Media Release

Spencer Hosts an Afternoon for Artists with Rocket Grants Launch and Review, Lawrence Inside Out Photo Shoot

LAWRENCE, KS, January 7, 2015— The call for proposals for the 6th round of Rocket Grants–a program that supports innovative, artist-driven projects outside of established arts venues–opens on January 12. Artists interested in applying for a Rocket Grant are invited to attend a launch and review event at the Spencer Museum of Art on Sunday, January 18 from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Preceding the session, which will include application information and highlight several previously funded projects, the Spencer will host a portrait session for the Lawrence Inside Out project from 1 to 3 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public

At the Rocket Grants event, six past award recipients will share materials and documentation from grant-funded projects. During a brief presentation, Karl Fundenberger, a 2012 Topeka-based Rocket Grants recipient, will discuss Cyclotrope Cinema, a collaborative project that created animated short films using repurposed bicycle parts and human-powered video projections. Dave Lowenstein, Lawrence-based artist and 2012 grant recipient, will give short readings from his publication Give Take Give, which explores how an alternative gift economy can help bind a community together. Program Coordinator Julia Cole will also provide an overview of the types of projects the program funds and answer questions about the grant program.

The session will include a reception featuring additional Rocket Grants-funded projects:

  • Amber Hansen will share images from The Story of Chickens: A Revolution, a project designed to reconnect the community with its food cycle.
  • Judith Levy will show clips from her faux documentary NV in KC, which examines envy in the arts community with wit and humanity.
  • Jarrett Mellenbruch will exhibit images from his project Haven, which created beehives in public places to help restore dwindling honeybee populations rather than harvest their products.
  • Jessie Christian of the Hard Fifty Farm Zine Mobile project will bring the Pioneers Press traveling zine and handmade publications gallery/shop to the Museum.

The Rocket Grants program is a partnership of the Spencer Museum of Art and the Charlotte Street Foundation with funding provided by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. Since 2010, the program has awarded $219,000 to support innovative artist-centered projects. The program awards grants of up to $6,000 to individuals or groups working across all disciplines and media. Successful projects bridge communities, drive experimental arts programming, create fresh and meaningful experiences in public spaces, and engage new kinds of audiences. The deadline to apply is March 23, 2015. For more information, visit rocketgrants.org.

Artists and community members are also invited to stop by the Lawrence Inside Out photo session preceding the Rocket Grants presentation. The project is gathering portraits of community artists, art educators and patrons, and anyone who loves to create or appreciate art. Visit www.lawrenceinsideout.com for more information.

Media Contacts

Elizabeth Kanost

Elizabeth Kanost
Communications Manager
785.840.0142
elizacat@ku.edu