Knight Foundation

Big art times are beginning with a kickoff reception on Wednesday, April 10, as Art X 2013 will fill the Sugar Hill Arts District and surrounding Cass Corridor area with a five day blowout featuring work by past Kresge Grant recipients. More details available at the...

  Detroiters who turned out for the Town Hall meeting on the Knight Arts Challenge last week received lots of tips on how to best present their ideas.  Here’s what Knight Foundation Arts Associate Tatiana Hernandez shared with the crowd, many of whom are preparing their applications for the challenge offering a share of $3 million to cultural projects that enrich and engage the city. To make your idea stand out: Create a catchy title. Come up with something that grabs the readers’ attention. Do not write the 150-word application in isolation. Share it with friends and strangers. If they have questions, then you still have work to do. Make the 150 words about the idea. Don’t try to explain the long-term process, just explain the idea. Make sure you put the community first. Think about how your idea will be in service to and benefit the city of Detroit. Do not start the application with “I want to. Instead, think about how it will impact Detroit. Be bold. The challenge is for big, visionary ideas that are authentically Detroit. Don’t worry about the money. You shouldn’t worry about finding matching funds for the grant until you become a finalist. Don’t let that aspect of the contest discourage you. Submit your application early. The readers view the applications in the order they are submitted. You’ll want them to see it when they are still fresh. Here are some questions that were asked several times throughout a series of community meetings and the Town Hall meeting in Detroit:

Traditional Ukrainian pysanky, written by artist and teacher Dr. Luba Petrusha. One interpretation of Easter traditions is that they reflect a point where the rising tide of Christianity incorporated the preexisting rites of pagan culture and other religious solstice and fertility celebrations. Though the oldest existing...