“Metro Arts” is the office of Arts & Culture for the city of Nashville and Davidson County. We believe that arts drive a more vibrant and equitable community. We strive to ensure that all Nashvillians have access to a creative life through community investments, artist and organizational training, public art and creative placemaking coordination and direct programs that involve residents in all forms of arts and culture.
Be a part of the Metro Arts funding process!
A vital part of the application process is the panel review, where applicants are reviewed by a group of artists and community members, who then submit funding recommendations to the Metro Arts Commission.
We are currently recruiting Operating Grant and Thrive Review panelists for the Fiscal Year 2025 (Early 2025 - June 30, 2025) funding cycle and hope you will apply!
To apply:
· Complete this application form in Submittable (3 questions) with established evaluation criteria.
The panel process includes:
·2 Full days of consecutive in person training and scoring - Estimated to be the last week of February 2025
Metro Arts Operating Support grants support the general operations of arts-focused nonprofit organizations based in Metro Nashville-Davidson County.
Thrive Artist Call for Services connects artists and/or organizations with the community to create investments, cultural connections, and transformations.
To be eligible to apply as a panelist, you must:
· live or primarily work in Davidson County;
· have a keen interest in the arts (as a working artist, participant, audience member, donor, educator, etc.);
· not be an employee of or have a financial relationship with an organization applying for grant funding, or an individual applying for Thrive funding, and not have immediate household members with a financial relationship with an organization or individual applying for funding.
Panelists will be paid a stipend of $350. Refreshments and lunch provided
This opportunity is open to all in the Nashville Arts community, including those who do not currently receive funding from Metro Arts. Panels will be assembled to promote a diversity of backgrounds, perspectives, artistic genres and organizations. We may not be able to include all qualified applicants on the panel.
Can't be a panelist for these dates? Email Arts.Grants@Nashville.gov to be added to the list for future panelist opportunity announcements.
Metro recently adopted an ordinance and guidelines for the purpose of evaluating potential donated artworks. This policy plans for the fact that there are limited suitable sites on public property for placement of donated artworks and limited public funds for maintenance and conservation of donated artworks. Each artwork will be evaluated by the Public Art Committee and the Metro Arts Commission in addition to the Metro Department accepting the donation.
In order for Metro to evaluate donations, donors are required to provide information about the artwork donation via Submittable at least six (6) months prior to the anticipated donation acceptance date. You may also download the donor checklist/worksheet to assist in the process of gathering information about your artwork.
***PLEASE NOTE** Donations of artwork that require the city to pay for costs such as installation, transportation, site preparation or repair are not encouraged. Artwork requiring high or excessive maintenance may be declined.
Ordinance No. BL2015-1277 "D. Unless the metropolitan council has appropriated funding specifically for the installation and maintenance costs for the donated artwork, a donor’s proposal shall include funding adequate to cover all costs for the design, fabrication, insurance, transportation, storage, installation, and maintenance of the proposed artwork for a period of ten years from the date of acceptance, plus contingency funds for reasonable unforeseen circumstances."
Thank you for your interest in submitting a proposal for Temporary Art on Metro Property in Nashville-Davidson County, TN. To ensure your project is eligible, please read the complete guidelines before proceeding to the application.
Please note that this is not a call to artists and there is no funding associated with this review and approval process. Artists and applicant organizations must work primarily in Davidson County to be eligible to apply.
If you experience any technical difficulties submitting to this application, please contact Submittable's Customer Support team.
For questions regarding the content of the application or the guidelines, please contact Anne-Leslie Owens, Public Art Collections Manager, at Anne-Leslie.Owens@nashville.gov.