NYSCA Creative Intervention Grants support individual artists creating new work designed around creative interventions – bringing awareness to matters affecting their neighborhoods, direct interventions to addressing those matters or helping their communities/community members envisioning new possibilities. These grants are not fellowships, subsidies, or entitlements. Proposals must be open to the public and take place on Staten Island. All art and artistic cultural disciplines – music, dance, digital/new media, film/video/animation, folk arts, interdisciplinary events/festivals, public art, theatre, performing and visual arts – will be considered. Two (2) selected artists will receive $5,000.
READ FULL GUIDELINES

What do we mean by intervention?:

  • Goal: To create a positive change, modify destructive behavior, or stop an undesirable trend.
  • Nature: It can be proactive (preventative) or reactive (addressing an ongoing issue).
  • Origin: The term is derived from the Latin intervenire, meaning “to come between”. (source: Merriam Webster)

These grants support Staten Island artists creating new work designed around envisioning new possibilities with their communities. Proposals must include a form of community engagement, to be determined by the applicant. The purpose is to impact a segment of the community, and it could take the form of a public program or engagement with community members during the creation of work. Priority will be given to projects that bring awareness to matters affecting their neighborhoods, direct interventions to addressing those matters or helping their communities/community members. Final outcomes can emphasize the creative process over a final product.

This grant program seeks qualified applicants focused on using the arts to:

  • Facilitate Emotional Expression: provide a creative outlet for emotions that are hard to verbalize.
  • Foster Community Connection: Reduce isolation by fostering a sense of belonging in a group.
  • Reduce Stress: Engage the mind and body in a creative activity.
  • Build Confidence: Encourage exploration of personal creative expression in a community setting.

NYSCA Creative Intervention Grants are funded by the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency Statewide Community Regrant Program with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature; administered by Staten Island Arts.

Eligibility

Who is eligible?
Applicants must be at least 18 years old, not a full-time student, and must be a Staten Island resident.

  • Individuals—Individuals with proof of current Staten Island residency. Must have a valid Social Security or Individual Tax Identification number.

Proposals must meet ALL the following criteria:

  • Proposals must focus on artistic or creative expression and cultural significance.
  • Clearly stated objectives – especially in regards to how the identified communities are engaged.
  • Clear and realistic plan for implementation that highlights the impact on the engaged community/communities.
  • Need and impact on the artistic discipline, geographic area, or local population: projects that address under-resourced communities or artistic disciplines will receive foremost attention. Under-resourced communities have low or limited access to the means of cultural production as well as art programming/activities. Under-resourced disciplines are disciplines that have received low or limited funding from the arts council in the past.
  • Applicant’s artistic experience, skill, and exhibition/performance history.
  • The project should be accessible to any member of the community who wishes to partake in the experience. Venues should comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act standards. Virtual programs should provide captioning, subtitles, or ASL interpretation.

 

What/Who is not eligible:

  • Organizations—5O1c3 Nonprofits, for profit, and/or LLC status businesses are not eligible for this program. We recommend interested nonprofits consider partnering with a local artist and encouraging them to apply.
  • Individuals applying for or receiving direct or discretionary funds from the New York State Council on the Arts in the 2026 fiscal year.
  • Programs that are essentially religious, recreational, rehabilitative, or therapeutic.
  • Universities, colleges, primary and secondary schools and districts, school affiliates or components, in-school activities or programs/activities that exclusively serve a student audience with no public component.
  • Operating expenses of privately- owned facilities (homes and studios).
  • Deficit budgets, capital improvements, equipment purchases*, fundraising events, scholarships, juror fees, prizes, lobbying expenses, entertainment, reception or food expenses, any non-arts related expenses or administrative costs unrelated to the project.

*Virtual project exemption: equipment, software, subscriptions, and training needed to produce a virtual project. Individual items may not exceed $1,000. Examples: cameras, lighting equipment, subscriptions associated with virtual programming, and training to utilize these tools.

 

Application Information

Applications will be available starting June 1, 2026. Deadline to submit will be June 30, 2026.

First-time applicants are required to view the application information session:
Click here to view/download the application information session.

Evaluation Guidelines

The following is the criteria used to decide on funding:

  • Narrative: Does the narrative clearly articulate the applicant’s ideas and aims? Does it show that the applicant has experience creating this kind of work, or that they can successfully do what they propose? Take into consideration their past work.
  • Community Benefit: How does the applicant plan to engage the community in the creation process? Is it accessible to their intended audience? Proposals which address communities or artistic disciplines which are under-resourced will receive foremost attention.
  • Work Sample: Can the applicant successfully complete their proposal from the work shown in the sample or have they demonstrated readiness for the proposal through past work? Does it have artistic merit/cultural significance?
Need Help?

Grants Administrator Gena Mimozo offers 1:1 grant support Tuesday through Thursday from 3pm to 7pm for prospective applicants who need guidance/feedback. To sign up for a consult, please fill out this form.

If you have any additional questions, please contact Gena at gmimozo@statenislandarts.org, (718) 218-4338‬.