NEWS RELEASE
Contact: Council President Michael Murphy Chair, Milwaukee Arts Board
Milwaukee Arts Board awards $213,500 to 33 organizations;
Steve VandeZande and Lori Bauman named Friends of the Arts
An Eco-Arts Park in Walker’s Point, a bilingual Spanish community storytelling project, and a multi-disciplinary play celebrating the wisdom of Native elders are among 33 projects awarded funding recently by the Milwaukee Arts Board.
At its May meeting, the MAB approved the recommendation of its citizen review panel to award $213,500 in grants ranging from $3,500 to $7,000. MAB grants require a dollar-for-dollar cash match from other sources, and the combined budgets of the 33 selected projects this year is more than $2.7 million.
This year marks the 25th annual grant awards. Between 1991 and 2015 the Milwaukee Arts Board has awarded more than $4.5 million to 126 different organizations.
While a few arts groups have gone by the wayside, new groups are always forming and still others are stronger than ever. According to Michael Murphy, Milwaukee Common Council President and Arts Board Chair, “Today our vibrant arts scene draws regional audiences, bringing economic vitality and national prestige to our City.”
By reducing administrative expenses and with a modest budget increase, dollar amounts awarded by the MAB in 2014 and 2015 are at a historic high.
“Our community recognizes that the arts are not an extra. They can delight, educate and stimulate meaningful dialogue among audiences representing our diverse cultures,” Murphy continued.
This year’s projects tackle issues such as race, immigration, community, resilience, social justice and cross cultural communication.
The next Milwaukee Arts Board meeting is Tuesday, June 9, at 4 p.m. in the atrium of the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. The awards reception begins at 4:30 p.m. followed by the grants presentation at 5 p.m.
At the reception the 
MAB will also honor the recipients of the 4th annual Friends of the Arts Award. This award, established in 2012, is given to individuals who, often behind the scenes, have distinguished themselves through exceptional service to Milwaukee’s arts community. Receiving the award this year are Steve Vande Zande and Lori Bauman, co-founders of RedLine Milwaukee, described as “an urban laboratory that seeks to nourish the individual practice of contemporary art and to stimulate the creative potential of the local community to which we are linked.” In 2009 Vande Zande and Bauman transformed a more than century-old former lithography building at 1422 N. 4th St. into an art and education incubator with artist studios, social relevant exhibitions, education and outreach programs, print shop, papermaking studio and dye lab.
Lori is an arts administrator and artist whose collage, video and site-specific works draw inspiration from extensive world travel study. She has taught video art at Alverno College and worked with teens as an artist-in-residence at the Milwaukee Art Museum.
Steve is a multimedia artist who currently works as the creativity and innovation program implementer at Bay View High School. In 2003 he received the Outstanding Educator of the Year award from the Wisconsin Art Education Association, and in 2004 the Excellence in Education Award from Milwaukee Public Schools. In 2009, Steve was awarded Outstanding Faculty Lecturer for Educational Policy and Leadership from the Marquette University College of Education. In 2013 he was named mentor of the year by The Southern Graphics Council.
The Milwaukee Arts Board grant program is funded by the City of Milwaukee with additional support from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin.
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