This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
On March 19, 2024, the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council (SEMAC) Board of Directors awarded 21 arts programming grants for a total of $89,000 in funding to individual artists throughout southeastern Minnesota. This included thirteen Advancing Artist Grants and eight Emerging Artist grants.
SEMAC, a non-profit arts agency, is designated by the State of Minnesota Arts Board as the regional arts council for eleven southeastern Minnesota counties: Dodge, Fillmore, Freeborn, Goodhue, Houston, Mower, Olmsted, Rice, Steele, Wabasha, and Winona
Grants for original work were awarded to the following individuals, listed by county:
Fillmore County
Catherine Glynn, Lanesboro, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for A.R.T. Year 8: There is a Field.
Freeborn County
Elisha Marin, Albert Lea, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for Album Production.
Goodhue County
Dawn Zero Erickson, Red Wing, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant forThreads that Bind.
Catherine Friend, Red Wing, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for A Young Adult Novel Inspired by History.
Jeff McDowell, Red Wing, received a $3,000 Emerging Artist grant forTower View Students Ceramic Experience.
Houston County
Jacqueline VanRavenhorst, Caledonia, received a $3,000 Emerging Artist grant for Free Branding Photography for Artists.
Olmsted County
Oliver Books, Rochester, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for Rochester Musician Collaboration Album.
Nicole Havekost, Rochester, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for Stitching Soft Sculpture.
David Kassler, Rochester, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for Music for Pictures at An Exhibition.
Mary Beth Magyar, Rochester, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for Textile Art: A Multicultural Tapestry.
Marie Maher, Rochester, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for Journaling the Senior Experience.
Judy Onofrio, Rochester, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for Deep Dive.
Maggie Panetta, Rochester, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for Eastside Neighborhood Mural Project.
John Sievers, Rochester, received a $3,000 Emerging Artist grant for Jazz Composition, Recording, Performance.
Rice County
Stephanie Cox, Northfield, received a $3,000 Emerging Artist grant for Comic book about Zulu-S. MN connection.
Arlo Cristofaro, Northfield, received a $3,000 Emerging Artist grant for Gate by the Garden: An Ecosystem of Song.
Gao Hong, Northfield, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for New Composition for Pipa and Cello
Daniel Kallman, Northfield, received a $5,000 Advancing Artist grant for Nerstrand Community Celebration Song.
Martha Larson, Northfield, received a $3,000 Emerging Artist grant for Explorations in Music and Movement.
Winona County
Lindsay Krage, Houston, received a $3,000 Emerging Artist grant for Quilting the Minnesota Barn Quilt Trail.
Jamie Schwaba, Winona, received a $3,000 Emerging Artist grant for Driftless Past and Present.
All granted activities must begin no earlier than March 20, 2024 and be completed within 12 months, culminating in a public capstone event. Recipients were selected through a competitive process with applications judged on artistic merit and community impact. SEMAC congratulates the award winners and looks forward to celebrating the creativity these grants will bring to southeastern Minnesota.
For more information about SEMAC’s grant programs, visit semac.org or contact the office at 507-281-4848.
