Showcase
When are your applications available?
Informational Application Seminars take place throughout the borough mid to late summer, applications go online late summer and deadlines are late fall/early winter.
Application FAQs
When do I hear if I’ve been funded?
Award letters will be sent out in early January, 2012. For more information on what to expect if you’re funded, visit our Manage Your Grant page.
Award letters will be sent out in early January, 2012. For more information on what to expect if you’re funded, visit our Manage Your Grant page.
If I’m funded, when do I get the money?
Checks are available for pick-up at the annual BAC Grants awards ceremony, which will be in mid-March, 2012. Community Arts Fund awards are split into two payments. Part of the grant award(80%) is given in March and the balance (20%) is mailed to you within two weeks of receiving your final report.
Checks are available for pick-up at the annual BAC Grants awards ceremony, which will be in mid-March, 2012. Community Arts Fund awards are split into two payments. Part of the grant award(80%) is given in March and the balance (20%) is mailed to you within two weeks of receiving your final report.
What sort of projects do you fund?
We fund arts projects with a public component— such as musical concerts, group or solo gallery exhibitions, curatorial projects, public art installations, film completion and screenings, reading series, play readings, theater productions, dance performances, and arts workshops with youth (outside of a school setting). The public component of the project must take place, geographically, within Brooklyn. Projects do not have to be about Brooklyn to be eligible, but they must take place here.
We fund arts projects with a public component— such as musical concerts, group or solo gallery exhibitions, curatorial projects, public art installations, film completion and screenings, reading series, play readings, theater productions, dance performances, and arts workshops with youth (outside of a school setting). The public component of the project must take place, geographically, within Brooklyn. Projects do not have to be about Brooklyn to be eligible, but they must take place here.
Does my project have to be free, or take place outdoors, to be eligible?
No. For example, a ticketed music performance in a traditional concert venue is eligible for funding. However, events that are free or have a low ticket cost are sometimes seen as more competitive by panels.
No. For example, a ticketed music performance in a traditional concert venue is eligible for funding. However, events that are free or have a low ticket cost are sometimes seen as more competitive by panels.
What if my project is happening in more than one borough?
You can apply for a BAC grant to fund the Brooklyn component of a larger project. In your application, briefly discuss the project as a whole, then focus on your proposed activities in Brooklyn.
You can apply for a BAC grant to fund the Brooklyn component of a larger project. In your application, briefly discuss the project as a whole, then focus on your proposed activities in Brooklyn.
Which BAC Grant(s) should I apply for?
Coming to a BAC Grants application seminar to get an overview of all the programs is a good way to decide which programs are the best match for you. BAC staff are available at the seminars to answer any questions you might have, including whether or not you should apply as an individual or organization, or with a fiscal sponsor. Often, individual artists decide to apply to our Community Arts Fund because is does not require a fiscal sponsor. Small non-profits wishing to build a grant history and eventually move on to applying directly to the New York State Council on the Arts, are excellent candidates for the Local Arts Support program.
Coming to a BAC Grants application seminar to get an overview of all the programs is a good way to decide which programs are the best match for you. BAC staff are available at the seminars to answer any questions you might have, including whether or not you should apply as an individual or organization, or with a fiscal sponsor. Often, individual artists decide to apply to our Community Arts Fund because is does not require a fiscal sponsor. Small non-profits wishing to build a grant history and eventually move on to applying directly to the New York State Council on the Arts, are excellent candidates for the Local Arts Support program.
Who makes the funding decisions?
Funding decisions are made through a local peer panel review process, not by BAC staff. The panelists are artists, art educators, arts administrators, community organizers and other Brooklynites with expertise in a particular artistic discipline and knowledge of Brooklyn communities. To learn more about the panel process or nominate a panelist, see our BAC Grants Panel Process page.
Funding decisions are made through a local peer panel review process, not by BAC staff. The panelists are artists, art educators, arts administrators, community organizers and other Brooklynites with expertise in a particular artistic discipline and knowledge of Brooklyn communities. To learn more about the panel process or nominate a panelist, see our BAC Grants Panel Process page.
What are the odds of getting funded?
Better than in many grant programs! Depending on the year, about 30-40% of applicants usually receive funding at some level.
Better than in many grant programs! Depending on the year, about 30-40% of applicants usually receive funding at some level.
What’s the average size of a BAC Grant?
In recent past years the average grant size for both Local Arts Support and Community Arts Fund grants has been around $1700-$2100.
In recent past years the average grant size for both Local Arts Support and Community Arts Fund grants has been around $1700-$2100.
Am I eligible if I have a studio and/or work in Brooklyn, but live in another borough?
No. The funds we distribute in the BAC Grants Program are very borough-specific, and are meant to go to artists and organizations with ‘Brooklyn residency’. This means that your organization’s official address of incorporation must be in Brooklyn, or, for individuals, that you must live in Brooklyn. Proof of residency (a driver’s license, utility bill, letter of incorporation, etc.) is required with all applications. If you are moving to Brooklyn during the grant year, or working with an organization or artist collective that spans more than one borough, call us for more information.
No. The funds we distribute in the BAC Grants Program are very borough-specific, and are meant to go to artists and organizations with ‘Brooklyn residency’. This means that your organization’s official address of incorporation must be in Brooklyn, or, for individuals, that you must live in Brooklyn. Proof of residency (a driver’s license, utility bill, letter of incorporation, etc.) is required with all applications. If you are moving to Brooklyn during the grant year, or working with an organization or artist collective that spans more than one borough, call us for more information.
Where should I apply if I don’t live in Brooklyn?
Every NYC borough has an arts council that grants city and state funds through programs similar to ours. The NYC local arts councils are:
Most local arts council Regrant programs require residency in the borough you are applying in and require you to do your project in that borough.
Every NYC borough has an arts council that grants city and state funds through programs similar to ours. The NYC local arts councils are:
- Manhattan: Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC)
- Queens: The Queens Council on the Arts
- Bronx: The Bronx Council for the Arts (BCA)
- Staten Island: Council on the Arts and Humanities for Staten Island (COAHSI)
Most local arts council Regrant programs require residency in the borough you are applying in and require you to do your project in that borough.
Will I have to do a final report?
Yes. All awardees are required to do a brief interim report to ‘check-in’ with us mid-year, and are required to submit a final report within 30 days of completing their funded project. Failure to submit your final report could jeopardize ability to apply for future BAC Grants funding.
Yes. All awardees are required to do a brief interim report to ‘check-in’ with us mid-year, and are required to submit a final report within 30 days of completing their funded project. Failure to submit your final report could jeopardize ability to apply for future BAC Grants funding.
Can I volunteer for the BAC Grants Program?
OK, this isn’t a frequently asked question, but we wish it was! The BAC Grants Program can use committed volunteers to help with translation services, auditing funded events, research and outreach to new applicants, sitting on panels, and taking notes in panel meetings. Volunteering with BAC Grants is a great way to learn more about the process. Email grants@brooklynartscouncil.org if you’d like to learn more.
OK, this isn’t a frequently asked question, but we wish it was! The BAC Grants Program can use committed volunteers to help with translation services, auditing funded events, research and outreach to new applicants, sitting on panels, and taking notes in panel meetings. Volunteering with BAC Grants is a great way to learn more about the process. Email grants@brooklynartscouncil.org if you’d like to learn more.
Please feel free to contact us with further questions at: 718.625.0080 or grants@brooklynartscouncil.org
