Folk Arts Apprenticeship Grant

Folk Arts Apprenticeship Grant

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: Mississippi Arts Commission
Amount: US $3,000
Last Updated: March 02, 2026

Summary

Overview

Note: The master artist and their apprentice must apply together. Mississippi Arts Commission The Mississippi Arts Commission was established in 1968 by the Mississippi Legislature as the official grants-making and service agency for the arts in the state. MAC provides financial and technical assistance for arts programming to arts organizations and educational institutions throughout Mississippi. Funded annually by the Mississippi Legislature, the National Endowment for the Arts and private funds, MAC uses this support to carry forth its mission and continues to act as a core and essential function of government. Folk Arts Apprenticeship The Folk Arts Apprenticeship program helps to ensure the survival, development and continued evolution of community-based traditional art forms found throughout Mississippi. The program allows master traditional artists to pass along their unique skills to promising novice artists that work in their art form. The master artist works with the apprentice on a one-on-one basis over an agreed upon period of time to teach specific aspects of the tradition. Who is a master artist? A master artist is a skilled and experienced practitioner of a traditional art form. The master artist acts as a mentor and teacher to the apprentice. Who is an apprentice? An apprentice is an emerging traditional artist who has an established skill set and seeks to enhance their knowledge and understanding of their art form through one-on-one instruction. Many types of traditional artists can benefit from this program. Some examples of artists who have received Apprenticeship grants in the past include boat builders, quilters, old-time fiddlers, traditional potters, basket makers, and blues guitarists. The program is focused on supporting forms of creative expression that have been an important part of community life for many years and that are passed on informally rather than taught through formal classes. Please consult with the Folk and Traditional Arts Program Director to see if your art form qualifies for this program. MAC also accepts Apprenticeship applications from foodways practitioners. MAC recognizes the creativity and cultural significance of foodways to the history and identity of Mississippians. The program honors foodways artists who make dishes that are directly related to the soil and climate of the state, or to the ethnic and regional heritage of their families or communities. Whether you are frying fish, rolling dough, stuffing tamales or canning figs (or something in between), MAC encourages you to share your expertise by participating in the Apprenticeship program. Before applying, please consult with the Folk and Traditional Arts Program Director to see if your foodways tradition qualifies for this program. The master artist and apprentice work together to determine the budget for their project. The majority of the grant funds (80 percent or more – $2,400) should be set aside for the master artist’s teaching fee. The remaining amount can be used to purchase supplies (only expendable items, not permanent equipment) and for mileage incurred by the apprentice (this should be estimated using the State of Mississippi’s current mileage reimbursement rate. Please note: MAC will provide reasonable accommodations for those individuals who are unable to access the online grant system. Paper applications are available upon request at least two weeks ahead of the application deadline. Folk Arts Apprenticeship Showcase Requirement Each apprenticeship team that is awarded a grant will be required to participate in MAC’s annual Folk Arts Apprenticeship Showcase near the end of the grant period. This showcase is a public program that highlights the work of the apprenticeship teams. The program has both online and in-person components and is developed in consultation with MAC staff and the participating artists.

Eligibility

You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. The master artist should be recognized within their community as an accomplished artist within a community-based traditional art form. They should be active in the art form, either performing or creating new work on a regular basis. The master artist should have developed their skills through an informal, traditional manner rather than through formalized courses. The apprentice should not be a beginning artist. Since the apprenticeship will take place over a short period of time, the apprentice should have enough experience in the art form to benefit from the intensive, one-on-one training. For example, an apprentice blues guitarist should be able to play well enough to work on more advanced techniques during the apprenticeship. One of the desired outcomes of the program is to support the continuation of traditional art forms within the communities where they originated. Therefore, it is important that both the master artist and the apprentice have a deep understanding of and commitment to the culture that their art form reflects.