NC Arts Council awards grants to eight Orange County arts programs

On Aug. 21, the North Carolina Arts Council announced $11.5 million in grant awards for nonprofit arts organizations, schools, after-school programs, municipalities and artists. Eight organizations in Orange County were selected to receive $219,780 in grants for the 2024-25 fiscal year. 

The NC Arts Council, part of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, supports appreciation for the arts and drives economic growth, generating $2.23 billion annually. Their mission is to promote diverse artistic traditions, invest in innovative art and support youth development through arts education. 

According to a press release from the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, this year’s grant awards significantly increase the NC Art Council’s investment in small and mid-sized arts organizations.

This year, the Council awarded grants to the Ackland Art Museum, Hidden Voices, the Hillsborough Arts Council, the Orange County Arts Commission, The ArtsCenter, the Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle, PlayMakers Repertory Company and the UNC Office of the Executive Director for the Arts.

Ackland Art Museum received a project support grant — an award designed to help organizations producing and presenting specific arts programs that engage audiences and participations.

Ackland Art Museum’s Head of Public Programs Allison Portnow Lathrop said the organization applied for support to cover public programs related to their upcoming exhibition called Dürer to Matisse: 400 Years of European Prints, which opens on Sept. 27. 

According to the Ackland website, the exhibit will showcase nearly 100 prints by renowned artists, highlighting the evolution of printmaking using black ink and paper.   

“We applied for a grant so that we could offer some different opportunities for kids and families and adults to come and see real artists and work alongside artists and get to know the prints in a different way,” Lathrop said. 

PlayMakers also received a project support grant. Jeff Aguiar, the director of engagement and education at PlayMakers  said the grant will support the production of Death of a Salesman in January, along with a virtual play reading series for senior citizens. 

“This effort is really designed to keep us in connection to community elders, who may be by virtue of their own concerns and or their own mobility, may not be able to directly access services related to our main stage performances,” Aguiar said.  

The virtual play reading program is designed to reach people in their homes and places where they are comfortable, while setting up pathways to invite people back into the theater after the COVID-19 pandemic, Aguiar added. 

The Orange County Arts Commission received the Grassroots Arts Program Grant. These grants fund arts programs, projects, and services through area nonprofits, schools and municipal organizations. 

Director of the Orange County Arts Commission Katie Murray said they distribute the funding they receive from the grant each year throughout the community. Murray said they will soon announce the recipients and that art organizations are their first priority for the award.   

Grassroots Program Grant applications are evaluated by the Commission based on a variety of criteria such as artistic quality of the proposed project, community and educational impact of the program.

Last year, The ArtsCenter received funding through this program to support arts programming for the refugee community in Orange County.  

Communities rich in arts have lower crime rates, greater civic pride and higher student achievement, Murray said. She added that arts events stimulate the local economy by generating jobs and encouraging spending at restaurants, hotels and other businesses. 

“It's a big industry here, but it could be bigger if we had even more arts spaces, and particularly off campus for the community,” she said. 

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