Inaugural Joyce Awards Support Work by Sierra and Ung

Inaugural Joyce Awards Support Work by Sierra and Ung

Roberto Sierra and Chinary Ung The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra are among the first cultural organizations to benefit from the Joyce Foundation‘s newly established Joyce Awards, a funding initiative designed to support mainstream Midwestern cultural organizations commissioning works by artists of color. Each organization will receive a grant of $50,000… Read more »

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NewMusicBox Staff



Roberto Sierra and Chinary Ung

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra are among the first cultural organizations to benefit from the Joyce Foundation‘s newly established Joyce Awards, a funding initiative designed to support mainstream Midwestern cultural organizations commissioning works by artists of color. Each organization will receive a grant of $50,000 to fund the proposed projects.

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and the Latino Arts/United Community Center have partnered to commission a symphony from Roberto Sierra based on music from three Spanish-speaking islands: Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and Cuba.

The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra will commission a new work for chamber orchestra from Chinary Ung, which will be premiered in conjunction with the St. Paul Hmong community’s annual New Year celebration. (St. Paul is home to the nation’s largest urban concentration of Hmong people.)

Fifty-seven entries in theater, music, and visual arts were received from around the region. Project proposals were reviewed by independent advisors and voted on by the Foundation’s board in December. Each award supports the work of the individual artist as well as significant community outreach efforts. The organizations will have up to two years to complete their proposed projects.

The Joyce Foundation established the awards based on a philosophy that to expand and diversify audiences, cultural organizations must also diversify their programming. When announcing this year’s inaugural awards, Foundation President Ellen Alberding expressed the hope that they will “further the Foundation’s continued interest in supporting artistic merit and encouraging mainstream arts groups to develop programming that relates to and reflects the experiences of diverse audiences.”

Though the Chicago-based foundation has traditionally provided funding to cultural institutions in the immediate area, with the Joyce Awards they have extended their reach to include organizations in Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Milwaukee, and St. Paul/Minneapolis whose primary mission is to present art through public programs.

Two other grants were given—one to the Cleveland Museum of Art for an installation by visual artist Trenton Doyle Hancock and another to the Chicago’s Goodman Theatre for a play by playwright Naomi Iizuka.