Past
Grantees

CHRIS NEWBERRY received support for Medicine Box: Health Care and the New Americans, an hour-long documentary that uncovers the struggles facing immigrants and refugees as they navigate the American health care system. Every week, at least 50 new immigrants arrive in Minnesota-Mexican, Somali, Hmong and Russian, many of them refugees. The differing social and medical needs of these diverse immigrant groups are often minimized or misunderstood. The result? Poor healthcare for immigrants and more expenses for our health care system.

SACHIKO NISHIUCHI, a flamenco choreographer in Minneapolis, will travel to Seville, Spain, to attend the Bienal de Flamenco Festival and take flamenco dance classses with various master instructors. She will focus mostly on flamenco theater shows, which involve themes or stories and use media beyond singing, guitar and dancing. The Bienal will take place in September and October of 2006. In addition to dance classes, Nishiuchi will also take instruction in flamenco singing.

The NORTHERN CLAY CENTER, Minneapolis, Minnesota, received a two-year grant of $53,000 in support of the Jerome Ceramic Artists Project and Residency Grants Program. The Center's mission is the advancement of the ceramic arts. Programs include classes, workshops, exhibitions, studio space and grants for artists, and a sales gallery. The Ceramic Artists Project and Residency Grants Program annually solicits applications from emerging artists, reviews them with the assistance of an independent selection panel and nominators, and awards two $6,000 project grants and either two $3,000 or one $6,000 residency grant. The project and residency grants may be used to experiment with new techniques and materials, work or study with a mentor, seek a critique from a respected figure, purchase equipment to facilitate investigation, subsidize working time in the studio, purchase supplies, contract for technical support, collaborate with other artists, and pursue exhibition opportunities.

OBSIDIAN ARTS, Minneapolis, Minnesota, received $10,000 in support of its Exhibition Program. Obsidian Arts aims to increase the awareness and appreciation of black visual art and artists. Jerome support will be directed toward five exhibitions including a major summer installation and public art project titled Exploding Language: The Black Arts Movement 2007. Other exhibitions include a photographic survey of hands in tension-filled moments; a show of works exploring the emotional, creative and intellectual differences among people of various social, ethnic and cultural backgrounds; works by Cuban and Afro-Cuban artists as contemporary and historical sources for black cultural identity, and works inspired by respected quilter, teacher and storyteller Wilma Gairy.

New York City-based film animator TOMOKO OGUCHI received funding to travel to Mino City, Japan, to participate in a washi papermaking class. Oguchi will study the process of making the paper, as well as the history of washi paper. Washi is used to create lanterns, clothing and toys in Japan. Oguchi uses washi as an essential material in her animation films and intends to make her own paper for future films.

LANRE OLABISI received support for August the First, a feature narrative whose story begins on a promising day. Preparations are wrapping up for a graduation party celebrating a principal character's educational achievement. Friends and family have agreed to reunite on the one day in his honor. As people arrive and the party begins, a dark history begins to unfold with the return of a surprise guest. Unfortunately, the reunion brings turmoil as secrets are revealed, old wounds are reopened, and bad habits are revived. Actions or inactions in the face of life's hardships etch a family dynamic, which is captured in the history of this African-American family.

P.S. 1 CONTEMPORARY ART CENTER, Long Island City, New York, received $10,000 in support of the 2005-06 Special Projects program. P.S. 1's programs foster uninhibited artistic exploration and stimulate discourse on the complex and dynamic art of our time. The Special Projects program gives to emerging artists spaces in which to work for extended periods on projects that develop and flourish within those spaces. A Special Project may be an installation, a film or video project, a presentation of paintings or drawings-anything is possible, and the results usually defy categorization. At the root of the Special Projects program is a generative energy arising from the presence of artist and curator together in a space, and the inspiration and growth fostered by the interaction of the P.S. 1 community. Selection is based on a rolling review and submission policy, which gives the curatorial staff of P.S. 1 the opportunity to respond quickly to imaginative and vibrant new work.

