LIVINGSTON — The Park County Community Foundation has announced the first broad and coordinated effort to invest in the local arts community.
"Over the past four decades Park County has really woven together its artistic, ranching, and railroad history to become one of the most vibrant arts communities in Montana," says Executive Director Gavin Clark. "Whether it’s the natural beauty, or the river, or the park, people are drawn here."
Clark tells me that during the 2022 Yellowstone River flooding, an east coast entity called the JAKET Foundation reached out, providing a generous donation of $500,000.
The donation prompted the Community Foundation to conduct a community needs assessment, to determine where funds were needed.
"And that assessment revealed that we need more coordination and more funding to ensure that Park County’s arts culture continues to be robust well into the future," says Clark.
During last week's Livingston Art Walk, I spoke with Laura Bray, owner of The Frame Garden and a member of the new arts council. She says:
"There are a lot of different arts organizations in town, or in the county as a whole, and this meant partly to communicate, to help them work on bigger projects together, and to attract funding."
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Many communities throughout Park County are rural, lacking the foundation to coordinate and promote artists. Clark says:
"So often in our arts communities we see silos. Whether it’s the performing arts, or visual arts, or musical arts. Our goal is to really bring all those leaders together to ensure Park County’s art culture stays vibrant as Park County continues to grow."
Clark says grants are currently open to apply for the new funding. Visit their website for more information.
