help the recipients pursue new ideas, opportunities and skills – and to recognize outstanding talent. That’s why these grants are so special to Tania Blanich, TAP Interim Executive Director
“Those who create, make and perform provide our community with joy and inspiration,” Blanich said. “They also help us see things through new perspectives, which builds community.”
This year’s panel of grant reviewers recommended a total of $16,600 to eight artists – an average grant award of $2,075.
“Applicants can be working in any artistic genre, as this year’s slate of grantees highlights,” Blanich said. “They can also be at any career stage, whether emerging, mid-career or well-established. A common misperception is that grants only go to established artists, but in fact, about 40% of the grants given since 2012 have gone to artists just launching their careers,”
IAP grants are funded by donations from individuals, the Moorhead PEO (Philanthropic Educational Organization) Chapters and by the Susie Yakowicz Creative Arts Fund of the FM Area Foundation.
Here’s more information about 2023’s IAP grantees.
Annie Hough
$2,500 toward research for, writing of and production of Butterfly Garden Adventures, a children’s play about butterflies and native flowers. Hough’s first loves – nature and literature – became passions, guiding the playwright to a Master’s degree in Horticulture and a career writing educational plays for children. www.carolannehough.com
Anne Kaese
$1,000 toward studying traditional scripts, calligraphy and related art with a renowned teacher for a year of intense, once-a-month weekend workshops. Kaese’s roots are in calligraphy and illumination; as a learner and a teacher, she is on a quest to have history to influence her current and future work. www.annekaese.com
Sarah Morrau
$2,500 toward creation of a website to provide information about upcoming performances and also to showcase her recorded music. As a musician, Morrau loves the interaction with an audience; reaching people emotionally with a song, moving them to laughter or tears brings her great joy.
Karena Ness
$2,100 toward workshops in layering monotypes, leading to a series of works using aerial plot maps and photos of homesteads in North Dakota that will obscure, shift and expose past boundaries. Ness is reemerging as a practicing artist; her work revolves around the impermanence of layered histories and boundaries. www.karenajness.com
Jon Offutt
$2,000 to continue to experiment with two-dimensional glass forms (slumping glass versus blown glass), with a focus on landscape elements. For more than 40 years, Offutt has been focused almost entirely on glassblowing, He’s recently been experimenting with flat, fused work, which can be done without an assistant.
Yvette Reyes
$2,500 toward a weeklong aerialist skills training intensive that will provide specialized training and the opportunity to network with aerialists from around the country and beyond. Reyes dreams of storytelling through her work, drawing upon her rich life experiences, including being a first-generation Hispanic Latina growing up in rural Minnesota and working as a welder. www.fmaerial.com
The Wicked Bees
$1,500 to record a five-song EP of original ska/reggae music in a professional studio with an accomplished producer/engineer. After taking a four-year hiatus, the band is excited to start playing, writing and bringing ska/reggae music back to our region. https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWickedBees
Richard Worae
$2,500 toward a documentary that captures stories of the Liberian war as told by Librarian immigrants who have settled in the Metro and are survivors or those affected second-hand.
Worae is able to bring his ideas to life through audio and video, whether in the form of music videos, documentaries or short narrative films.
More about Individual Arts Partnership Grants
The Arts Partnership established the Individual Arts Partnership grants in 2012 to support artists working in any genre and who are at any career stage. In the past 12 grant cycles, the program has awarded 132 grants totaling $187,000 to artists, musicians, writers, artisans and performers.