Writer ISHLE YI PARK, Queens, New York, will spend a month in South Korea to better visualize the city where her aunt was raised, conduct interviews, and undertake research on women who married American soldiers. This will inform the writing of a novel about a young Korean woman emigrating to America in the 1960s, titled Kunemo, a fictionalized account of Park's aunt, a former bar girl and army bride. Park will spend three weeks in Daegu to take extensive sensory notes on the place her aunt was born. She will then travel to Seoul to learn more about women who reside in the camptowns that surround US.military bases. Park will also investigate nonprofit organizations that provide services for camptown women.

PATRICK'S CABARET, Minneapolis, Minnesota, received a two-year grant of $40,000 in support of its Core Program, which presents an eclectic mix of emerging artists testing audience reaction to new works. The Cabaret is a crucible for the development of new work rather than a production house; it also empowers artists to market their performances and provides opportunities for independent curators to construct programs.

PERFORMANCE SPACE 122, New York City, received a two-year grant of $85,000 in support of commissions for emerging artists producing new work for the 2006-07 Presenting Series. P.S. 122 supports and presents artists whose work challenges the traditional boundaries of dance, theater, music and performance. A comprehensive commissioning program provides direct subsidies to emerging artists, combined with access to rehearsal and workshop space prior to a production run. Approximately 15 emerging New York City and/or Minnesota artists receive commissions each year to create new works. P.S. 122 is steadfast in its search for pioneering artists from a diversity of cultures and points of view.

The Jerome Foundation elected to provide a membership and general support grant of $750 to the NEW YORK REGIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GRANTMAKERS, New York City, in support of its 2006 program. For more than 25 years, the New York Regional Association of Grantmakers has helped members meet increasingly complex challenges and take advantages of exciting opportunities. Its 300 members support the Association's mission of promoting and supporting effective philanthropy and concerted action for the public good.

PILLSBURY HOUSE THEATRE, Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a professional arts institution committed to the Settlement House tradition of creating art in collaboration with community. Housed within an inner city community center, Pillsbury House Theatre is a diverse company of artists working in partnership with diverse audiences to create transformational arts experiences. The Theatre received a two-year grant of $19,000 in support of the development and production of new works by emerging playwrights on the mainstage and an annual reading series of new works by emerging playwrights. One reading in each series generally includes an extended workshop with actors and a director

PILLSBURY HOUSE THEATRE is an operating program within Pillsbury United Communities, Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Theatre creates and produces challenging theater that inspires choice, change and connection, engaging diverse groups of people in productive interaction around tough issues. A Jerome Foundation commitment of $34,500 was made in support of the 2006 Non-English Speaking Spoken Here: The Late Nite Series. Late Nite is a program that transforms culture, and one in which text, music, spoken word, sounds and images weave together in a fearless celebration of new voices and new art. Emerging artists, primarily artists of color from various disciplines, explore their artistry and push their boundaries. The purpose of Late Nite is developmental in nature. It is not a series that produces finished works. The audience is responsive and engaged, and provides important feedback to the artists as they develop their new pieces. In 2006, the Theatre will produce three Late Nite programs, each comprised of six to ten local and national artists performing new works.

PLAYWRIGHTS HORIZONS, New York City, received $23,000 in support of the participation of emerging playwrights in the American Voice artistic development programs and Peter Jay Sharp Theater productions. The mission of Playwrights Horizons is to support and develop the work of contemporary American playwrights, composers and lyricists, and to produce their new plays and musicals. It has consistently served as a launching pad for emerging writers as well as a home for established writers to bring their new work. Jerome support is directed toward developmental and production programs. This encompasses review of script submissions, play readings, musical theater workshops, commissions and productions.

