COLORADO SPRINGS — The Arts Vision Grants of Pikes Peak Community Foundation's Pikes Peak Fund for the Arts have awarded a total of $50,000 to eleven local artists and art programs in and around the community.
This year's recipients are:
A.M. Lewis Films was one of the recipients of the funding and it will go to support the post-production of a 105-minute feature film "All the Beautiful Things".
The film focuses on the importance of mental health and the effects depression and suicide have on Colorado Springs families and the community. The film has been shot in Colorado Springs over the past three years led by local filmmaker A.M. Lewis. Learn more online.
Ballet Folklorico de Barajas for dance and enrichment programming as funding will help share the art of traditional Mexican Folklorico dance. With the growing community, more and more people are discovering Ballet Folklorico de Barajas.
Their programs include dance instruction and performance opportunities for students ages 4 and older, engaging dancers and their families in the depth of the Mexican and Chicano culture through crafts, art projects, education, team building, and U.S. and Mexican celebrations. Learn more online.
Colorado Springs Community Ventures received awards for the "Art on the Streets Fellowship". This fellowship presented by Downtown Ventures will focus on providing local artists with professional development assistance.
As well as an opportunity to participate in Art on the Streets, mentorships, and financial support. The main goal is to provide pathways to entry for artists from demographics underrepresented in the public art realm. Learn more online.
Ladyfingers Letterpress for “Printmaking Free for All”, where funding will cover artist fees and expenses for a year of live events. Each month a chosen artist will translate their work into printmaking to allow organizations and artists to use free prints or sell them. Learn more online.
Funding will also support a new line of work from local artist Lupita Carrasco. The museum exhibition called "Expressions On Caring" explores the complexities and evolution of parent-child relationships, especially with caregivers that have extreme mental illnesses. Learn more online.
Funding will also launch a pilot program and workspace for artists to learn archival matting, mounting, and framing at the new zoneFIVE in Knob Hill Urban Arts District. Learn more online.
Funding will also go to support artist Sophia Hanna for "by the skin of my flesh". An immersive exhibition of visual art opens on March 3, 2023, at Kreuser Gallery. Hanna says, “I’m creating a safe, immersive space/experience for community acknowledgment, conversation, and growth about body image, eating disorders, and other mental challenges. It will be a raw, unflinching self-portrait … and could illustrate how aiming for inclusion and supporting “a full creative life for all” supports our community health. Learn more online.
Funding will support the development and production of a new children's book series, That Cat Pluto. The 3-part series of books will feature Colorado destinations, including St. Elmo ghost town, Garden of the Gods, and Rocky Mountain National Park, with information about each. They are a collaboration between local artists Satya Wimbich and Eva Vagreti. Learn more online.
Poetry Heals will receive funding for its program "Write It Out After School". A program aimed primarily at at-risk youth helping them process trauma. Their first program partner is Voces Unidas for Justice serving Latinx youth in Southeast Colorado Springs. Learn more online.
Funding was awarded to UCCS Theatreworks for cultivating young theatre artists of color. Theatreworks will use the funding to create several paid assistant design and technician roles to work alongside industry professionals on upcoming productions. Learn more online.
One of the final programs in the Colorado Springs area to be rewarded funds was the Youth Documentary Academy.
The awards will expand two programs that the Youth Documentary Academy runs, one being the Youth Media Matters Film Festival. The other is the production of the youth series "OUR TIME" which now is a PBS feature segment nationally.
Returning in October the Youth Media Matters Film Festival will travel to 8 different public high schools in Colorado Springs presenting youth-produced media to over 2,000 students. Learn more online.
To learn more about the Pikes Peak Community Foundation
Anyone who would like to contribute to the future work of the Pikes Peak Fund for the Arts may donate directly by visiting www.ppcf.org/donate. Donations will increase the impact of grants for local arts & culture in the years to come.
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