The Alaska Art Fund (AAF) and Collections Management Fund (CMF) grant programs will open on Friday, August 1, and close on Thursday, October 2. The draft review deadline will be Thursday, September 18.
There are changes to the grant programs this year, and there will be more changes moving forward because we have been asked to phase out the programs. As you probably know, Rasmuson Foundation has been making changes to their grant programs and processes. Last year, when we applied to the Legacy Grant program (formerly Tier 2) for the AAF and CMF grant programs and administration funding, we learned that Rasmuson Foundation would like to bring their grant making back in-house. As a result, they have asked us to phase out our grant programs.
We have been honored to manage these grant programs for our community, and we know how important they have been for our museums and cultural centers. We apologize for the less than ideal news, and we hope to work with our community to find other ways to meet your needs moving forward.
Here are a few basic details about the grant programs:
- We will be granting $200,000 this year (for the past few years, we’ve been able to grant out $350,000 each year).
- Next year, we will have $100,000 for grant programming and we are not sure how best to utilize this funding.
- We will be working with our board and community to make plans.
- We have reduced the maximum amount for AAF purchases to $20,000.
- This is the final year for the Alaska Art Fund grant program.
- We don’t know if we will have a typical CMF grant program next year, so it’s best to treat this year as the final year for the CMF program as well.
- Organizations may only apply to AAF (max $20,000) or CMF (max $20,000), not both.
- We have created a special “small purchases” AAF (max $1,500) cycle using funding left over from last year that you may apply for in addition to CMF. More information below.
Because we have less funding, we made the decision to have only one cycle per year, which is why this is the first and only grant cycle this year. We extended the application open period to allow more time for organizations to apply as we know the summer is often very busy.
Less funding also means that the grant program will be more competitive. We encourage you to submit your application for a grant review anytime between August 1 and September 18.You may also contact Dixie with any questions at di******@***********ka.org or 907-371-4348.
Alaska Art Fund (AAF)
There will be two AAF applications this year because we have two pots of funding. If you apply to CMF, you may only apply to the “small purchases” AAF program.
This is the FINAL YEAR for all AAF grant programs.
“Small Purchases” AAF PROGRAM – $1,500 MAX
We have a little over $9,000 left from last year’s funding. We have decided to open a “small purchases” AAF grant to spend down that funding.Organizations may apply for up to $1,500 in funding through this smaller AAF program. Your organization may submit multiple applications to this program, however, the maximum total when you add all of your applications together may only be $1,500. UPDATE: You may submit one application for all purchases (from different artists or from the same artist). If you prefer, you may submit multiple applications, but they must only total $1,500. If we have to limit funding, we will be in touch for a revised list of purchases based on award funding. Commissions are not permitted through the “small purchases” program. You MAY apply to the “small purchases” AAF program and the CMF grant program this year because they are different pots of funding.
AAF PROGRAM – $20,000 MAX
We will also have our more typical AAF grant program that is funded through our current Rasmuson grant—through which organizations may apply for artworks up to $20,000. Your organization may submit multiple application to this program, however, the maximum total when you add all of your applications together may only be $20,000. If you are purchasing more than one artwork from the same artist, you may include all of the pieces in one application. Commissions are permitted in this program. You MAY NOT apply to the $20,000 max AAF grant program andthe CMF grant program this year. You must choose one or the other.
Collections Management Fund (CMF) Program
This year the CMF grant program is unchanged. The maximum award is still $20,000. As we mentioned, we have less funding, so it will be more competitive, but otherwise, the guidelines and applications have not changed from last year.
We will have less funding next year for our grant programs, so we cannot guarantee that the CMF program will remain the same next year. It would be safest to assume this is also the last year of the CMF program as it currently exists.