Spencer Museum, Charlotte Street announce Rocket Grants 2023 call for artists
LAWRENCE — The Spencer Museum of Art and Charlotte Street have announced the 2023 cycle of Rocket Grants, with the call for artists opening online May 15. An information session will be held April 21 at the Spencer Museum at the University of Kansas for artists interested in applying.
With support from The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Rocket Grants provide direct funding to artists in the Lawrence and Kansas City area who are creating exceptional, under-the-radar and artist-centered projects in public spaces. Artists, curators, collectives and collaborative groups residing within an 80-mile radius of the Kansas City metropolitan area are eligible to apply.
Rocket Grants award up to $6,000 to individuals or artist groups for projects that exist outside established venues such as museums, galleries, theaters or arts districts. Artists are encouraged to address the community at large or choose a smaller targeted audience. The long-term goals of the Rocket Grants program are to encourage emerging and nontraditional artistic practices in the Lawrence and Kansas City area; to contribute to a thriving arts community; and to build bridges between geographic and cultural communities.
“Five years ago, when I started Halfmoonstudioz, my goal was to help revamp the east side with art one brushstroke at a time. With Rocket Grants I can confidently say I’ve done just that,” said Devin Edwards, a 2022 Rocket Grant recipient who created murals around the east side of Kansas City.
Rocket Grants projects are selected by a jury of four arts professionals working both locally and nationally. Proposals are evaluated on criteria including innovation, thoughtful context, feasibility and meaningful impact.
To apply, artists must submit a Letter of Interest (LOI) online by June 26. The LOI should include a project summary, the artists involved, the intended audience, the specific context of the work, budget needs and relevance of the project. The jury will assess the letters of interest and invite selected projects to complete a full application in July 2023. Rocket Grants recipients will be announced in September 2023.
For any questions regarding the application process, please contact Kimberly Kitada, Jedel Family Foundation Curatorial Fellow, at kimberly@charlottestreet.org.
Related Programming
The public is invited to attend in-person information sessions that will answer questions about the application and jury process.
April 21, 3:30-5 p.m.
Spencer Museum of Art, 1301 Mississippi Street, Lawrence, KS
June 14, 5-6 p.m.
Charlotte Street, 3333 Wyoming St., Kansas City, Missouri
Image: Mural by Devin Edwards, a 2022 Rocket Grant recipient.