DES MOINES – As Iowa’s arts and culture sector continues to rebound from a challenging year, the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs is granting $1 million to market the return to arts and culture experiences, while encouraging Iowans to safely re-engage with concerts, museums, festivals — and each other. The department today (Friday) announced that 118 arts and cultural groups in 47 Iowa communities will receive funding through the Iowa Arts & Culture Marketing Grant program. The department awarded a total of $1 million in grants, in amounts ranging from $1,500 to $18,000. The new, one-time grants were created with federal CARES Act funds that Gov. Kim Reynolds allocated to the department to provide economic relief to Iowa organizations that have been challenged by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The state arts and cultural agency developed a related promotional campaign and toolkit, based on input from statewide arts and culture leaders, to encourage Iowans to “Re-imagine, Re-engage, Reconnect” with arts and cultural experiences. The list of recipients, dispersed throughout 37 Iowa counties, includes local arts councils, theaters and historical attractions, as well as some of the state’s largest museums, art centers and performing arts venues. Here are just a few from around western Iowa:

• Council Bluffs: Preserve Council Bluffs will bring back its popular Historic Homes for the Holidays Tour and produce advertisements to help residents in a five-county region reconnect with the organization’s work to promote the area’s cultural heritage and historic preservation. Grant amount: $2,100.
• Corning: Corning Opera House Cultural Center received a $2,700 grant for marketing expenses
• Greenfield & Red Oak: The Warren Cultural Center in Greenfield, and The Wilson Performing Arts Center in Red Oak, each received a $15,000 grant for marketing expenses.
• Pottawattamie County Arts, Culture & Entertainment and the Pott. County Genealogical Society, both in Council Bluffs, each received a grant for marketing expenses, in the amounts of $17,800 and $1,700, respectively.
• Other grants for Marketing Expenses include:
  • The Museum of Danish America, in Elk Horn, $17,500
  • The New Century Art Guild in Elk Horn, $4,900.

The return to arts and culture marketing grants were created to help Iowa’s arts and cultural organizations publicize their activities and new protocols they’ve established to ensure safe and healthy cultural experiences for visitors and audiences who are re-engaging in arts and cultural activities across the state.

Through the grant opportunity and marketing campaign, the department is encouraging all Iowans to:

• Renew their love of performances, film, museums and all of the arts and historical attractions that make our communities culturally vibrant.
• Re-engage with Iowa arts, culture, film, history and the humanities to support Iowa’s growing creative workforce.
• Reconnect with arts, history, film and cultural experiences for personal well-being and to strengthen communities.

In a typical year, Iowa’s creative sector contributes $4.2 billion to the state’s economy, employing more than 43,000 creative workers across more than 5,000 businesses statewide. In 2020, Iowa’s nonprofit arts and culture sector lost millions in revenue and at least 4,500 arts, entertainment and recreation jobs, stemming from event cancellations and closures due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

For a complete list of Iowa Arts & Culture Marketing Grant recipients, visit the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs website. For more information about the Re-imagine campaign, visit iowaculture.