EVALUATION CRITERIA
All proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
Artistic Merit: The artistic capabilities of the applicant; the strength and quality of the creative vision and the originality of the applicant’s work as demonstrated in the application, previous work, and artist’s statement. Grant reviewers will consider whether:
- The artist’s work demonstrates familiarity and control of craft and technique and a level of skill appropriate to the artist’s career stage.
- The artist’s work is of compelling artistic vision and singular voice.
- The artist’s work is inventive, imaginative, and substantive in form and content.
Potential Impact of the proposed project to advance/further the applicant’s work/career. Grant reviewers will consider whether:
- The opportunity is unique, time-sensitive, and not a repeat of past experiences.
- The artist identifies clear and realistic artistic/professional goals and makes a case for how this opportunity will help achieve them.
- There is a potential for the opportunity to deepen the artist's practice and facilitate future creative work.
Quality of Proposed Project: The artistic strength, quality, vision, and originality of the proposed opportunity/project. Grant reviewers will consider whether:
- The opportunity/project is clearly defined and meets professional standards.
- (As applicable) The mentors/instructors involved are well qualified and/or the artist demonstrates capacity for self-directed learning.
- The opportunity/project is original and reflects awareness of the history and contemporary practice of the artist’s field and its relationship to both (i.e., it is not a duplication of an existing effort).
- The opportunity/project is an important or a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Administrative Capability: The feasibility of the proposed project as determined by the applicant preparing and clearly articulating a logical, well- conceived project plan that can be reasonably executed and includes a realistic timeline and accurate budget. Grant reviewers will consider whether:
- The artist provided a clear project timeline and explanation of how funds will be used.
- The project budget is realistic and supported by documentation of expenses. (See the Artist Opportunity Grant Guidelines for more about budget requirements.)
- The artist has a history of presenting work to the public and a record of creative accomplishment appropriate to their career stage.
Public Benefit: The applicant seeks to increase the public’s access to and direct participation in quality arts and cultural resources that celebrate diversity and foster creativity within Montgomery County. Grant reviewers will consider whether:
- The artist has a clear plan to share their work or project outcomes with the community.
- The artist articulates how the opportunity/project will benefit intended audiences.
- (As applicable) The artist has a commitment from the intended exhibition space or performance venue.
THE REVIEW PROCESS
All applications will be reviewed by staff for completeness and eligibility before being submitted to an independent grant panel for consideration.
Grant Panel
Culture Works and the MCACD will identify an independent panel consisting of artists, arts administrators, educators, and community members who understand and have an appreciation for the careers and creative development of artists. Every effort is made to avoid conflicts of interest.
Panelists will be provided online access to eligible applications, supporting materials, and artistic samples. Panelists will review the applications independently over the course of a month and assign scores based on the criteria outlined above. The highest possible score an applicant can receive is 25.
Public Panel Meeting and Funding Recommendations
In late-November / early December 2024, the panel will convene at a virtual public panel meeting to discuss applications and make award recommendations as a group. To facilitate discussion and funding recommendations, applications with the lowest initial scores may be eliminated from consideration prior to the public meeting. Applicants will be notified in advance of whether their application will proceed to the panel meeting.
The panel meeting will be open to the public and will begin with introductions of everyone in the room. The audience will be given a brief overview of the grant review and scoring process.
Each application will be reviewed using the following process:
- a) The first reader (discussion leader) will lead the panel in a general discussion of the application.
- b) After all panelists have had a chance to comment, the panel facilitator will draw the discussion of the application to a close and each panelist will have an opportunity to adjust their scores if necessary.
When desired, panel members will be given the opportunity to review an artist’s application and/or documentation. This is done for clarification purposes. As a result of the panel discussion or further review of an applicant’s application or documentation, panelists may adjust their scores. Because materials will have been previously reviewed by panelists, they may or may not ask to review the same materials for every applicant.
After all applications have been discussed and final scores have been submitted, the panel will enter a closed session to review a master list of all applicants, ranked from highest to lowest average score. The panel will make funding recommendations based on these rankings and the funding that is available.
Following the panel meeting, all funding recommendations are reviewed for final approval by the MCACD board. Award recipients will then enter into a contract/grant agreement with Culture Works.
