Wyoming Arts Council: Folk & Traditional Arts Mentoring Project Grants

The Wyoming Arts Council offers Folk & Traditional Arts Mentoring Project Grants to foster in-person, hands-on instruction of traditional skills in Wyoming. These grants aim to connect master artists with apprentices to enhance their skills in cultural art forms. The initiative, launched in 2005, is supported by the National Endowment for the Arts and encourages applicants to commit to preserving endangered traditions. Projects must last a minimum of six months and involve collaboration between selected artists.

The Wyoming Arts Council is pleased to provide funding opportunities for the many worthwhile art projects that our nonprofit organizations, government entities, and individual artists are doing throughout the state of Wyoming.
Mentoring Project Grants are designed to support the transmission of Wyoming’s finest Folk and Traditional skills through the natural process of in-person, hands-on instruction. A master artist selects a worthy apprentice to mentor over time in order to advance the skills of the apprentice in their traditional art form or skill.
The Wyoming Arts Council introduced the Folk & Traditional Arts Mentoring Program in 2005 as part of its on-going effort to increase support and recognition of Wyoming’s rich cultural arts and traditions. Funds originally came from a National Endowment for the Arts Infrastructure grant provided to the Wyoming Arts Council’s Arts Access Grant Program. Current funding is provided by the National Endowment for the Arts through the Folk Arts Partnership grant.
Master and Apprentice apply together and provide information about the art form, their skill level, a project outline and work samples. The mentorship must take place between within the fiscal year and projects must be no shorter than six months.
Evaluation and Selection
Applications are reviewed and evaluated by a panel of cultural specialists, folklorists, artists and WAC board members using the following criteria:
Quality of the work as demonstrated by the support materials of both the master and the apprentice.How the art form and artists fit within the definition of folk and traditional art.Priority may be given to projects that involve endangered traditions and/or art forms.Commitment of the apprentice to continuing the traditional skills learned.Feasibility of the proposed work plan.

Eligibility

Applicants must share a common cultural group and the art form must reflect the aesthetics of the shared group. In-family mentorships are allowed.Master and apprentice must apply together.Artists may participate in only one Mentoring Project each year.Apprentices must be Wyoming residents for at least two years prior to application.Apprentices should have some prior experience with the art form at the time of the application.Apprentices must demonstrate a serious long-term commitment to continuing the art form.

Ineligibility

Ineligible projects or uses of funding include:The work of contemporary studio artists or re-creations of historic repertoires or antiques.Academic research or formal study toward an academic or professional degree.Projects less than six (6) months.Workshops or conferences.Master artists who received a grant last year.