The Santa Maria Arts Council (SMAC) is recognizing Bill Cirone, the Santa Barbara County superintendent of schools, as the 2017 honoree for the Individual Grants in Arts Competition.
“The arts are a form of expression and communication that is essential to the human experience, and they truly deserve a regular place in our classrooms.” Cirone said in his Jan. 12 commentary for the Sun, “The value of an arts education.”
Cirone created the Children’s Creative Project, which currently provides 145 elementary schools with visual and performing arts workshops. This year, winners of the Santa Maria Arts Council’s Individual Grants in the Arts Competition will be awarded grants in Cirone’s honor.
The arts council is seeking emerging artists to apply for the competition. More tham $13,000 in grants will be awarded to applicants in the fields of dance, drama, music, and visual arts.
First and second place individual grants of $1,500 and $1,000 are awarded, respectively, to artists in each of the four categories. Three additional grants from the Ian M. Hassett Foundation, the Los Padres Artists Guild, and the Nat Fast Memorial Grant program are also awarded.
Applicants to the competition must be at least 12 years old and have resided and/or studied art in Northern Santa Barbara County for a minimum of two years. Only one application is required to be eligible for all grants.
Workshops on grant application are available on Feb. 8 at 6 p.m. at Allan Hancock College’s Ann Foxworthy Gallery, and Feb. 25 at 10 a.m. in Allan Hancock College’s Fine Arts building. The college is located at 800 S. College, Santa Maria.
Applications are due March 16, and auditions for the dance, drama, and music categories are held April 8. More info: 459-1503 or visit smartscouncil.org.
This article appears in Feb 2-9, 2017.