Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs awards $2.3 million

More than 200 Iowa organizations and individuals working in arts and culture, film and media, and history and historic preservation will receive a boost from $2.3 million in grant awards announced recently by the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs.

In response to the pandemic, the Iowa Arts Council consolidated some of its previous grant programs into a new Iowa Arts & Cultural Resilience Grant program to give individuals and organizations more flexibility. Des Moines European Heritage Association is a proud recipient of this grant. This year, the Iowa Arts Council awarded $1,632,495 in grants to 192 projects across the state.

The grants are funded through the annual appropriations passed by the Iowa Legislature and signed into law by Governor Reynolds, effective July 1, 2021. The state’s investment is enhanced by funding from two federal agencies, the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, and administered by the department’s three divisions: the Iowa Arts Council, State Historical Society of Iowa and Produce Iowa, the state office of film and media production.

“The annual funding has never been more important than this year’s investment, which will help fuel the resurgence of Iowa’s arts, film, heritage, humanities and creative sectors,” Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs Director Chris Kramer said. “Audiences and visitors are eagerly returning to museums and historic sites, concerts and cultural festivals this summer, even as our industry continues to rebound from substantial financial losses from the pandemic.”

In this round, the department made 244 grant awards for community initiatives and creative projects across the state, arts and cultural organizations, individual artists and filmmakers and historic preservation efforts in 46 counties and 71 communities.