Author: Brenna McCallum
To understand the evolving impact of COVID-19 on the state’s arts network, the North Carolina Arts Council sent a survey to all 2021-22 grantees. We asked many quantitative questions and were also interested in learning about the less measurable aspects of COVID-19’s effect on how organizations do their work. We received 200 survey responses, with many organizations indicating they had a unique story to share about unexpected opportunities or innovations that arose from the pandemic.
As the Arts Council evaluated the data received from the survey, we also conducted group sessions to hear first-hand testimonies and reflections from organizations. From October 2021 to January 2022, we held five such sessions and heard from nearly 40 organizations. Some themes rose to the top. North Carolina arts organizations described the following commitments:
- Supporting artists who were financially impacted by the pandemic
- Facilitating safe, innovative programming
- Engaging children who were experiencing the detrimental effects of isolation
- Delivering opportunities for healing experiences during a time when physical gatherings were impossible
The Sparks of Light series explores what the past two years have meant for the arts. The commitments just listed are a testament to the ways in which North Carolina arts organizations continue to exhibit resilience and dedication during a time of unprecedented struggle and darkness. The stories staff told when they met with us on Zoom over the past four months are important and inspiring. Sparks of Light will gather some of them and share them with you.
Art has always been an essential part of how we move through life with enjoyment, and that became particularly evident during the pandemic. Good music, movies, television shows, books, and podcasts helped keep us sane when we were feeling isolated and exhausted. Inevitably, the artists who make this work were experiencing duress, too.
Arts organizations across North Carolina rushed to provide as much support as possible to artists who lost income, their platform from which to perform or exhibit, and the sense of connection and well-being that comes from delivering an art form to its audience. Relief funds quickly sprung up across the state, granting dollars to artists in need of money. Fundraisers were organized on the turn of a dime to extend the reach of these relief funds. But organizations found other ways to help artists get the resources they needed during the pandemic, as well.
Broader access to funds
Asheville Creative Arts, a family-friendly theater company, knew that artists would need other sources of funding now that opportunities for performing or exhibiting and selling work in person were curtailed. They shifted dollars previously earmarked for now-canceled programs into microgrants and zero-interest loans for artists. “Artists are the heart of our organization,” said the executive director, Abby Felder, and the goal of these grants and loans was to support artists’ ability to buy equipment needed to move work to a digital platform or develop new revenue streams. The organization feels the program was successful and hopes to make it a permanent part of its portfolio.
Technical assistance
Toe River Arts, an arts council in Burnsville serving Mitchell and Yancey Counties, partnered with the Mayland Small Business Center, at Mayland Community College, to hire consultants who could coach member artists on setting up digital commerce platforms. Many set up Etsy shops or other, similar platforms or added an e-commerce option to an existing website. Toe River Arts has a gallery and online shopping platform and offered member artists reduced commissions on the work they sold.
Focusing on inclusion
The Pitt County Arts Council at Emerge (PCAC), in Greenville, felt called to respond after the killing of George Floyd, in May 2020. It lobbied the city for permission to create a mural focused on racial justice, and eventually won support. The council invited more than 20 Black artists to create a mural along First Street, in downtown Greenville, that read “Unite Against Racism.” The mural was completed in December 2020. An upshot of the project was PCAC’s realization that its network of “artist friends” was not as diverse as its body of constituents; it sought to change that by building on the foundation of its new relationships with the mural artists. The muralists formed an artist collective called “Black Creatives of Pitt County,” and, with PCAC’s guidance, created a budget and workplan, which includes hosting a monthly event to gather Black makers for networking, professional development, programming, and exhibitions. PCAC also raised $15,000 for the Black Creatives in just two weeks. Since then, and because of the new relationships that arose from the mural project, members of the Black Creatives have gone on to submit applications to the PCAC’s requests for proposals for public art projects, and some have been selected for funding.
Efforts like these give us glimpses of the pandemic’s silver linings: because organizations had to get creative to support artists, many stretched and innovated in ways they might not have tried otherwise. These adaptive efforts are worthy in themselves, and promise to continue as ongoing programs to support artists in North Carolina well past the days of the pandemic.
For more stories about how arts organizations have navigated the pandemic with strength and determination, check out the latest season of the North Carolina Arts Council's podcast, Arts Across NC, wherever you listen to podcasts.