upcoming grant deadline: 05/15/2024

upcoming grant deadline: 05/15/2024

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Twenty Philadelphia-Area Women Artists Receive Leeway “Window Of Opportunity” Grants

PHILADELPHIA, PA - The Leeway Foundation is pleased to announce the selection of twenty women artists to receive June Window of Opportunity (WOO) grants. WOO grants provide short-term, immediate assistance to individual women artists living in the Philadelphia area who wish to take advantage of specific opportunities that significantly benefit their work or increase its recognition. Grants totaling $33,012 were awarded to:

Myra Bazell (Montgomery County) $1,000
DANCE: Choreography and performance of a newly-created piece. Presented at the Lincoln Center's "Out of Doors" series and part of the Center's 2003 "Philly Feet" program. Support towards artist fees.

Iris N. Brown (Philadelphia County) $1,650
FOLK ARTS: Travel to Loiza, Puerto Rico to study and preserve the traditional African recipes of the region. Support towards travel, materials, and mentor and documentation expenses.

Nicole Cousineau (Philadelphia County) $1,000
DANCE: Premiere of a newly-finished collaborative work that examines the intersection between movement and other artistic disciplines. Part of the NEW Project, presented at the Arts Bank. Support towards production expenses.

Mary DeWitt (Delaware County) $1,000
CERAMICS/PAINTING: Installation of a tile mural portrait focusing on incarcerated women serving life sentences. Mural installed in West Philadelphia. Support towards materials.

Joy Feasley (Philadelphia County) $2,000
PAINTING: Exhibition of Plexiglas crystal star forms combined with various forms of painting. Part of the Fleisher Art Memorial Challenge Exhibition. Support towards materials.

Susan Fenton (Montgomery County) $2,000
PHOTOGRAPHY: Solo exhibition of hand-painted photography investigating the relationship between the human form and the fetishism of fashion. Presented at the Schneider Gallery in Chicago. Support towards framing, materials and shipping expenses.

Liz Goldberg (Philadelphia County) $2,000
FILM/PAINTING: Premiere of an animated film about Philadelphia at the Gallerie Chez in Pittsburgh, New Haven International Film Festival and Chicago International Children's Film Festival. Also broadcast on WYBE's "Philadelphia Stories." Support towards materials and production and travel expenses.

Cheryl Hess (Delaware County) $2,000
FILM/VIDEO: Screening of a Cuban-themed documentary as part of Festival Cubano. Support towards post-production expenses.

Nadia Hironaka (Philadelphia County) $800
VIDEO INSTALLATION: Sculptural/video installation that explores connections between cinematic, sculptural and architectural spaces. Part of a group exhibition at the Fabric Workshop and Museum. Support towards materials and production expenses.

Sharon Katz (Philadelphia County) $2,000
MUSIC/THEATRE: Travel to South Africa to study pre-Apartheid musical styles with a mentor. In preparation for the creation of a new musical to premiere at Freedom Theatre. Support towards travel expenses.

Jennifer Levonian (Philadelphia County) $904
WORKS ON PAPER: Presentation of large drawings that investigate the ways that contemporary living spaces both alienate and provide solace. Part of the Fleisher Art Memorial Challenge Exhibition. Support towards framing and materials.

Jennifer Macdonald (Philadelphia County) $1,908
PAINTING/WORKS ON PAPER/VIDEO ANIMATION: Presentation of mixed media work using imagery influenced by animals, children's book illustrations and ancient art. Part of the Fleisher Art Memorial Challenge Exhibition. Support towards materials and framing.

Sarah McEneaney (Philadelphia County) $2,000
PAINTING: Solo exhibition of egg tempera on gessoed wood panels. Survey exhibition covering 25 years of artmaking. Presented at the Institute of Contemporary Art. Support towards the design and printing of an accompanying catalog.

Anne-Marie Mulgrew (Philadelphia County) $2,000
DANCE/INTERDISCIPLINARY: Dance/video residency at Jacob's Pillow. In preparation for a curated Fringe Festival performance. Support towards travel, materials and production expenses.

