• Example One: The artists that have space in an artist studio building in Pawtucket will work together to have a building wide open studio on the weekend of November 15-16. Approximately 30 artists are expected to participate.
• Example Two: On June 27, artists in southern Rhode Island will open their studios as part of the South Art Trail. Approximately 20 artists will participate, across five different towns. These art studios are both stand-alone, and larger buildings of studios, and will include the gallery and studios at South County Art Association. The group will market an art trail together, including a brochure that features the various stops.

You must be:

• 18 years of age or older.
• Domiciled in Rhode Island for at least one year at the time of application. This means Rhode Island is your primary residence, and is the address you use for legal forms, state income taxes, car registration, driver’s license or state issued identification, and voter registration - regardless of whether you own or rent your home. You must reside in the state for at least 183 days per year.
• A legal resident of the United States with a tax identification number (either Social Security number or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number). This includes refugees, immigrants, and temporary residents. This does not include people in the country on a tourist visa.
• Funding project activity taking place in Rhode Island.

Note: You may only receive one AOST per state’s fiscal year (July 1 to June 30). Your open studio tour may only receive one AOST per state fiscal year.

Ineligible

If you are:

• A current recipient of the General Operating Support for Artists grant.
• A staff member or Council member of RISCA, or an immediate family member of a staff or Council member.
• Currently enrolled in an arts degree seeking program or attending high school full time.
• Applying for or receiving support for this project or aspects of this project through another RISCA grant program.
• Delinquent on any final reports for previous RISCA grants.

• All grant awards are contingent upon the availability of funds from the Rhode Island State General Assembly and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).
• The grant award in this category is $750.
  • Note: No partial grants will be awarded – meaning you will either receive the full amount you apply for or no funding.
• AOST applications are screened for eligibility and completeness, and then awarded on a first come first served basis until funds for the fiscal year have been expended.
• You have the option of declining the grant award with no penalties.
• If you receive a grant, you must credit RISCA on all marketing materials. See Acknowledging RISCA.

Allowable

• Grants can be used for expenses related to your project and its production or presentation, marketing, and accessibility efforts. This includes paying any artists or arts administrators involved for their time, including the applicant. You will use the grant for the expenses you planned for in the budget you submitted.
  • We understand that your budget is just a plan, and that you may spend the funds in slightly different ways. You just need to inform RISCA staff once your program is complete.
• Programs must occur in spaces that are Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant. You are ineligible for a RISCA grant if your facility does not meet ADA standards. See the NEA’s Accessibility: Publications, Checklists, & Resources for more information.

Not Allowable

Grant funding cannot be used for the following:

• Capital projects, including the construction or renovation of buildings, or additions to buildings.
• Any fundraising expenses – like creating rewards for a Kickstarter or hosting a fundraising event for any purpose.
• Food or beverage that is not integral to the project. Purchase of alcohol with grant funds is strictly prohibited. You may not spend grant funds on hospitality, travel, or food and beverage expenses if it was not described in the budget you submitted with your application.
  • Please contact the Artist Programs Director with specific questions.
• Addressing, eliminating, or reducing existing debt.
• Prizes and awards for an event, person, and/or organization.
• Regranting funds to support grants to other artists or organizations through an application or award process.
• Activities that are associated with a graduate or undergraduate degree program or for which academic credit is received.
• Applications for projects that proselytize or promote religious activities, or which take place as part of a religious service.­­
• Expenses incurred or activity happening outside of the award period.

You are required to submit

• A tentative list of the artists who will be participating.
• Bio/Resume/CV of the lead applicant: The artist bio, resume, or cv will need to be submitted as either a word document or PDF. Please submit whichever of the three, or a combination, that you feel best represents you.
• Letter of Commitment: A short letter of support or commitment from an additional participating artist, studio space, or studio building. This must be uploaded as either a word document or PDF.

You may submit up to 4 additional support materials, but these are not required. File formats you can directly upload to the application include JPG, PDF, Word Doc, Excel. These might include:

• Bios and/or resumes from other participating artists.
• Collateral or marketing from previous open studio tours.
• Artwork examples from participating artists.

Note: If you are submitting video or audio, please link to YouTube, Vimeo, SoundCloud in the text box and on the support material list. File formats you can directly upload to the application include JPG, PDF, Word, Excel. Do not submit files in Pages or Numbers format. Our grants system is unable to read files in these formats.

Rhode Island Residency: Have been domiciled in Rhode Island for at least one year at the time of application. This means Rhode Island is your primary residence, and is the address you use for legal forms, state income taxes, car registration, driver’s license or state issued identification, and voter registration - regardless of whether you own or rent your home. You must reside in the state for at least 183 days per year.