Wendy Schneider/Coney Island Studios.
Arts-DANG!Rachel-Werner-7-6-2020
Rachel Werner is one of the recipients of a Dane Arts Need Grant (DANG!).
The diversity and range of the artists who received Dane Arts Need Grants (DANG!) is awe-inspiring. They are storytellers, printmakers, fiber artists, musicians, aerial dancers, music teachers, painters, performance artists, comedians and theatrical scenic artists. They all live in Dane County, and have faced a partial or total loss of income since mid-March when Madison and much of the world had to shut down events and gatherings to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The Dane County Arts and Cultural Affairs Commission has released a moving new video created by Wendy Schneider of Coney Island Studios. Amidst COVID-19, Support Local Artists and Local Voices addresses the current crisis while also speaking to something even deeper — artists’ essential role in the community.
To make the video amid challenging circumstances, Schneider conducted interviews via Zoom. She conducted 24 interviews with artists who were first-round DANG! recipients. [Full disclosure: I have been approved for a DANG! to support my music and theater work.]
According to Mark J. Fraire, director of Dane Arts, the response to the grant announcement was overwhelming. “It was supposed to be a one-time thing,” says Fraire; 90 people applied the first weekend after it was announced in April. Since then, the program has grown, and grant amounts were increased to $500. By May 13, Dane County Executive Joe Parisi announced $100,000 in additional funds would go to the grants. Two hundred and five artists have received money so far, and the county is still processing applications.
The video represents “hope and sadness,” says Fraire. “People are hurting. Five hundred dollars is not a lot of money, but people are very appreciative. Artists are a driver. They are the economy.”
Fraire says summer in Madison is all about the community coming together for art and music. “Every time I bike past McPike Park I think it should be packed — people would be listening to music and making money for organizations,” says Fraire.
Fraire adds that Schneider’s contribution is significant. “Wendy is a brilliant filmmaker,” says Fraire. “She’s in the thick of it — as a small business owner, a bandleader, a filmmaker, a producer — she has a wonderful eye.”
Schneider found the timing of the video challenging, as the world has changed dramatically, even since her initial round of interviews. “The last image for this video was emailed to me on May 19, six days before the murder of George Floyd,” says Schneider. “Although it was only seven weeks ago, talking to artists during the onset of COVID-19 now seems surreal.”
At least one State Street mural related to Black Lives Matter made it into the video, and Fraire and Schneider both hope to extend the video into a series as the DANG! program continues to accept applications and approve funds.
The deadline for the next round of DANG! funds is Friday, July 10. The link to the application is available on the Dane Arts website.
Schneider says she found the process of talking to artists during this crisis inspiring. “Each of the interviewees are connecting with art as a means to survive, process and move forward,” she says. “Their work represents the surface of a deep pool of voices in the county that we should be listening to.”
[Editor's note: This article was changed to reflect the fact that the next round of applications is due July 10, not Aug. 1. ]
