Forms of Funding Available to Career in Arts - Research Paper Example

Various Forms of Funding Available to Career in Arts Introduction In the recent past, the support of artists and art students by wealthy individuals was very imperative. This made people who were talented in art fields lose life time opportunities. Sometimes people in need ended up never succeeding in life. Those who wanted to pursue science careers were however heavily funded thus making many parents to develop a negative attitude toward art careers. People failed to appreciate that education is all round and that students needed to be funded equitably. As a talented artist, Shakespeare decided to address the issue through his plays, something that totally transformed the arts career as noted by Warhol (4). If Shakespeare did not write to address this issue, there would still be no money to build theatres or to stage performances. In order to court patronage, the playwright often found it essential to butter up the patron in some way or another while trying to avoid offending them. Consequently, many of his plays show the officially accepted attitudes of the time so that they could ensure continued support for the theater company. Forms of Funding for those Interested in Art Careers With the cost of education in many countries continuously rising, many art students find themselves unable to cater for their higher education. The funds that they need in many cases are related to tuition fees, accommodation and other expenses. College scholarships come in handy for art students who are in need of professional development in terms of furthering their education (April, Heiberger &Vick 120). Scholarships are however not restricted to needy students but can also benefit students who have the capacity to raise money for their education but have made exceptional achievements in their educational practice. College scholarships may be offered by various parties including educational institutions, non-governmental organizations, foundations as well as corporate entities. Governments and local authorities often appreciate the need to support budding artists in various fields (April, Heiberger &Vick 32). Funding for artists in this respect may be aimed at supporting specific talents, age groups, or special categories. Government and local authority grants are usually provided to those in need, individuals and organizations, freely and without the need for refund after submission of applications. Once the applications have been submitted, various criteria may be applied in selecting those who qualify for the grants. Awards are normally given to those who show exceptional performance or talents according to April, Heiberger and Vick (123). Awards come in various forms and in many cases include financial support. Bursaries on the other hand are usually provided by institutions or corporate entities with an aim of assisting the development of education. In other words, bursaries are grants to help in the payment of school fees. Bursaries mainly target those who need additional financial assistance even after receiving a scholarship. In very many cases, bursary funds are awarded considering academic performance, the main factor however being the economic status of the applicants. Corporate funds are funds provided by corporate entities to individuals or organizations for specific goals (April, Heiberger &Vick 25). The funds may be given to individuals that an organization is particularly interested in. For example, a company that focuses on music production may give a grant to a specific individual that has exceptional talent in singing and even support their education hoping to tap this talent at some point by employing the individual. The other form of funding that is available to individuals who want to pursue a career in arts is workshops funding (April, Heiberger &Vick 25). During such workshops, successful students converge together for a retreat of popular residential arts. The classes are either of intermediate or advanced levels. During such workshops, professional and skilled organizations and individuals are invited. They then share with the successful students’ skills of becoming great artists. During such functions, they acquire knowledge and get role models and mentors from the speakers and performers. Professional tuition is another form of funding for individuals who are interested in developing their careers in arts. This is extended to individuals who desire to pursue a career in specific fields of study. Those individuals are freely funded and trained on how to become professional such as musicians and visual artists. They are privately taught how to sing, play piano, music composition and theory. During the tuition, they participate in intensive training and activities that are aimed at building their specific skills in art based on one on one support. Examples of Funding for Artists Some of the programs aimed at supporting the professional development for career artists financially include the Brisbane Festival, Artists’ Professional Development Program, and Call for Artists, Arts Queensland, Professional Music Tuition and QUT Theatre Students among many others. The major funding body for art students is JB Seeds Art Grants Theatre that provides career art students with funds for the development of cultural and arts talents. The JB Seed Arts Grant offers trust grants and management workshop funds in the oldies category. It offers its grants to individuals of a greater diversity and range. Jump grant by JB was created to help artists to increase their income potentials in areas of their need. About $4000 in grant is offered to 10 recipients, with 3 of these awarded to indigenous musicians by the organization annually. Another initiative that benefits many