The Kentucky Arts Council (KAC) recently accepted 28 new artists into its prestigious Kentucky Crafted program, an initiative that helps visual and craft artists to grow their creative enterprises. Among the goals of the program are: encouraging the production of superb art and craft products handmade in Kentucky; helping Kentucky visual and craft artists sell…
The Kentucky Arts Council, the Kentucky Native American Heritage Commission and the Kentucky Heritage Council worked together to produce Native Reflections, a traveling exhibit of artworks by Native American artists living in Kentucky. This juried show honors and celebrates indigenous cultures and confronts the common misconception that Native American culture is reflective only of past…
The COVID-19 pandemic is placing severe restrictions on public gatherings and physical interactions. Those limits in turn curtail opportunities for traditional face-to-face commerce. To help the arts sector address this new reality, state arts agencies are establishing virtual marketplaces and helping artists develop new platforms for online retail. Kentucky, Maryland and North Carolina all offer…
Recognizing that Kentucky residents may be underserved for a variety of reasons—such as age, ethnicity, disability, geographic location or economic status—the Kentucky Arts Council (KAC) designed flexibility into its Arts Access Assistance program so it could annually recalibrate and expand its support of citizens who have limited opportunities to experience the arts. Through the program,…
The Kentucky Arts Council (KAC) has launched a new initiative leveraging the social and physical infrastructure of farmers markets to help develop rural arts entrepreneurship. KAC’s new program, underwritten by a $51,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Development Agency, will connect participating artists with established produce vendors at two farmers markets…
South Arts has kicked off a pilot program to help expand opportunities for performing arts presenters and grow the performing arts field in its nine member states—Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Through its Launchpad initiative, the regional arts organization is providing mentorships and other professional development services to…
In a new public-private partnership, the Kentucky Arts Council (KAC) is harnessing the technology and know-how of Etsy, the on-line global marketplace for creative entrepreneurship, to help Kentucky artists, craftspeople and other creators launch and grow their own small businesses. In conjunction with Etsy, the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development, and Hazard Community and…
Santa, by Lindy Evans Every holiday season, the Kentucky Arts Council (KAC) and the Kentucky Artisan Center at Berea (KACB), its sibling agency within the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet, partner to promote Kentucky art, craft, music, books, specialty foods, and more through the Give a Gift Made in Kentucky campaign.…
Part of the Kentucky Arts Council’s (KAC) effort to foster the state’s cultural assets is to train citizens how to document, interpret and share their community’s cultural heritage. Through its Community Scholars Program, KAC empowers local communities to preserve and celebrate Kentucky’s art and culture. KAC holds training sessions throughout the state twice a year…
Creative aging and lifelong learning will be the central themes of the Kentucky Arts Council’s (KAC) Arts Access Assistance grant program in the upcoming year. Arts Access Assistance (AAA) fosters cultural opportunities for underserved communities: populations whose access to the arts may be limited by barriers related to age, geographic isolation, ethnicity, economic circumstances, disabilities…
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