Two Funds Award Nearly $190,000 to Artists and Arts Organizations

Two of our funds recently awarded nearly $190,000 in grants to support the work of local and regional artists. Recipients use this opportunity to explore new creative paths in all forms of media.

By Darryl Gangloff / February 16, 2022

Alyssa Pheobus Mumtaz of Williamstown, Mass., said she is pursuing new large-scale paintings and textile projects she “wouldn’t have had the courage to do” without grants she received from the Artist's Resource Trust (A.R.T.) Fund in 2020 and the Martha Boschen Porter Fund in 2021. Watch the short video below to hear the impact of these gifts in her own words.


ARTIST’S RESOURCE TRUST (A.R.T.) FUND AWARDS $120,000 IN 2021

The Artist’s Resource Trust Fund celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2021. Read more about the history of the fund in our BTCF News publication. The fund supports mid-career visual artists with financial need in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire and Rhode Island, as well as Columbia and northeast Dutchess counties in New York. Nonprofit organizations wishing to show, commission or purchase work by mature artists living in New England may also apply. Applications are due Aug. 1.

Grants to individual artists in 2021

  • Lani Asuncion of Jamaica Plain, Mass.
  • Rosemarie Bernardi of Keene, N.H.
  • William Binnie of Williamstown, Mass.
  • Robert Castagna of Medford, Mass.
  • Julia Dixon of North Adams, Mass.
  • Michelle Lougee of Cambridge, Mass.
  • Joshua Reiman of Portland, Maine
  • David Ricci of Lee, Mass.
  • Allison Maria Rodriguez of Jamaica Plain, Mass.
  • Sean Salstrom of North Kingstown, R.I.
  • Leslie Sills of Brookline, Mass.
  • Azadeh Tajpour of Watertown, Mass.
  • Vaune Trachtman of Brattleboro, Vt.

Grants to arts organizations in 2021

  • Addison Gallery of American Art in Andover, Mass.
  • Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, Conn.
  • Becket Arts Center in Becket, Mass.
  • Boston Cyberarts in Jamaica Plain, Mass.
  • Fitchburg Art Museum in Fitchburg, Mass.
  • MASS MoCA in North Adams, Mass.
  • The Trustees of Reservations in Boston, Mass.
  • Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, Vt.
  • Wassaic Project in Wassaic, N.Y.

Laura Didyk of Great Barrington received a Martha Boschen Porter Fund grant to work on a book-length memoir composed of a series of linked essays. Photo: John Dolan

MARTHA BOSCHEN PORTER FUND AWARDS OVER $66,000 IN 2021

The Martha Boschen Porter Fund supports regional artists in all media—including painters, writers, photographers and musicians—who are emerging in their field or experiencing a significant change of direction in their work. Artists who reside in Berkshire, Columbia, northeast Dutchess or northwest Litchfield counties may apply by July 15.

Grants to individual artists in 2021

  • Andrew Appel of Craryville, N.Y.
  • William Binnie of Williamstown, Mass.
  • Laura Cannamela of Valatie, N.Y.
  • Valerie Carrigan of North Adams, Mass.
  • Laura Didyk of Great Barrington, Mass.
  • Ashley Garrett of East Chatham, N.Y.
  • Sarah Lister Hernandez of West Stockbridge, Mass.
  • Brian Kantor of Sheffield, Mass.
  • Martin Landau of North Adams, Mass.
  • Cristine Levitre of Charlemont, Mass.
  • Jerry Lieblich of Williamstown, Mass.
  • Alyssa Pheobus Mumtaz of Williamstown, Mass.
  • Nina Pelaez of North Adams, Mass.
  • Peggy Reeves of Great Barrington, Mass.
  • David Ricci of Lee, Mass.
  • Molly Rideout of North Adams, Mass.
  • Chad Weckler of Livingston, N.Y.
  • Shuhui (Sophia) Zhou of Millbrook, N.Y.

Grant to an organization in 2021

  • Millay Colony in Austerlitz, N.Y., to support a month-long residency for one Martha Boschen Porter Fund grantee