Ione Nash (Philadelphia County) $2,000
DANCE: Travel to Ghana for advanced study with a mentor to further understanding of the culture and traditions of African drumming and dance. Support towards mentor fees, materials and documentation expenses.

Jodi Netzer (Philadelphia County) $1,000
PERFORMANCE/INSTALLATION: "Solitary confinement" installation, which explores issues of self-reflection and surveillance. Part of the unfiltered Fringe Festival. Support towards materials.

Maria T. Rodriguez (Philadelphia County) $2,000
FILM/VIDEO: Documentary exploring school reform as enacted at a Philadelphia bilingual elementary school. Broadcast on WYBE's "Philadelphia Stories." Support towards post-production expenses.

Sara Steele (Philadelphia County) $2,000
PAINTING: Exhibition of new work as well as a mid-career survey. Presented at Ursinus College's Berman Museum. Support towards materials and framing.

Amanda Tinker (Philadelphia County) $1,750
PHOTOGRAPHY: Presentation of pastoral landscapes layered with images taken from TV nature programs and natural disasters. Part of a group exhibition at the Woodmere Art Museum. Support towards framing.

The Jury Panel

This WOO cycle was juried by members of Leeway's Program Committee–Linda Lee Alter, Sara Becker and Charlene Longnecker, along with guest jurors, Gretjen Clausing and Theresa Shockley (see bios).

Since 1989, Gretjen Clausing has been an active member of the Philadelphia media arts community as a programmer, videomaker and activist. In the winter of 1999 she was hired by the Prince Music Theater to create Film at the Prince, a film/video series comprised of classic art house fare and new work by emerging and established artists. From 1989 to 1998, she worked at the Neighborhood Film/Video Project at International House, where she was one of the original staff members for the Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema. In her final year at International House she was the coordinator of the Philadelphia Independent/Film Video Association, a regional membership organization, which supports the work of Philadelphia-based media artists. She is one of the co-creators/producers of the television show "Big Tea Party," Philadelphia's only anarchistic home-economics show, airing weekly on DUTV Cable 54 since January 1999. "Big Tea Party" received the Festival of Independents Best Documentary Prize at the 2001 Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema. She has been a juror and panelist for many local festivals and is a founding member of the Philadelphia Coalition for Public Access, a grassroots group organizing to get public access television activated in Philadelphia. She has done film exhibition consulting for the Sedgwick Cultural Center in Germantown, Scribe Video Center and several independent filmmakers.

Theresa Shockley is an artist turned arts administrator, currently serving as the executive director of the Community Education Center/CEC of West Philadelphia. She is an alumnus of the Ohio State University Dance Department with over 30 years of experience as a performer, educator, and arts administrator. She is a founding member and ten-year veteran of the renowned dance theatre company Urban Bush Women (UBW). The multi-disciplinary company is known for its performance works that bring stories of the African diaspora to the stage, and for their work with community empowerment. Shockley continues her association with UBW through her work on the Board of Directors, and also serves on the Dance Advisory Committee of the Painted Bride.

About The Window of Opportunity

The Leeway Foundation's Window of Opportunity grants support specific, concrete and timely opportunities that have a significant impact on an artist's work–such as an exceptional chance for advanced study with a significant mentor; travel associated with a residency, reading, performance or exhibition; or rental of equipment or purchase of materials needed to complete a scheduled project. Women artists working in all disciplines are encouraged to apply and may request up to $2,000. The remaining 2003 WOO application deadline is November 3, 2003. Applications are available at www.leeway.org or by calling 215.545.4078.

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Leeway grant?

Window of Opportunity Grant

The Window of Opportunity (WOO) grant provides financial assistance of up to $1,500 to Leeway grant and award recipients to help them take advantage of imminent, time-sensitive opportunities to support their art for social change practice. The Community Care Fund (CCF) provides financial assistance of up to $1,250 to Leeway grant and award recipients to support with immediate and essential emergency needs. [read more]

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Upcoming events
04/025:30 pm - 7:00 pm

4/2 Transformation Award (LTA) Awardee Panel + Info Session (In Person)

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04/185:30 pm - 6:30 pm

4/18 Transformation Award (LTA) Info Session (Virtual)

Have questions about the application process for the Leeway Transformation Award?

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