Past
Grantees

THE SOUTHERN THEATER, Minneapolis, Minnesota, received $4,200 in support of the development and production of a new work by choreographer/performance artist DIANE WALLER. This commitment was previously authorized through the Dancer Pool program of the Minnesota Dance Alliance. When the Alliance ceased operation, funds were returned to the Jerome Foundation. Waller submitted an updated proposal in order to secure release of that commitment. She will create a performance/installation consistent with her history of making interdisciplinary works based on philosophical underpinnings. Her intent is to inhabit the performance arena with images that are poetic, lush and provocative in their juxtapositions, and reveal deeper perceptions of humanity. The work will engage three dancers, and will be produced in the winter of 2005.

P.S. 122, New York City, acting as fiscal agent for independent artist CLAUDE WAMPLER, received a concluding grant of $12,000 to support the creation and development of two works. Wampler, a visual and performance artist, develops work using video, painting, photography, lighting, sculpture, costume and text. Her objective is to create multidisciplinary projects capable of crossing over from museums and galleries to theater spaces, and back again. Jerome support is directed to USA vs. France, which encompasses a tennis match between Wampler and French choreographer Jerome Bel; and to Disruption of Other Projects Advertised as My Own, which continues her practice of questioning the perception of art consumption and authorship via a series of works that invite her audience to attend other artists' openings, shows and performances.

SHEN WEI DANCE ARTS, New York City, received $9,000 in support of the development and production of a new work titled The Second Enter in the Palace. Shen Wei Dance Arts is dedicated to the creation of new multidisciplinary dance works that are a hybrid between Western and Eastern cultures. At once representational and abstract, Shen Wei's choreography is the moving medium among complementary visual elements in the works he creates. In this new work, his aim is to create a contemporary version of the Peking opera, of the same title, which tells the linear story of the transfer of power from a King to his son. Shen Wei's focus will be to reveal its essence through contemporary movement and the Chinese Opera form.

Funding was awarded to SCOTT WESTPHAL-SOLARY for All Gods Children, a feature length documentary that takes a personal look at the damages three former Christian missionary families have endured due to unthinkable abuse their children suffered at the hands of staff at a missionary boarding school (the Mamou Alliance Academy in West Africa).

Photographer KIMBERLEE WHALEY, Minneapolis, will spend seven days in New Bedford, Massachusetts, to further define and develop a photographic project titled Fragments, about her hometown. A year ago, she began this photographic investigation by making images representing her parent's house and their personal belongings while addressing issues of space, form and light. The work focused on an interior home life of absence. She will further articulate and expand Fragments through this trip. The series is expected to include landscapes, with a focus on personal artifacts found at certain places and how they tell personal and collective stories. The long-range goal is to create her first significant body of work, pursue exhibition opportunities for it, and advance her professional career.

WHITE COLUMNS, New York City, received a two-year grant of $40,000 in support of emerging artists' fees and exhibition expenses. It identifies significant young visual artists and encourages their development through group and solo exhibitions, a curated slide and video file, and public programs. White Columns creates a forum for presenting the best new work by emerging artists. Of particular note is the White Room Program, an ongoing series of introductory solo shows by artists without commercial representation, often a steppingstone to wider recognition. Jerome support will be directed toward the participation of emerging artists in the 2003-04 and 2004-05 seasons. In 2003-04, White Columns will present six thematic group shows featuring more than 40 artists as well as 12 White Room solo exhibitions.

The NEW YORK FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS, acting as fiscal agent for YASUKO YOKOSHI, received a two-year grant of $20,000 in support of the development and production of new work. Multidisciplinary artist Yasuko Yokoshi imaginatively entwines cultures and personal insights to create radical performance work with grace, passion and biting wit. Jerome subsidy will underwrite the development of a new work titled what we when we, inspired by a Raymond Carver short story. Yokoshi is interested in the subtle interaction of men and women, the ambivalent environment that Carver creates, and the verbal and physical dialogue of which the story is predominantly constructed. She'll transform Carver's quintessentially American world into Japanese traditional Kabuki dance. Over the past ten years, Yokoshi has been exploring her personal tradition in narrative and character development as a primary strategy of her performance work.

