A Look at One Organization’s Experience with Grant Funding Award
Kate Martinez’s sixth-grade art class poses with Pelican Rapids Mayor Brent Frazier to take a “thank you” picture after learning that they were awarded their LRAC grant to design a mural for their downtown area.
Each year, LRAC offers a variety of grants that benefit arts organizations and artists across our 9-county region. Funding from these grants goes towards helping the awardees expand their artistic endeavors and further bring the arts to people throughout their communities.
Over the past year, one of these awardees, the City of Pelican Rapids in Otter Tail County, utilized the $9,550 they received to design and implement a mural that was recently installed on a prominent building on main street in downtown Pelican Rapids, at the entrance to their city park system. Here’s a look at the journey one sixth-grade class took with a local artist to see their project through to fruition.
Collaborative Art Project Benefits Local Community
Led by their art teacher, Kate Martinez, the sixth-grade students at Viking Elementary in Pelican Rapids researched and produced a mural that honored the journey of their diverse community. Working side-by-side with Midwest mural artist Paul Johnson, this 8-foot-tall mural depicts colorful flowers, birds, trees, and other animals.
At the forefront are two central hands – one white and one black – that cradle a multi-colored butterfly. Lining the top, the words Welcome to Pelican Rapids! greets the community with bright, bold lettering.
The mural features two central hands - one black and one white - to symbolize and honor the city’s diverse community.
“The creation and installation of this mural has numerous benefits for the community,” said Martinez about the project. “It will educate and empower young artists, honor our diverse community, and provide a permanent component showing Pelican Rapids’ appreciation of art, diversity, and nature.”
Throughout the course of two months, the students worked together to craft their mural designs following a one-day workshop with Pelican Rapids’ mural artist, Paul Johnson. Known for his annual mural work at Concordia College Christmas concerts, Johnson scanned each of the students’ pieces into Adobe Photoshop and used over 80% of their ideas to create a landscape that combined their images together. From there, it was printed on six 4’x8’ aluminum panels and installed for the students and their proud community to see.
Grant Funding Unites Us with the Arts
Logo for the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment
Opportunities like this are just one of the many benefits provided by our Legacy Grants. Funding for these grant rounds comes from Minnesota’s Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund through the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment.
The purpose of this fund is to increase Arts Access, Arts Learning and Arts Cultural Heritage opportunities for all Minnesotans.
Guidelines for eligibility for Individuals, Organizations, and Local Governments can be found on the LRAC website at lrac4.org, and questions can be addressed to the LRAC office via phone at (888) 735-9622, email at lrac4@lracgrants.com, or by visiting us in the office at 133 S Mill St, Fergus Falls, MN, 56537.