art students is the Art for the public grant program (Grantgopher para 2). Grants are awarded to visual art students who undertake projects that are freely delivered to the public, displayed prominent indoor spaces, and out of doors. This is aimed at making such works a form of communication, social commentary, and an inspiration to the general public and the artist. In some cases, funding is aimed at improving the resources base of artists. Disabled and deaf creative professionals are funded by online sources. These online sources include Creative Lives which presents real stories about disabled people who have made professional careers in the arts industry. The pages are usually packed with inspiration and advice. The Artist Resource Pack contains everything that individuals may want to know about art. The organization also provides disabled people with funds, but many people believe it is never transparent. It essentially targets employees, employers, and self employed individuals, working in the creative and arts industry. The Access Arts' Accelerator Fund is a funding program offered by Access Arts to those who are ready to express their interest in art careers (Access Arts para 5). Those interested in developing their artistic skills and need support to pursue an art career are freely and fairly funded. Access Arts Inc offers free mentoring programs on a one on one basis, especially in hip-hop. Students who benefit from this funding discuss their professional goals with specialists from their specific field. Young people between the ages of 16-30 years are awarded a mentor program where one is introduced and hooked to a professional artist to help them in their pursuit of development in the arts. Successful applicants receive 12-24 sessions of mentorship that addresses the goals and needs of the applicant. From there, they are able to access support and facilities for industry recording, performances, management and promotion. They are also trained to gain experience in their chosen form of art in the wider community and within the organization itself. Additionally, they are assisted to attend programs that offer formal training. This funding initiative targets all forms of hip hop art, whether it is DJ’ing, MC’ing, art, dance, production, business skills or event planning. Another source of funding is Professional Development Service Program. This type of funding is awarded by Access Arts to disabled artists who are between 16-30 years, and live in Brisbane. These individuals must have interest and potentials of building art careers, or are professional artists, who are already working, but want to improve the skills they already have. This program aims at meeting the needs of members and mainly includes individual mentoring, training opportunities and skills development in any form of art. Funded by Disability Services, the program is eligible to any artist who registers with them for assistance in developing their career in art. Keeping It Real is a program for young people, aged 16-30 years, which is cross cultural creative. It focuses on the development of professional skills of young people in arts career, who come from indigenous backgrounds (Sandra 34). Its focus is mainly on the various forms of arts on the modern culture of Australian hip hop. It also provides employment, professional development and opportunities of performance for the involved young people. Another type of funding is offered by Access Arts Queensland (Arts Development Office 10). This body funds cultural workers, artists and their communities from Queensland. It offers a wide range of cultural services and professional arts to communities of Queensland with more emphasis on groups, individuals and communities disadvantaged or disabled. It then provides successful applicants with employment opportunities and development of professional skills in the arts industry. The fund covers writing, contemporary music and performing arts, for development of professional skills (Arts Development Office 4). During the training, contemporary musicians, professional performing artists, representatives of producing companies, writers and service organizations are invited. This is suited to organizations and professional artists who want to expand their markets both nationally and internationally. Conclusion Funding individuals who are interested in pursuing a career in arts has provided uncountable benefits among the beneficiaries. According to Sandra (123), funding of art careers has totally transformed the look of the arts industry and careers. Today, those who pursue professional art courses and careers can access funds from various sources. Some of the main sources of funds include College scholarships, national and local grants, awards, bursaries and corporate funding. The funds are usually availed under different conditions and in different amounts depending on factors that the funding organizations deem necessary. Artists are now supported in terms of employment, professional development, funding and in resources. Work Cited Access Arts (2011) Access Arts Inc ® 1983 – 2011. Viewed 18th March, 2011 http://www.accessarts.org.au/ April Vahle, Heiberger Mary, Vick Julia. The graduate school funding handbook. University of Pennsylvania Press. 2002. Arts Development Office. Theatre, Writing and New Media Arts Queensland, London, London Press. 2001. Grantgopher (2011) Grants for the Arts. Viewed 18th March, 2011 http://www.grantgopher.com/home/art/articletype/articleview/articleid/710/public-art-grants.aspx Sandra, Garoff. Helping Creative Individuals. Professional Relationships that Create Results. New York, Cambridge University Press. Warhol, Andy. Books on Art History; The True Price of Fine Art. New York, Princeton University Publishers. 1999. Read More