This program is funded and made possible by the City of Birmingham and administered by Create Birmingham.
CITY OF BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY ARTS GRANT PROGRAM
0VERVIEW
The Community Arts Grant Program will support four community arts collaborations that benefit the City of Birmingham with grants of $10,000 each. Funded projects will take place between January 1 and December 1, 2026.
Each community collaboration supported will be a partnership between an artist or arts organization and a community organization from a non-arts sector. The primary partner must have nonprofit status and be located within the municipality of the City of Birmingham. Each community collaboration supported will be a partnership between an artist or arts organization and a community organization from a non-arts sector. The primary partner must have nonprofit status and be located within the municipality of the City of Birmingham.
Funded projects will use the arts to address an issue impacting the City of Birmingham, will take place in one or more of the City of Birmingham communities and neighborhoods listed here, and will be accessible to the general public.
Examples of issues addressed include but are not limited to civic advocacy and engagement, public health or safety, racial justice, restorative justice, education, and social or legal services.
Collaborations eligible for funding include but are not limited to workshops, performances, concerts, festivals, demonstrations, screenings, and readings. Priority consideration will be given to projects involving small to mid-sized arts organizations and/or individual artists. Projects may be first-time collaborations or continuations of existing work.
Each project must identify two lead partners. Organizations and individuals may not serve as lead partners on more than one application.
Projects must provide 1:2 matching funds (50 cents for every dollar awarded). The total budget must be at least $15,000: $10,000 to be covered by this grant if awarded and $5,000 in matching funds drawn from other sources. Matching funds may be in-kind, cash, or a combination of both.
Applications will be reviewed by a nine-person panel appointed by the Birmingham City Council. The funding criteria and scoring rubric will be available for reference throughout the application process.
Questions may be emailed to communityarts@createbirmingham.org. Staff will also be available for 30-minute meetings in person and via Zoom that can be requested by email at this same address.
Complete details on eligible applicants and projects can be found on Create Birmingham’s website under Eligibility Check and Grant Application Requirements.
PANEL REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS
An initial application review will be conducted by Create Birmingham staff to confirm that all applications are complete.
Applications will then be evaluated by a panel consisting of one representative from each of the City of Birmingham’s nine districts, selected by their respective City Council members.
REPORTING
A brief narrative and financial update will be required 60 days before key project activities, on a date to be determined as part of the grant agreement.
A brief final narrative and financial report will be due by December 7, 2026, or 60 days after the completion of the project, whichever comes first.
Under the terms of the grant agreement, grantees must agree to an audit of project expenses if requested by Create Birmingham or the City of Birmingham.
2026 CITY OF BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY ARTS GRANT RECIPIENTS
BARE HANDS, INC.
THE VIEW FROM HERE This grant will support The View from Here, a free, multidisciplinary community arts series co-sponsored, in 2026, by Bare Hands and the Birmingham Civils Rights Institute that explores the power of perspective. Rooted in the belief that creativity lives in the everyday, it invites community participants to reflect on how we experience the world through color, culture, identity, and place. The View from Here is a collaboration between Bare Hands and the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute.
BIRMINGHAM FOLK FESTIVAL: REFRAMING DIFFERENCE AS AN ASSET WITH OUR CITY, ARTISTS AND BUSINESSES
This grant will support Reframing Difference as an Asset with our City, Artists, and Businesses. Held annually on the third Saturday in May, Birmingham Folk Festival (BFF), is situated in common space joining the otherwise siloed communities of North and South Avondale. BFF is purely a partnership endeavor and, because of the broad range of diverse collaborators, attendees and participants alike are able to experience a cross-pollination of ideas and culture throughout multiple sectors of art, entrepreneurship, education, and non-profits. Reframing Difference as an Asset with our City, Artists, and Businesses is a collaboration between Birmingham Folk Festival and Birmingham Public Library Avondale Regional Branch.
