Virtual Application Workshop (optional)

A virtual application workshop was held on December 11. Applicants are strongly encouraged to watch the workshop recording.

Preliminary Application Feedback Deadline (optional)

January 16, 2025

Application Deadline

January 27, 2025, 11:59 PM

Award Amounts

$4,000 each

TAIP Guidelines and Application Instructions

Download the 2025-2026 TAIP application guidelines (PDF) for complete funding information, including eligibility.

About TAIP Funding

The TAIP was established in 1999 to encourage the contributions made by individual artists within the city of Tacoma. The goals of the program are to recognize creative expression of the artists in our community, financially assist artists in generating new work and growing their skills, and engage the broader community through free public components presented by the funded artists. TAIP funding is seed money to help artists work on a project; we encourage artists to value their time and scale their proposed projects to work within their available budget. Projects must take place in Tacoma and can happen anytime between April 1, 2025 – December 31, 2026. Artists working in all disciplines including but not limited to literary, performing, digital, new media, film, visual, and interdisciplinary arts are encouraged to apply. Only one application per artist will be accepted.

Artists selected for TAIP funding are invited to participate in a supportive learning cohort alongside their fellow TAIP artists. The cohort meets quarterly and is a space for artists to make professional connections, provide project updates, crowdsource ideas, pose questions, and share knowledge. While optional, funded artists are encouraged to participate.

Project Requirements

• Creation of New Work - Artists should focus on the creation and/or completion of new artwork. Artists can propose working on a portion of a longer-term project. Applicants are encouraged to consider how TAIP funding can be used to help them grow as artists. Applicants are also encouraged to consider proposing projects that are feasible and realistic given the time frame and the available budget. All funded projects must take place within Tacoma city limits.
• Public Component - Artists are required to share their art or artistic practice with the residents of Tacoma in a public forum that is free and accessible to everyone and is located within Tacoma city limits. The public component can happen either in-person and/or virtually. Examples include, but are not limited to, workshops, performances, screenings, readings, murals, installations, artist talks, and exhibits. To learn about projects that have been previously funded, please visit the TAIP webpage. 

Eligibility

To be eligible for TAIP funding, applicant must:

• Be a resident of the City of Tacoma
• Be a practicing artist, dedicated to producing artwork on a regular basis
• Be applying as an individual artist
• Be 18 years old or older
• Produce a public component to their project that will happen within Tacoma city limits and will be free and open to everyone 
• NOT have received a TAIP award in the most recent funding cycle (2023-2024)
• NOT be a member of the TAIP selection panel, Tacoma Arts Commission member, or City of Tacoma employee 

Funding Priorities

The Tacoma Arts Commission is committed to investing in communities most impacted by racial, social, and economic inequity. The intention of these funding priorities is to foster programming that addresses historic and structural inequities, as we work toward justice for all.

All applications will be reviewed, and funding decisions made, using the Evaluation Criteria. An applicant’s proposed project does not need to meet any of the Funding Priorities listed below to be considered for funding. But, as part of the funding allocation process, the panel will prioritize funding for projects and/or public components that meet one or more of the following:

• Projects and/or public components that strive to provide fair compensation to the artist and/or project collaborators.
• Projects and/or public components that primarily give voice to racial justice and/or social justice
• Projects and/or public components that primarily give voice to BIPOC communities
• Projects and/or public components that primarily give voice to economically or socio-economically marginalized communities
• Projects and/or public components that primarily give voice to LGBTQIA+ communities
• Projects and/or public components that primarily give voice to people with disabilities
• Projects and/or public components that will address emergent community needs

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted through the Tacoma Artists Initiative Program online application form at www.tacomaarts.submittable.com/submit.

Questions?

For assistance, please contact Naomi Strom-Avila at (253) 591-5191 or nstrom-avila@cityoftacoma.org.

What is a Panel?

A panel is a group of individuals pulled together by staff to review applications or nominations for Arts & Cultural Vitality managed programs or opportunities. Panel members use published review criteria to evaluate applications and make recommendations about who gets grant funding, public art projects, roster appointments, etc.

Panelists are selected for a variety of reasons which can include: their connection to community, knowledge of relevant subject matter, and the diversity of perspectives and experiences they bring to the group overall. For each opportunity, we assemble a unique panel of three to nine people to make collective recommendations about which applicants should receive funding or commissions through our office. Those recommendations generally go to the Tacoma Arts Commission or the Tacoma Creates Advisory Board for final approval.

Why be a Panelist?

The Arts & Cultural Vitality Division (ACV) is deeply appreciative of the time and expertise community members invest in serving on panels. Serving on a panel is a proactive way to impact how public funds are spent in Tacoma, and panelists receive valuable professional development as well as insight into how the application review process works from the inside.

ACV provides panelists with free parking and food during meetings, in addition to offering a monetary honorarium.

The length and number of meetings needed for a selection process vary based on the project. Depending on the application, some panels will require a small amount of prep work in advance, one to two hours, and some panels may require extensive reading and evaluation work in advance of the in-person panel meeting, anywhere from 10-50 hours. Community members will be offered a stipend for their service as follows:

• $50 – quarter day meeting (1 – 2 hours)
• $100 – half day meeting (3 ‐ 4 hours)
• $200 – full day meeting (6 – 9 hours)
• $100 – pre‐meeting work to digitally read and score applications (only when requested)

Members of a City‐appointed commission or board are volunteers and are not eligible to receive a stipend for their service on a panel. City of Tacoma employees and project staff are not eligible to receive a stipend for their service on a panel.

Submit a Panel Interest Form

Please complete the online form to be considered for a position on an upcoming ACV panel: www.surveymonkey.com/r/tacomapanels 

Staff will take into account many factors when putting together panels, and may not be able to use the services of all qualified individuals who submit. If an individual is offered a position on a panel but is unable to participate because of scheduling or conflict of interest, ACV will continue to consider them for future panels. Panel Interest Forms will be saved and reviewed periodically for up to three years from the submission date.

Questions