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We are delighted to introduce our 2018-2019 20/20 Fellows!

20/20 Artist Fellowships are unrestricted $20,000 cash awards accompanied by $5,000 professional development stipends to allow POCI artists from any discipline or career stage the agency to decide how to use the funding in support of themselves, their businesses, communities and independent creative practices, and do not require recipients to create projects or exhibit artwork.

Springboard Staff

Economic Opportunity Program Director

Jose Alvillar

Jose Alvillar is an Indigenous Mexica artist who has been practicing Danza since the age of 4. Part of his journey has involved regalia making, painting, beadwork, singing, and drumming. Jose studied Studio Arts, Philosophy, and Architecture at Augsburg University and graduated with his B.A. in 2013. He currently attends Hamline University for his M.A. degree in Education. His work in the arts and education sector revolves around his identity as a Mexica dancer and around honoring the presence of youth, so that he and others may leave behind a legacy, culture, and art form that has been forgotten. In his efforts to preserve his culture and art he is often found presenting workshops on dance, identity, culture, and painting with Kalpulli Ketzalcoatlicue (A community of indigenous Mexica dancers).

Jose has presented in Iowa, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Duluth MN, Nett Lake MN, among many other locations. His dance work with Kalpulli Ketzalcoatlicue has been broadcasted and published via local news outlets as well as StarTribune, KTVO, KBFT 89.9 and many more.  Jose plans to continue his work with dance, paint, and arts by sharing with youth and continuing to learn and develop his artistry with his community.

Leila Awadallah

Leila Awadallah is a Twin Cities artist, born on Dakota and Sioux land with diasporic Palestinian roots. Her artistry is embedded with a commitment to deepening cultural and physical connections with the Levant, reflecting on the politics entangled with identity and investigating contemporary Arab performance located within an American context. Through choreography, improvisatory performance installations, and short films she begins with the body and explores outwards.

Leila graduated from the University of Minnesota with a BFA in Dance and a minor in Arabic Language and Literature. She is a cultural activist and performer with Ananya Dance Theatre; a space where her work in art + social justice is continuously explored and nurtured. Lamia Abukhadra and Leila collaborate on performance installation work that speaks to Palestinian identity. Leila is a co-creator of the local dance trio Kelvin Wailey.

Leila’s work has been presented at the RAWI Arab Literature Conference, Kennedy Center (Washington DC), BIPOD Festival (Lebanon), Prospect Park community garden, and TPT Studios (St. Paul). She received a SAGE Award for film (2016) and the Jerome Travel grant (2018) to travel to Palestine and research Arabic folk dance, embodied calligraphy, and restricted movement of bodies under occupation.

 

Thanks & Acknowledgements 

Springboard for the Arts received 201 applications for the 2018 round of the 20/20 Artist Fellowship. Candidates were identified through an open nomination process and went through a two-panel peer review process where awardees were selected by a jury of artists and art supporters including: Chitra Vairavan, Michael Kleber-Diggs, Yolanda Latimore, Jesus Reyes, Hillary Kempenich, Anne Jin Soo Preston, Kareem Tabsch, and Tio Aiken. Thanks to all applicants and the jury!
Going Beyond Grants – for Artists of Color and Native Artists

A close look at the fundraising landscape, examining the limitations of grant-based funding and exploring how POCI artists can go beyond grants to more sustainable, regenerative and community-driven options such as crowdfunding, microfinance and earned income strategies. Tuesday, August 14, 6:30pm - 8:30pm, free.

Register now

The 20/20 Artist Fellowship is supported in part by contributions from the Bush Foundation and the Surdna Foundation. The fellowship is a new part of Springboard's Artist Resource programs, which are supported by the Jerome Foundation*.

*Jerome funds are restricted to early career, generative artists, who are not students enrolled in a degree program and who demonstrate strong artistic merit.