FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Art2Action Recognized as a Southern Cultural Treasure
TAMPA, FL — July 26, 2022 — Tampa-based non-profit Art2Action, Inc. is proud to be a recipient and member of South Arts’ inaugural cohort of Southern Cultural Treasures: a six-million-dollar, four-year initiative supporting Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)-led and -serving arts and cultural organizations throughout the U.S. Southeast. As a grant recipient, Art2Action will receive more than $160,000 over the course of the three-year initiative, and participate in cohort convenings across the region.
“It’s an honor to have our work recognized in this way, and to receive this award as a Southern Cultural Treasure,” said Andrea Assaf, Artistic and Executive Director of Art2Acton. “We are thrilled to be part of this ground-breaking initiative, which is not only supporting BIPOC arts organizations, but recognizing that BIPOC artists are part of the cultural fabric of the United States, and particularly the South. This initiative will help address the systemic inequity that Southern organizations and BIPOC cultural producers have historically faced; it will help our region, and nation, move forward creatively in the 21st century.”
The initial cohort is made up of 17 organizations that represent decades of BIPOC arts and community-driven stewardship throughout the nine-state region that includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. As South Arts President and CEO Susie Surkamer stated, “These groups push the boundaries of creative expression, anchor their local communities, and advance the arts in our region.”
The South Arts initiative complements the Ford Foundation’s America’s Cultural Treasures initiative, which aims to acknowledge and honor the diversity of artistic expression and excellence in the U.S. and provide critical funding to organizations that have made a significant impact on America’s cultural landscape. "We are thrilled to partner with South Arts and honor these seventeen cultural institutions and their contributions to the regional landscape," said Lane Harwell, program officer for Creativity and Free Expression at the Ford Foundation. "We hope this investment will inspire more funders and patrons to support the diversity of arts organizations and expressions in the U.S. South."
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Please contact South Arts if you would like more information about opportunities to match this investment in select communities. Southern Cultural Treasures: Press Release Southern Cultural Treasures: Program Description ABOUT SOUTH ARTS South Arts advances Southern vitality through the arts. The nonprofit regional arts organization was founded in 1975 to build on the South’s unique heritage and enhance the public value of the arts. South Arts’ work responds to the arts environment and cultural trends with a regional perspective. South Arts offers an annual portfolio of activities designed to support the success of artists and arts providers in the South, address the needs of Southern communities through impactful arts-based programs, and celebrate the excellence, innovation, value and power of the arts of the South. For more information, visit www.southarts.org PRESS INQUIRIES
Hunter Braithwaite Director, Cultural Counsel hunter@culturalcounsel.com Ivan Schustak Director, Communications ischustak@southarts.org
Abby Ronner
Account Executive, Cultural Counsel
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ABOUT ART2ACTION, INC.
Art2Action creates, develops, produces and presents original theatre, interdisciplinary performances, performative acts and progressive cultural organizing. We support women artists, BIPOC / artists of color, queer or trans-identified artists, and creative allies. We are dedicated to cultural equity and innovation, artistic quality and community impact. For more information, please visit our website: www.art2action.org
PRESS INQUIRIES
Andrea Assaf
Artistic & Executive Director, Art2Action Inc.
Gabrielle (“Gabi”) Vigueira
General Manager, Art2Action Inc.
