Artists 360 awards $300,000 in grants to Northwest Arkansas artists

The Artists 360 program of the Kansas City, Mo.-based nonprofit Mid-America Arts Alliance recently awarded $300,000 to 31 Northwest Arkansas artists, according to a news release.

Artists 360 is made possible through philanthropic support from Steuart Walton and Tom Walton through the Walton Family Foundation. This year, the foundation increased its funding to $300,000 from $234,000 in 2023.

“We are thrilled to broaden the scope of the Artists 360 program with the generous increased funding from the Walton Family Foundation,” said Diane Scott, director of artist services at Mid-America Arts Alliance. “Artists 360’s shift to practice-based funding provides recipients with the flexibility to invest in their creative practice, ultimately strengthening the arts ecosystem in the region. The combination of artist funding, professional development and peer network development has made a significant impact not just on the Artists 360 grantees but to artists across the region.”

Eureka Springs artist John Rankine received the Artists 360 Creative Impact Award, which is provided to “one exceptional artist based in Northwest Arkansas with unrestricted funds of $25,000 and professional development opportunities, including retreats that facilitate network building,” the release shows. “Candidates are selected through both nominations and formal applications. Rankine was also an Artists 360 project grant recipient in 2018 for his photographic essay ‘Men With Earrings.’”

The new Artists 360 grantees will be the first to benefit from practice-based funding, which allows them to apply the grant to their overall creative development rather than a specific project. Also new to the grant cycle was the expansion of the student category into undergraduate and graduate grants. The grants ranged from $2,500 to $25,000.

Since its inception in 2018, Artists 360 has awarded $1.3 million to 157 artists in Northwest Arkansas and the Fort Smith metro.