Art in Atlanta

The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, an organization dedicated to the risk taking, innovation and collaboration that were its namesake’s values, has inaugurated a program whose mission is to invest in smaller arts organizations in five selected cities.

Good news: SEED, as it is called, will take root in Atlanta. The foundation has awarded five local organizations three-year grants of $10,000 per year. The recipients are Dashboard Co-op, Eyedrum Art and Music Gallery, gloATL, Living Walls and The Lucky Penny.

“The grant focuses on operating capital, which we know is the hardest to fund-raise for,” said foundation Executive Director Christy MacLear.

Like the MacArthur Foundation, the Rauschenberg Foundation sought nominations from colleagues, so the awards came as a complete surprise to the recipients. “I feel like I’m in a movie,” said a giddy Priscilla Smith, Eyedrum’s executive director, who learned about the grant today.

Atlanta’s inclusion is a feather in its cap. The foundation chose cities where the arts have traction; Detroit, New Orleans, Portland and Providence are the others. “Atlanta is an exceptional city,” MacLear said. “We are proud to be a part of your growing and flourishing arts scene.”

Please look for an in-depth interview with MacLear next week.