New York Launches Program To Give Creatives $1K Incomes, No Strings Attached

Following in the footsteps of cities like San Francisco, New York State is dedicating US$125 million into guaranteed incomes for 2,400 artists to support their hopes to keep creating.

Under a new program called Creatives Rebuild New York, individuals in the art sector can apply for US$1,000 monthly stipends for 18 consecutive months, with no strings attached. A second part of the philanthropic initiative offers up US$65,000-a-year jobs, with benefits, for two years at community-based organizations to 300 artists living in New York State.

“New York isn’t New York without artists,” emphasizes the program’s website. Primary funding comes from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, with US$5 million donated by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and another US$5 million from the Ford Foundation. The Tides Center oversees the financial contributions.

A report from the state comptroller in February 2021, via Hyperallergic, revealed that the art sector was one of the industries most vulnerable to the pandemic. It noted that, in 2020, two-thirds of jobs in the arts, entertainment, and recreation disciplines in New York City were lost. The city compensated with a US$25 million City Artist Corps recovery scheme to introduce 1,500 public art and performance jobs.

Eligibility requirements for the new program are pretty broad. Creatives Rebuild New York defines an “artist” as “someone who regularly engages in artistic or cultural practice to: express themselves with the intention of communicating richly to or sharing with others; pass on traditional knowledge and cultural practices; offer cultural resources to their communities; and/or co-organize and co-create within communities toward social impacts.” The key expectation is that they are able to demonstrate financial need. 

Applicants can stem from creative fields spanning crafts, dance, design, film, literary arts, media arts, music, oral traditions, social practice, theater, performance art, traditional arts, visual arts, and interdisciplinary arts. They can also include non-English speakers, artists with disabilities, and individuals who don’t have access to the internet.

“CRNY aims to catalyze systemic change in the arts and cultural economy, recognize the value of artists’ contributions, and reshape society’s understanding of artists as workers who are vital to the health of our communities,” says the project.

Sarah Calderon, executive director of Creatives Rebuild New York, told the New York Times that the initiative “isn’t just about the pandemic.” More than anything, the program hopes to reinforce the arts as a viable path for work for the state’s diverse creatives and to give New York’s creative economy the kiss of life.

“Simply put, we must move beyond valuing the artistic product and begin to value the humanity of the artist,” notes the program. “Artists need and deserve to be paid predictable and regular incomes.”

Submissions for the grants will stay open through March 25. Find out more here.

[via Hyperallergic, New York Times, Artnet News, cover photo 52817280 © Zhukovsky | Dreamstime.com]