IN THE NEWS: SPACE AWARDED AN INAUGURAL VIA ART FUND / WAGNER FOUNDATION INCUBATOR GRANT

(PORTLAND, ME) The multidisciplinary arts nonprofit, SPACE, is pleased to announce it is the recipient of an inaugural VIA Art Fund | Wagner Foundation Incubator Grant, an award of $40,000 of unrestricted funding over two years.

In a news release announcing the award, the VIA Foundation and Wagner Fund cited SPACE for being “deeply rooted in local Portland” while also facing “internationally outward,” demonstrated by its response to contemporary art trends and issues facing LGBTQ, refugee, and other communities.

Building upon their individual philanthropic missions and a common vision for impact in the arts, VIA Art Fund and Wagner Foundation have partnered to establish the $1 million Incubator Grant Fund. This fund aims to build a robust and inclusive national arts ecosystem by awarding unrestricted funding to small to mid-sized nonprofit visual arts organizations throughout the United States. 

In a statement, VIA program director Tali Cherizli said, “The first cohort of VIA | Wagner Incubator grantees exemplifies the richness of our cultural landscape. While each organization is utterly unique, all are united by a mission to create innovative contemporary arts programming that resonates at home while steering discourse further afield. This integration of the local with the global infuses our national arts ecosystem with various models for artistic excellence, ensuring that artists based in both rural and urban communities have the platforms they need for developing experimental work.”

“It is a great honor for SPACE to be part of this initial Incubator Grant cohort, especially because we believe these foundations are joining together to enable visionary and revolutionary grantmaking,” remarked SPACE’s Executive Director, Kelsey Halliday Johnson. “Their shared values of commissioning original artistic production, equity and geographic diversity in the arts sector, and community building around cultural programming feels deeply aligned with our work in Maine.”