Nevada Arts Council announces 2020 grant awards for artists

CARSON CITY — The Nevada Arts Council announced the awarding of $22,639.60 in statewide grants to support individual artists in the production and presentation of artistic projects that will occur between Jan. 1 and June 30, 2020.

The Project Grant for Artists is awarded twice a year for projects that take place during a specified six-month period. The FY20 Project Grant for Artists (Cycle B) recipients, amounts and projects are as follows:

Brian Fox, Carson City: awarded $1,355.36 to bring Uruguayan conductor Gabriel Giró and two of his colleagues to Carson City to rehearse and perform with the Camerata de la Sierra from April 14-19.

Todd Green, Minden: awarded $1,350 to support the performance, recording and editing of a 2-hour concert. The footage would then be used for promotional purposes for presenters around the country.

Martin A. David, Reno: awarded $840 to support an exhibition of his drawings at the Saint Mary's Art Center in Virginia City. The solo exhibition will open in early April and run for 10 weeks. The exhibition will include a minimum of 18 major works, comprising both retrospective pieces and new drawings.

Arthur Richmond, Reno: awarded $1,050 to support painting two murals in the rural communities of Fernley and Yerington. These murals will be based off the local flora and fauna and connect the rural communities with their surrounding natural environments through arts and culture.

Dean Burton, Reno: awarded $1,500 to support a solo exhibition of new photographs at Sierra Arts Gallery in Reno from April 29 – May 31, 2020. The artwork is comprised of landscape photography from Nevada and California with a focus on Northern Nevada and the Eastern Sierra.

Dr. Kathleen Kristy Brooks, Las Vegas: awarded $1,500 to support THE SOUL OF ROCK N ROLL, a new musical exploring the historical origins and influence of gospel, blues, jazz, and rhythm and blues on Rock 'n’ Roll. THE SOUL OF ROCK ‘N’ ROLL premieres January 18- 19 at the Clark County Library Theater.

Eugene Shapiro, Henderson: awarded $1,200 to support a Shapiro Project concert at the Winchester Dondero Cultural Center entitled "The Music of Stevie Wonder." It will be at 7 p.m. on April 30, in celebration of International Jazz Day.

Megan Berner, Reno: awarded $1,200 to support the creation of an artist’s book of her series of over 400 sunrise photographs taken over the course of 7 years. The proposed project includes a hand-bound, hardcover limited edition of 50 books, signed and numbered, and a softcover, trade edition with an initial run of 150.

Michael Forsch, Las Vegas: awarded $1,350 to support the production of “The Eternos,” a 15-minute action adventure short film that explores the fate of the world through the eyes of our heroine Sophia, the last remnants of the Knights Templar.

Morrain Bauer, Reno: awarded $1,350 to support the creation of an outdoor art installation with the goal of creating a temporary domestic space in a natural environment by incorporating photography, mirrors, cut paper, and drawings. The completed installation and exhibition will take place on June 22, 2020 at a location to be determined.

Nathaniel Benjamin, Reno: awarded $1,350 to support an exhibition that immerses the viewer in an interactive environment consisting of large-scale prints and installations. These prints would continue the artist’s visual theme of combining biology and technology. The installation is proposed to be exhibited at The Holland Project in Spring/Summer of 2020.

Pamela Lappen, Las Vegas: awarded $1,500 to support the creation and initial performances of “When Parkinsons Knocks on Your Door,” a dance piece that is a creative exploration about when Parkinson's disease enters life. This dance piece is Phase One of “Meet Parkinsons” a performance art piece that will combine dance, music, visual art, and theater created and inspired by people with Parkinson’s disease.

Rosie Trump, Reno: awarded $1,417.50 to support the production of “First Dance,” a short creative non-fiction dance film directed, edited, and produced by Rosie Trump. “First Dance” is a cross-generational interview project, where interviewees of many ages are filmed narrating their first memory of dancing.

Sean Russell, Las Vegas: awarded $1,476.74 to support a solo exhibition of artwork at the College of Southern Nevada’s North Las Vegas campus Artspace Gallery beginning on May 15 through July 18. The exhibition is tentatively titled “Bouquet of Pheasants,” and will consist of 20 new 40”x 40” works using various mixed media, photographic, printmaking, and painting techniques.

Shannon Dorn, Las Vegas: awarded $1,350 to support post-production and promotion of “702 Unstripped,” a subculture documentary with collected footage from the early 2000s until today. “702 Unstripped” aims to take audiences through the undiscovered graffiti-filled alleyways, b-boy jams, and hidden hubs of Vegas culture.

Sherry Rosenthal, Las Vegas: awarded $1,350 to support the initial draft, professional editing, and final publication draft of her novel “RIVER HORSE GODS,” set in 1960’s Ghana and inspired by a true story.

Tia Flores, Reno: awarded $1,500 to support an artist talk and month-long art exhibition at Sierra Arts Foundation in February. The solo exhibition, “An Artist’s Journey to the Amazon Rainforest” will showcase recent artwork (pyrographic calabaza sculptures) influenced by the artist’s June 2018 and March 2019 trips to the Peruvian Amazon Rainforest. The exhibit will also feature personal photographs of the Amazon and its unique habitat and remote cultures taken during the trips.

The grants were first reviewed by a grants review panel on Dec. 11 and received final approval from the Nevada Arts Council Board on Dec. 13.