Photo courtes ed the  Screening Room.

More than 8,900 ideas, 241 projects and 25 million – only since 2008.

Figures from Knight Arts Challenge South Florida, which receives requests from today, provides an overview and a general idea of ​​the program – but not tell the whole story.

There was support for projects as diverse as   mobile libraries , efforts to preserve rare, a traditional style of Haitian music, workshops to nurture love for film posters to bring Everglades City  and a program to interest children in the jazz projects winners in the seven years of these challenges provide a detailed snapshot of a multicultural, creative and dynamic community.

“What is very important for us is that we do not tell the community what we are looking for; we asked the community in which it is interested, “says Dennis Scholl, the vice president for arts Knight Foundation. “That’s the beauty of this competition.”

The process is simple. The competition, which closes on February 23 , has only three rules: The idea has to be on the arts; the project has to take place in South Florida or benefit the community of South Florida, and those receiving the grant must find matching funds commitment taken by Knight.

“In a broader concept, what we want is that the arts are common in South Florida,” says Scholl. “We want every day, wherever you go, no matter what you do, people in this community have an encounter with the arts.”

The result of this idea has been a steady expansion of the competition, through artistic disciplines and across the geography of the region.

 “One of the most important elements of the competition is the level of participation we have achieved,” says Scholl. “Many, many more neighborhoods in South Florida are participating in this process. It’s something you can see in the geographical distribution of the winners. In the last two years we have had winners in Fort Lauderdale, Opa-locka, Hialeah, Homestead and Key West. And the geographical distribution has changed dramatically as different communities have felt more comfortable with the idea of ​​participating the contest and have also seen the impact it can have to win. “

On the other hand, the range of winners reflects the concept of Knight Foundation to nurture a cultural community-wide basis.

Scholl says that “institutions considered pillars [like ballet or opera] are important, in fact, serve thousands of people in our community. But we also want people to have experiences with grassroots organizations. That is two-pronged strategy we use in our contest: support these institutional pillars and encourage that organic bubbling coming from the grassroots “.

And this support goes beyond simply providing funds.

Late Francisco, director of the Spanish Cultural Center in Miami says “is not simply a matter of money. Winning the contest encourages you to think differently and, in our case, to consolidate a project. “

The   Microteatro , a project of the Cultural Center has won several Art Challenge offers short works in transformed theaters in small containers. The Center used the support “not only to find better talent and have other events around functions, such as concerts, but also to make a project that began as something temporary, two sessions of three months for a year, something that spends all year. [Grants] Microteatro giving him time to find its audience and then could expand. They have already been two years of shows every weekend and now we want to add more works in English and reach an audience that speaks English. “

Other important aspect to win the contest is that “it is not just ‘Here’s the money now go and do your cosa’,” says Anna Pietraszko, executive director of Miami Music Project , an orchestral program for children that uses music as a tool exchange. The project has won several times the Arts Challenge. “If so, what happens when the money runs out?

“The genius of the Knight Foundation is that grows with your organization,” Pietraszko. The Foundation “is very strategic and offers very constructive comments. We have received many resources beyond the funds, which have helped us to be very strategic about managing our growth. “

And there is another aspect of the support of grants, says Pietraszko: The grant for Artists Training Program for Teaching has had a double impact.

“We put professional musicians in classrooms in disadvantaged areas of Miami […] we need to give the necessary resources to enable them to face the challenges they will encounter. We are not engaged only teach music but also the social transformation through music. “But the program adds Pietraszko, it is also a support as a source of labor for local musicians. “This year we have about 30 musicians teaching us and we are proud that we are supporting local musicians. We want to stay here in Miami. “

In fact, Chris Cook, CEO of Cannonball Miami , suggesting that the effect of competition “is huge,” and goes beyond purely artistic themes and affects areas of real life that ultimately shape and define the lives of a city.

Founded in 2003 under the name LegalArt and aiming to provide free legal services to artists, the organization evolved and became the 2012 Cannonball, an arts organization.

“Our narrative has always been focused on the artist and observe what the artist needs, starting with the first grant of Arts Challenge we received in 2008, which allowed us to launch the residency program,” says Cook. “Now, that came at a time of recession, rents were high, artists were driven from their studies and needed places to live and work. This allowed us to meet this need. “

“All this contributes to a healthier ecology of the city,” says Cook. “And finally, ensure that artists stay makes Miami one more vibrant community.”

Scholl agrees.

“Chris is right. What they do provide a space for artists or what the Pérez [Art Museum Miami] giving work opportunities to artists who teach children in their after school programs – all this makes for an ecosystem. That’s what Knight tries to achieve. We are building a network of opportunities. “

Fernando González  writes about art and culture. He lives in Miami.

Knight Arts Challenge events in South Florida

The Knight Arts Challenge continues until February 23. Learn more about the contest on the release fista Knight Arts Challenge, 6 to 8:30 pm, Tuesday, enero27 in Gramps, 176 NW 24th St., Miami, or come to a Q & A with the Community .

To register go to knightarts.org .

The schedule of meetings of Q & A with the Community is as follows:

• 7 pm, February 2: ArtSouth, South Miami Community Center, 5800 SW 66th St., South Miami
• 7 pm, Feb. 3: The Projects at FATVillage, 523 NW First Ave., Fort Lauderdale
• 7 pm, Feb. 4: Cannonball, 1035 N. Miami Ave., No. 300, Downtown Miami
• 7 pm, Feb. 5: African Heritage Cultural Arts Center, 6161 NW 22nd Ave., Miami
• 11 am, Feb. 6: Custom House Museum, 281 Front St., Key West, park at the Westin

The Q & A with the Community shall be presented in partnership with ArtSouth, city of South Miami, African Heritage Cultural Arts Center, Miami-Dade County, Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, Key West Art and Historical Society, The Westin Key West Resort & Marina, Florida Keys Council of the Arts, Cannonball, FatVillage and Broward Cultural Division.

For updates, follow #knightarts and knightfdn on Twitter, knightfdn on Instagram and Knight Foundation on Facebook.