THE PLAYWRIGHTS' CENTER, Minneapolis, Minnesota, received a two-year grant of $168,000 in support of the Many Voices Residency Program and the Jerome Fellowship Program. This continues support that the Foundation has awarded to emerging playwrights for fellowships since 1976. The Center fuels the theater by providing services that support playwrights and playwriting. Two-year support of $46,000 is dedicated to the Many Voices Residency Program, which encourages the voices of playwrights often overlooked and to respond to an increasingly diversified local and regional culture. An open call and competitive review results in the selection of eight writers of color who work with two facilitators in sessions consisting of writing exercises, readings of works-in-progress, critiques, professional coaching, and community building. Stipends, readings, working with mentors and additional opportunities are provided. The Jerome Fellowship Program at the Center has provided over $1 million to 136 emerging playwrights. Six playwrights each year receive financial support, readings, workshops, literary services, and development opportunities. The Fellowship buys time, creates community and offers professional advancement opportunities.

MARLO PORAS received support for The Candidate (working title), a documentary about the US Senate candidacy of 94-year-old Doris Granny D Haddock. It's a first-person portrait of Doris's remarkable transformation from renowned citizen activist to novice political candidate. The film offers an intimate look at the nation's oldest political newcomer as she struggles against the inherent liabilities of old age and challenges herself to run a US Senate campaign that personifies her democratic ideals of a government of, by and for the people. With no on-camera interviewers or outside narration, Doris's story will be told through an intricate weave of real time scenes and voice-over narration culled from original interviews. The Candidate addresses the entrenched cynicism toward the political system that leaves many skeptical about the motivations of politicians.

QUEENS THEATRE IN THE PARK, Flushing, New York, received $10,000 in support of the Immigrant Voices Project, a new play development program for emerging artists who reflect and address issues relevant to the ethnically diverse county of Queens. The Theatre provides performing arts activities for the residents of Queens and fosters greater cultural awareness and appreciation of artists' works. The Immigrant Voices Project provides opportunities for playwrights to present and develop their work through readings, workshops and productions. The Queens Theatre in the Park works with Manhattan-based theater companies on co-productions of plays developed through the Project. Jerome funding will support works that are developed, read and presented in the 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons.

RED EYE COLLABORATION, Minneapolis, Minnesota, is an alternative multidisciplinary arts center dedicated to the creation and presentation of new work. A two-year Jerome grant of $60,000 was approved for the New Works 4 Weeks and Critical Core Programs, encompassing Works-in-Progress and Isolated Acts components. Artists featured in New Works 4 Weeks are experimenting with new artistic challenges. The Works-in-Progress component focuses on conceptual development and staging, and encourages thorough and deep explorations by the artists. The Isolated Acts portion presents fully mounted works ready for public presentation and critical exposure. Often, these are projects that are experimental and still raw, and/or their creators are unknown and unproved. Red Eye is looking for work that shows evidence of clear vision, an idiosyncratic personal perspective that point to a larger realm, and a concept or idea sizeable enough to benefit from an extended development period and flexible enough to incorporate what is discovered in the process

RIPE TIME, Brooklyn, New York, received $10,000 in support of the development of the new work BETROTHED. Ripe Time is devoted to the creation and exploration of performance that bridges dance and theatre. Its ensemble-driven work tells stories through rich language, visual invention and physical rigor. BETROTHED is an adaptation of three tales exploring the dreams, expectations and losses surrounding women's relationship to marriage, sex and the quest for independence. Rachel Dickstein will adapt, direct and choreograph the piece. BETROTHED is a new step in her research into movement-based theatrical adaptation, and in how culturally derived gesture, rooted in ceremony and ritual, communicates story and character in universal terms.

The mission of the ROCHESTER ART CENTER, Rochester, Minnesota, is to foster an appreciation and understanding of contemporary art through the organization and presentation of exhibitions and the creation of innovative educational programs and interpretive materials that effectively engage regional audiences. Jerome support of $10,000 was awarded for the 3rd Floor Emerging Artist Exhibition Series, dedicated to emerging Minnesota artists who are producing exciting new work that challenges and inspires viewers. Each exhibition is mounted for a period of seven weeks and is accompanied by a full color brochure with text focusing on the concepts, history, methodology and production of the artists' work. An open call for artists' proposals results in submissions reviewed by an exhibition committee and the program director.