URBAN IMPACT, INC.:BAY BY BAY: ART IN ACTION AT 4TH AVENUE
This grant will support Bay by Bay: Art in Action at 4th Avenue, a community-powered public arts collaboration that transforms a vacant, blighted property in the heart of the Historic 4th Avenue Business District into a vibrant cultural landmark. The project will reclaim ten architectural bays of the building at 1610 4th Avenue North, Birmingham, Alabama 35203 as large-scale canvases, creating a visual narrative that celebrates the district’s history, identity, and future. Bay by Bay: Art in Action at 4th Avenue is a collaboration between Urban Impact, Inc. and Erica Chisolm.
THE F.I.L.E.S. ARTS PROJECT:
TFAP X CCDN COMMUNITY ARTS PROJECT
This grant will support a collaborative arts-based initiative between The F.I.L.E.S. Arts Project and Community Care Development Network that uses creative movement, performance, and community education to address key issues of public health/wellness and education in Birmingham neighborhoods. This initiative will focus on serving families, students, non-traditional students, and residents in underserved communities by combining The F.I.L.E.S. Arts Project’s arts education and performance expertise with Community Care Development Network’s wellness, workforce development, and resource outreach programming. TFAP x CCDN Community Arts Project is a collaboration between The F.I.L.E.S. Art Project and Community Care Development Network.
2025 CITY OF BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY ARTS GRANT RECIPIENTS
ALABAMA ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL
MARC STEEL SCULPTURE GARDEN
Marc Steel Sculpture Garden is a collaboration between the Alabama Environmental Council and artist Jurgen Tarrasch. This grant will support The Marc Steel EcoScape, transforming an industrial landscape in Titusville into a botanical garden for residents, visiting school children and university audiences. This project will replicate and expand the former Hugh Kaul EcoScape at Birmingham-Southern College, an outdoor classroom that featured animal sculptures, flower mosaics, and huge music chimes made from discarded materials. Marc Steel EcoScape will serve as a STEAM field trip destination for K-12 schools, a climate change research lab for college classes, and a community greenspace for local residents.
BIB & TUCKER SEW-OP
THE INTERSECTION OF ART AND AGRICULTURE
The Intersection of Art and Agriculture is a collaboration between Bib & Tucker Sew-Op and Jones Valley Teaching Farm. This grant will support The Intersection of Art and Agriculture, a series of four workshops that will teach the public how to dye and embellish textiles using food, leaves, and flowers grown at Jones Valley Teaching Farm. The goal of this programming is to educate the public that attractive textile-based creations can be made sustainably with materials that can be readily found growing around us in our yard. This collaboration will demonstrate that the intersection of art and agriculture can be very fruitful and good for the planet.
GIRL SPRING
BE EMPOWERED POETRY CONTEST
Be Empowered Poetry Contest is a collaboration between Girl Spring and See Jane Write, LLC. This grant will support the Be Empowered Poetry Contest, which aims to empower teen girls in the Birmingham area through creativity and self-expression. The contest will be open to girls aged 13-18, and participants will learn about the different types of poetry, how to use poetry as a tool for creative expression, and how poetry can be a catalyst for social change. Contest winners will receive cash prizes, framed prints of their poems, and be highlighted on GirlSpring's website and social media. The advisor for the Be Empowered Poetry Contest is Javacia Harris Bowser. Javacia is a writer, journalist, and poet, and the founder and CEO of See Jane Write, LLC. She is a frequent contributor to local and national publications, including Style Blueprint, Birmingham Times, Good Grit, and more.
INTOTO CREATIVE ARTS
UNSHELTERED EXPRESSIONS: BINDING HOPE
Unsheltered Expressions: Binding Hope is a collaboration between InToto Creative Arts and Firehouse Ministries. This grant will support InToto Creative Arts’ collaboration with Firehouse Shelter to produce "Unsheltered Expressions: Binding Hope," a book that will feature artwork and writings by Firehouse guests. Content for the book will be developed in weekly sessions that will take place at Firehouse Ministries from January through May 2025. The book will be released in June 2025 during a community event at East Village Arts, which will feature live poetry readings from book contributors. Attendees will be given raw pages and together, will bind the books by hand. The book will include six pages that will be perforated by hand that the reader may remove to be sent as postcards, dispersing these works even further into the community. Unsheltered Expressions: Binding Hope will use the arts to address the community needs of connection and hope. By facilitating collective art-making, this program will build community bonds among participants and encourage mutual support and understanding.