Funding was awarded for Fire Flies and Junebugs by MELISSA YOUNG. This short narrative film is about a ten-year old character named Summer who thinks that her brother is missing, only to find out later that he has been in an accident. She has to learn to deal with his death in her own, unique way. This is also a story about how adults sometimes do not deal directly with children about serious subjects such as death, leaving children to draw their own conclusions.

The ZENON DANCE COMPANY AND SCHOOL, Minneapolis, Minnesota, received a two-year grant of $50,000 in support of emerging Minnesota and New York City choreographers' residencies and the creation of new works for the Zenon Company. The mission of Zenon is to sustain an artistically excellent, professional dance company that presents the commissioned work of emerging and locally, nationally and internationally recognized modern and jazz choreographers to the broadest and most diverse audiences and communities possible. It accomplishes this mission through performance, education and outreach. Zenon has a long history of receiving Jerome Foundation support for the commissioning and performance of new dance work by emerging choreographers. Among those to be commissioned over the course of the next two seasons are Keely Garfield, Jeanine Durning, and Wynn Fricke.

3 LEGGED RACE, Minneapolis, Minnesota, accelerates the invention of new theater and performance by launching original collaborative teams whose performances speak to broad audiences. It invests in a wide rage of experiments merging dance, circus, puppet, object and visual theater. A Jerome grant of $18,000 will support Blizzard 2003 and the related development activities. Blizzard incubates new performance experiments refined throughresidencies, and then presents those experiments in a dynamic package to audiences.

A grant of $15,000 was awarded to A GATHERING OF THE TRIBES, New York City, in support of the 2004 Emerging Writers in Residence Series. A Gathering of the Tribes is a multicultural, cross-generational group of artists, performers, writers, and musicians whose purpose is to provide a showcase for voices and visions traditionally overlooked by mainstream media. This is achieved through publications, events, readings, exhibits and workshops. The Writers in Residence Series is a subsection of the Tribes' Sunday Night Reading Series. The format for the series is eight two-person readings. Eight writers, fairly well known on the local scene, are selected by Artistic Director Steve Cannon. These writers then select early career emerging writers to read with them. Readings are followed by question and answer sessions and opportunities for discussion.

The AMERICAN COMPOSERS FORUM, St. Paul, Minnesota, received a two-year grant of $282,000 in support of the Composers Commissioning Program, Performance Outreach Grants and consulting services for Minnesota and New York City emerging composers. The Forum links communities with composers and performers, encouraging the making, playing and enjoyment of new music. One of the Forums goals its to provide direct support to composers and to develop markets for composers and their music. The Composers Commissioning Program competitively awards commissions to emerging composers, who take the initiative in developing their own creative vision and pursuing the creation of a new work, in partnership with performers and presenting organizations. The Performance Outreach Grants encourage multiple performances of the newly commissioned works before audiences who may be relatively unfamiliar with new music, and unaccustomed to attending performances at traditional venues. A small portion of the grant will be used to support the technical assistance and other services to composers provided by Forum staff.

The AMERICAN COMPOSERS ORCHESTRA, New York City, received a two-year grant of $30,000 in support of the multifaceted Emerging Composers Project. The Orchestra is dedicated to the creation, performance, development, and promulgation of music by American composers. It's an incubator of ideas, research and talent; a catalyst for growth and change among orchestras; and an advocate for American composers and their music. The six ongoing programmatic components of the Emerging Composers Project are the New Music Reading Sessions and Commission Award, Emerging Composer Fellowships, Commissions, Carnegie Hall Performances, Composers Out Front Series, and the Open Review Program. New in 2003-04 are the Orchestra Underground concert and the Improvise! Festival & Conference. The Orchestra maintains an open door to any interested composer wishing to have her or his work reviewed for program opportunities. Each year, the Project has a measurable impact on 15 to 20 emerging composers, providing excellent performances, important career-building opportunities and exposure.

