The Artist Support Grant was created to provide direct support to individual artists during and following the COVID-19 pandemic. The initiative will fund professional artists to enhance their skills and abilities to create work, or to improve their business operations, and capacity to bring their work to new audiences.
Eligible artists include North Carolina residents who have resided in eastern North Carolina for at least one year in the following counties: Edgecombe, Greene, Nash, Pitt, Wayne, and Wilson. Artists can include musicians, dancers, filmmakers, actors, literary artists, as well as visual artists. The average grant award is between $500 and $1,000.
This project is supported by the N.C. Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural & Cultural Resources. www.NCArts.org.
Application Information
Due Date: Saturday, October 4, 2025 by 11:59pm
All applications must be received online unless other arrangements have been discussed with staff.
Click appropriate button below to access the online application for your specific arts genre:
Artist Support Grants Facts & Guidelines
Download a powerpoint from aSG workshop
This program funds regional consortia of local arts councils that award project grants to artists in their regions. These grants support professional artists in all disciplines and at any stage in their careers to pursue projects that further their artistic developments. Types of fundable projects include:
- Creation of a new artwork
- Purchase of equipment
- Professional development workshops
- Travel support for expenses associated with participating in a professional exhibition or conference
- Development or updating promotional materials (websites, brochures, DVDs, and CDs)
The North Carolina Arts Council grants fund to the regional consortia by weighing the history and breadth of artist demand in the region, and the amount of the proposed artist match, among other factors. The average grant to artists is between $500 – $1000. The project must occur between January 1, 2025 - December 31, 2026.
Applicants who have previously received funding through this program must wait at least one cycle after the award year to become eligible to reapply in the same discipline. Grantees from 2025 are not eligible to reapply for 2026, unless they apply with a project in another discipline.
Participating consortia promote the grant opportunity to the artists in their region, set specific regional guidelines in accordance with Arts Council guidelines, appoint a selection committee made up of arts professionals with expertise in disciplines under review, and facilitate the selection and award process. North Carolina Arts Council staff advises each regional consortium and attends selection panel meetings.
Pitt County Arts Council at Emerge serves as lead for the Eastern North Carolina regional consortium, and receives the Artists Support grant applications, schedules regional training sessions for artists, and manages the grant selection process. For more information, contact Holly Garriott, Executive Director, Pitt County Arts Council at Emerge, holly@pittcountyarts.org, 252-551-6947.
*Subject to overall dollar limits for the region.
Partner Organizations: Greene County Arts and Historical Society, Nash County Arts Council, Arts Council of Wayne County, and Arts Council of Wilson
2025 Artists Support Grantees
Jeremiah Barnes, Pitt County
Jaden Bynum, Wayne County
Marly Carmona Uzcategui, Pitt County
Jerome De Perlinghi, Wilson County
Tyshika Dickens, Wilson County
Lori Drake, Pitt County
Erika Eagle Gibson, Pitt County
Robin Haller, Pitt County
Rakia Jackson, Pitt County
Kim Joy, Wilson County
Nanyoung Kim, Pitt County
Borim Song, Pitt County
George Snyder III, Pitt County
Kirby Terrell, Pitt County
BA Thomas, Pitt County
Joshua Vaughan, Pitt County
Congratulations to all of our 2025 awardees. Awardees should use the link below for their Final Report.
*This is the final report link for 2025 awardees ONLY. The application for 2026 will be towards the end of the summer.
2024 Artists Support Grantees
Jacinda Aytch, Pitt County
Rae Barnes, Wilson County
Sonya Coulson Rook, Pitt County
Arden Coutts, Wilson County
Tyshika Dickens, Wilson County
Britt Edwards, Wilson County
Susan Fecho, Edgecombe County
Anna Hinson, Wayne County
Kevin Howard, Wilson County
Lydia Hyslop, Edgecombe County
Sarah Ottinger, Pitt County
Maria Ramirez, Wilson County
Lisa Beth Robinson, Pitt County
Sirius Spears, Greene County
Liz Steiner, Pitt County
Cheryl Stephenson, Pitt County
R. Michael Stephenson, Pitt County
Ammini Thompson, Pitt County
Congratulations to all of our 2023-2024 awardees. Awardees should use the link below for their Final Report.
*This is the final report link for 2023-2024 awardees ONLY. The application for 2024-2025 will be towards the end of the summer.
2022-2023 Artists Support Grantees
Marilynn Barner Anselmi, Nash County
Curtis Baines, Wilson County
Rachel Barnes, Wilson County
Julienne Beblo, Pitt County
Nathan Black, Pitt County
Megan Ellison, Pitt County
Robin Haller, Pitt County
Aaron Hines, Pitt County
Frank Johnson, Wilson County
Stuart Kent, Pitt County
LaRonnieca Maye, Pitt County
Sienna Morgan, Nash County
Jerome De Perlinghi, Wilson County
Nora Parker, Pitt County
John Rood, Wilson County
Borim Song, Pitt County
Robert Tillery, Pitt County
Tharyn Wiley, Wilson County
Congratulations to all of our 2022-2023 awardees. Awardees should use the link below for their Final Report.
