This information regarding the Artstour Program provides helpful points to keep in mind when using the Artstour Program - but it is not all-inclusive. Artists and presenters are responsible for reading through the Illinois Arts Council’s Policies and Priorities as well as the Artstour Program Guidelines.
Artstour is the Illinois Arts Council's (IAC) fee support grants program linking arts presenters with Illinois' wealth of touring artists as well as quality visual and media arts exhibits. This program encourages the presenter or potential presenter to initiate, expand, and/or diversify an arts program through the use of quality arts presentations and related activities.
- The Artstour Program has been responsive to the needs of libraries, park
districts, school organizations, traditional presenters, senior citizen centers,
hospitals, festivals, local arts agencies, and community organizations.
- Illinois not-for-profit organizations may request funding to support performances
by artists listed in the roster.
- Funding may also be requested to support the presentation of visual and
media arts exhibit packages listed in the roster.
- Artstour grants may also fund workshops, master classes, residencies, and lecture/demonstrations associated with the performance(s)/exhibits.
The Illinois Arts Council will not fund an Artstour
presentation through both the Artstour Program and any other Illinois Arts Council
program.
Artstour funds cannot be used for performances by artists, ensembles
or companies affiliated with the applicant organization.
Funding may be requested for up to two different presentations per year. Generally, the IAC will support only one project per presenter in a given year. Each request requires a separate application. Application forms may be duplicated when needed. Multiple applications must be prioritized in ranking order of first and second priority.
To be eligible applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Applicant must be a not-for-profit organization currently registered with the Illinois Secretary of State or an agent of a governmental body (i.e., school, school district, park district, college, or university). (What is accepted as proof of not-for-profit status?)
- Applicant must select an Illinois artist, company, ensemble, or exhibit package from the Artstour Roster.
- Applicant must submit all requested application materials prior to the deadline, which is no less than eight weeks before the program occurs.
- The proposed project must initiate, expand, and/or diversify the applicant's arts programming through the use of quality arts presentations and other related activities.
The amount an applicant can request is based on the following formula: 30% is the base-percentage for all Artstour requests. Applicants may request up to a maximum of 50% of the contracted fee of the Roster artist or exhibit package. The minimum request per engagement is $100. The maximum request per engagement is $30,000. All requests should be rounded down to the nearest zero or five.
Following are conditions that can increase the percentage requested:
MILEAGE - add 5%
If the Roster artist’s, company’s, ensemble’s, or exhibit
package’s home-base is at least 100 miles from the presenting venue. (Mileage
is measured in a straight line from point to point, not actual road mileage
traveled.)
BLOCK BOOKING - add 5%
Booking with at least one other Illinois presenter while the artist is on tour
- not applicable to exhibit packages. (A tour is defined as a series of performances
on the road, away from the artist’s, company’s, or ensemble’s
home base, necessitating overnight accommodations.)
FIRST TIME APPLICANT/FIRST TIME PRESENTING ARTIST - add
5%
If the applicant is applying to the Artstour Program for the first time, or
if it is the first time the applicant has presented the roster artist, company,
ensemble, or exhibit package through the Artstour Program.
RESIDENCY ACTIVITIES - add 5%
If the roster artist, company, or ensemble is contracted for between
five and ten hours of residency activities in addition to the scheduled performance(s)/exhibit
(Residency activities are hands-on community and/or educational programs such
as workshops, master classes, lectures, demonstrations, etc.)
making your program accessible
One of the conditions an organization agrees to in accepting a grant from the IAC is to make every attempt to ensure that the program is accessible to persons with disabilities. According to state and federal law, every organization receiving public funding must ensure that it is in a position to provide accommodations when persons with disabilities make requests for services. Accessibility involves both location (the facility) and the content (the activity or product) of the program. Thinking about accessibility issues, e.g., sign-language interpreters, cassette recordings of printed materials, audio description describers or large-print labeling in the early planning stages of a project, is the key to ensuring that persons with disabilities will be able to participate in the program.