PANGEA WORLD THEATER, Minneapolis, Minnesota, acting as fiscal agent for WOMEN IN MOTION, received $9,000 in support of the development of the new work Bandh. Women in Motion is the performing company of choreographer Ananya Chatterjea, whose movement aesthetic is based in classical forms, updated to reflect a contemporary consciousness. Chatterjea, trained in Indian classical and folk dance traditions, became an exponent of the Odissi style of classical dance at a young age. She brought into that style elements of street and political theater. Bandh is autobiographical, based on the story of an immigrant woman who leaves a difficult marital situation, with a young child, to search for a different life and safety. On a larger scale, it is a plea that children be raised in contexts that are not embattled or ridden with violence. The piece will be choreographed through metaphors and suggestions.

The ANDERSON CENTER FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES, Red Wing, Minnesota, received a two-year commitment of $30,000 to support one-month residencies of emerging artists from Minnesota and New York City during the summers of 2003 and 2004. Resident artists work on clearly defined projects, engage in the interdisciplinary life of the Center, and make a contribution to the Red Wing community in the form of a talk, reading, class or presentation of their work. Residencies include lodging and meals at the Center as well as uninterrupted work time in a beautiful setting.

ART IN GENERAL, New York City, received $18,000 for the Jerome Residency Program. Art in General provides a laboratory environment for the creation and presentation of new work, and serves as a forum for artists and audiences to explore the creative process through exhibitions, residencies, educational programs, public events and publications. The organizations submission policies and curatorial practices are designed to encourage a broad representation of emerging artists. In 1997, the Jerome Foundation provided support for a pilot program, which sponsored a two-month residency for a Minnesota artist at Art in General. The success of that pilot led to further support in subsequent years. The program is designed to enrich each artists creative process and professional development through opportunities to create new work on site and to interact with the larger New York arts community. During the residency, the artist installs a work in a 1,000 sq. ft. gallery. Visitors are encouraged to view the work-in-progress. Art in General draws upon a large network of professional contacts to make appropriate introductions, and to facilitate meetings with critics, dealers, curators and other artists. A brochure documenting the residency and including a critical essay about the work is published. The selection process is based on nominations from individuals in Minnesota and curatorial review by Art in General.

ART IN GENERAL, New York City, received a two-year grant of $38,000 in support of the participation of emerging artists in the Exhibition Program and the provision of services to artists. Art in General provides a laboratory environment for the creation and presentation of new work, and serves as a forum for artists and audiences to explore the creative process. Through exhibitions, residencies, educational programs, public events, and publications, it offers opportunities to encounter new ways of thinking about contemporary art, and to exchange ideas across cultures and artistic disciplines. Its open submission policy and curatorial practice are designed to encourage a broad representation of emerging artists. Jerome support emphasizes services to emerging artists from New York City and Minnesota.

A grant of $18,000 was made to ARTISTS SPACE, New York City, in support of the participation of emerging New York City and Minnesota artists in the 2002-03 exhibition season. Artists Space supports and presents interdisciplinary work in the visual arts, including film and video, electronic media, architecture and design. Its exhibitions present new art and new artists. It also encourages experimentation, diversity and dialogue in contemporary arts practice; and fosters an appreciation for the vital and dynamic role that artists play in communities. Half of the grant commitment is restricted to artists stipends.

BANG ON A CAN, New York City, received $18,000 in support of three commissions to emerging composers within the 2003-04 People's Commissioning Fund. Bang on a Can brings innovative and adventurous music to broad and diverse audiences. Its resident ensemble, the Bang on a Can All-Stars, performs a repertoire that reflects a multiplicity of musical genres and traditions. Launched in 1997, the People's Commissioning Fund offers opportunities to composers to create music for and work with the Bang on a Can All-Stars. Jerome dollars contribute to a pooled fund, which supports new music commissions. Composers are selected for commissions in several ways including invitations, referrals, and open call review of scores. Once compositions are completed, the All-Stars rehearse the works with the composers in attendance, and then premiere the composition in an annual Commissioning Fund concert.

OLIVE BIERINGA & OTTO RAMSTAD, Minneapolis, MN, received support for Bodycartography Minnesota, a multidimensional dance video work that focuses on Minnesotas rural, urban and wilderness landscapes. They will create a series of short dance videos for outdoor projections alongside live performance events in rural and urban areas across the state.