*This is the final report link for 2022-2023 awardees ONLY. The application for 2023-2024 will be towards the end of the summer.
Partner Organizations: Greene County Arts and Historical Society, Nash County Arts Council, Arts Council of Wayne County, and Arts Council of Wilson
2021-2022 Artists Support Grantees
Matthew Amante, Pitt County
Jessica Bradsher, Pitt County
David Lee Buchanan, Pitt County
Dale Lee Bryce, Wilson County
Terri Campbell-Peyton, Pitt County
Shannon Chamblee, Pitt County
Gabrielle Duggan, Pitt County
Janie Askew Goddard, Pitt County
Rakia Jackson, Pitt County
Andre Jones, Wayne County
Sherrod Zachary Knox, Pitt County
Jordan Krutsch, Wayne County
Imani McCray, Pitt County
Lisa Beth Robinson, Pitt County
Daniel Shirley, Pitt County
Cyrus Claude Spears, Pitt County
Liz Steiner, Pitt County
Cedric Turner-Kopa, Wayne County
Alice Vines, Pitt County
Congratulations to all of our 2021-2022 awardees. Awardees should use the link below for their Final Report.
*This is the final report link for 2021-2022 awardees ONLY. The application for 2022-2023 will be towards the end of the summer.
2020-2021 Artists Support Grantees
Jacinda Aytch, Pitt County
Jessica Bradsher, Pitt County
Jerome De Perlinghi, Wilson County
Paula Jordan-Mayo, Pitt County
Jeff Bell, Wilson County
Ryan Harper, Pitt County
Rakia Jackson, Pitt County
Dale Bryce, Wilson County
Terri Campbell-Payton, Pitt County
Daniel Shirley, Pitt County
Quintin Mallette, Pitt County
Janelle Clevinger, Wilson County
Laronnieca Maye, Pitt County
2019-2020 Regional Artist Project Grantees
Breanna Kusnierczyk, Craven County
Mark Arnold, Pasquotank County
Donna Nyzio, Carteret County
Jerome De Perlinghi, Wilson County
Fay Davis Edwards, Dare County
Liz Steiner, Pitt County
Robin Haller, Pitt County
Kathryn Osgood, Dare County
Rebecca Ives, Pitt County
Gabrielle Brant Freeman, Pitt County
Lipbone Redding, Beaufort County
Daniel Shirley, Pitt County
Bryan Conger, Pitt County
Ken Wyatt, Nash County
2018-2019 Regional Artist Project Grantees
Marilynn Barner Anselmi, Nash County
Naomi M. Berger, Currituck County
Teal Darkenwald, Pitt County
Dan Elliott, Pitt County
Kimberly Garland, Lenoir County
David Ingram, Pitt County
Margaret Grace Joyner, Lenoir County
Gerard Lange, Wilson County
Gary S. Mitchell, Hyde County
Lisa Beth Robinson, Pitt County
Benoit Smith, Pitt County
Charity J. Valentine, Wayne County
Christina Lorena Weisners, Dare County
2017-2018 Regional Artist Project Grantees
Kelly Adams, Pitt County, Visual Art
Matt Amante, Pitt County, Visual Art
Jason Coale Pitt County, Theatre
Karen Lee Crenshaw, Onslow County, Visual Art
Mica Joy Eanes, Duplin County, Visual Art
Jill Eberle, Craven County, Visual Art
Marnette Graff, Hyde County, Literature
Tyler Griffin, Jones County, Music
Lesette Kornegay, Lenoir County, Music
Timothy Lazure, Pitt County, Visual Art
Marty Silverthorne, Pitt County, Literature
Donna Slade, Pamlico County, Visual Art
Suzanne "Spaine" Stephens, Pitt County
Michael Tahaney, Beaufort County, Music
2016-2017 Regional Artist Project Grantees
Raymond Alvarado, Onslow County, Printmaking
Scott Eagle, Pitt County, Painting
Michael Hill, Pitt County, Sculpture
Heather Muise, Pitt County, Printmaking
Donna Lee Nyzio, Carteret County, Painting
Kathryn Osgood, Dare County, Metal Design
Lisa Beth Robinson, Pitt County, Glass
Taylor Cefalo, Carteret County, Music
Joanna Reed, Bertie County, Literature
Barbara St. Amand, Dare County, Literature
Teal Darkenwald, Pitt County, Dance
Ken Wyatt, Nash County, Film
2015-2016 Regional Artist Project Grantees
Gabrielle Freeman, Pitt County, Literary
Megan Oteri, Wilson County, Literary
Matt Amante, Pitt County, Visual Art
Andy Denton, Pitt County, Visual Art
Erika Eagle, Pitt County, Visual Art
Mi-Sook Hur, Pitt County, Visual Art
Daniel Kariko, Pitt County, Visual Art
Charles Mumford, Greene County, Visual Art
Wyatt Speight Rhue, Onslow County, Visual Art
Joshua Allen, Pitt County, Music
Martha Brown, Pitt County, Film
