New Art Coming to Chicago

published: May 4, 2022

The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and 3Arts Launch New Fund for Local Artists

$60,000 of project support for Chicago-area artists in 2022

CHICAGO, IL (May 4, 2022)—The Chicago-based nonprofit organization, 3Arts, is partnering with The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts to launch the Ignite Fund to support the creation and public presentation of new visual arts-based projects by Chicago-area artists and artist-led collectives. As part of the Foundation’s Regional Regranting Program, up to 13 grants ranging from $1,500 to $6,000 will be awarded through an application platform that will open on May 11 (through June 24), with grantees announced in September.

Funding innovative, collaborative, and public-facing new art, the Ignite Fund will join 31 other organizations across the country as a Regional Regranting Program partner of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and carry forward the decade-long service of the previous local partner, the Propeller Fund.

“As the newest regional partner in The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts network, we eagerly anticipate the groundbreaking and experimental work of collaborating artists and collectives that will be fueled by support from the Ignite Fund,” says Esther Grimm, Executive Director of 3Arts.

“We are excited to welcome 3Arts and the Ignite Fund into the Foundation’s Regional Regranting Program to carry forward the important work set in motion by the Propeller Fund twelve years ago,” says Rachel Bers, Program Director of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. “The Propeller Fund was a vital participant in the program’s national network for over a decade; under the stewardship of Gallery 400 and Threewalls, it not only supported experiments in artist-organized culture, but fostered an engaged community of participants and practitioners around it as well. As 3Arts takes the helm, we look forward to the continued strengthening of this community and to the unique contributions Ignite Fund grantees will make to it.”

Open to all Chicago-area artists, the Ignite Fund will provide two types of grants: Project Grants of $3,000 to $6,000 to support the creation and implementation of new, public-facing works; and Research & Development Grants of $1,500 that support the early stages of new projects that may require time to be developed. The program prioritizes projects that center the visual arts, promote collaboration, raise awareness around social justice issues, engage local communities, and incorporate accessibility services in public presentations.

More information and complete application guidelines are available at www.ignitefund.org.

For press or media inquiries, please contact Melanie Wang at melanie@3arts.org or 312-443-9621.

About 3Arts
3Arts is a nonprofit organization that supports Chicago’s women artists, artists of color, and Deaf and disabled artists who work in the performing, teaching, and visual arts. By providing cash awards, project funding, residency fellowships, professional development, and promotion, 3Arts helps artists take risks, experiment, and build momentum in their careers over time. Since 2007, 3Arts has supported more than 1,800 artists across all program areas, representing 69% women artists, 71% artists of color, and 19% Deaf and disabled artists working in the six-county metropolitan area, and distributed $5.8 million through our grantmaking.

For more information, please visit https://3arts.org.

About The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts
In accordance with Andy Warhol’s will, the mission of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts is the advancement of the visual arts. The Foundation manages an innovative and flexible grants program while also preserving Warhol’s legacy through creative and responsible licensing policies and extensive scholarly research for ongoing catalogue raisonné projects. To date, the Foundation has given nearly $260 million in cash grants to over 1,000 arts organizations in 49 states and abroad and has donated 52,786 works of art to 322 institutions worldwide.

For more information, please visit https://warholfoundation.org.

About the Regional Regranting Program
The Ignite Fund is funded through the generous support of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts Regional Regranting Program. The Regional Regranting Program was established in 2007 to recognize and support the movement of independently organized, public-facing, artist-centered activity that animates local and regional art scenes but that lies beyond the reach of traditional funding sources. The program is administered by non-profit visual art centers across the United States that work in partnership with the Foundation to fund artists’ experimental projects and collaborative undertakings.

The 32 regranting programs provide grants of up to $10,000 for the creation and presentation of new work. Programs are developed and facilitated by organizations in Alabama, Albuquerque, Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Knoxville, New Orleans, Newark, Oklahoma, Omaha, Philadelphia, Phoenix & Tucson (AZ), Portland (OR), Portland (ME), Providence, Raleigh & Greensboro (NC), Saint Louis, San Francisco, San Juan, PR, Seattle, and Washington D.C.

For more information, please visit https://warholfoundation.org/grants/regional-regranting.

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