Paulette Coleman took over after last year’s chaotic grants cycle. Her resignation means Metro Arts has to navigate a precarious situation without its director.
The key question that caused chaos at Metro Arts in 2024
The debate can be summed up like this: should Metro Arts focus its grantmaking on individual artists or arts nonprofits? The issue has divided Nashville’s arts community.
Metro Arts finally has a grants plan for 2025. It has similar rules and less money for artists.
The city agency is behind schedule because it’s still recovering from last year’s chaotic funding cycle.
Widely varied opinions flood Metro Arts meeting on grant funding
After months of confusion and delays, Metro Arts is one step closer to funding artists and arts nonprofits for the current fiscal year. Last week, the city agency was explaining its reworked grant funding plan and gathering feedback at a series of community listening sessions.
When can Metro Arts distribute this year’s grant money? A lot has to happen first.
Last week, the Metro Arts Commission announced it will give out grant money to artists and arts nonprofits before the end of the 2024-25 fiscal year in June. That’s after two months of confusion.
Top Nashville Metro Arts staffers resign as future of arts grants remains uncertain
Three management-level staff members at Metro Arts announced their resignations at a commission meeting Thursday. One by one, the communications manager, public art manager, and finance and operations director stepped down. The commissioners barely reacted, other than thanking the staff members for their work.
Metro Arts likely won’t fund artists and cultural organizations until 2025
Metro Arts staffers need time to come up with a new grant scoring policy and to figure out how to manage the Thrive program for independent artists.
Nashvillians can now borrow art from seven local libraries
The Lending Library began in 2021 to support Nashville artists who lost work during COVID. This summer, the program doubled its collection and expanded to five more library branches.
What is Thrive? Inside Metro Arts’ closely scrutinized, equity-focused funding program
The program’s future is in question because of its direct support of projects by individual artists, which might violate state law.
Some Nashville artists will get additional payments, resolving a discrimination complaint against Metro Arts
Nashville’s Metro Human Relations Commission has approved a resolution to a discrimination complaint filed last fall against Metro Arts.
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