The Colombian Ministry of Culture invites participants to its yearly Estímulos 2014 program.
The program features a total of 123 calls, through which more than 578 grants will be given for a total of 12,600 million pesos (approximately 6.3 million dollars).
The calls are open to Colombian artists, researchers, or cultural promoters living in the country or abroad. The program seeks mass participation and, accordingly, has set up simple requirements that are adequate to the realities of the sector.
The call areas are: visual arts, dance, literature, music, theater and circus arts, early childhood, libraries, communications (radio and television), cinematography, patrimony, cultural entrepreneurship, regional support, museum projects, and archives.
The program, which has benefited more than 2,300 artists between 2010 and 2013, can be accessed through the Ministry of Culture web page www.mincultura.gov.co since February 3, 2014.
Participation is open to individual persons, institutions, established groups (according to each specific call). The calls are all open starting on February 3rd, but close on different dates; it is important to check the call requirements in sufficient advance.
2014 arrives with an unprecedented offer for the visual arts: the Colombian Ministry of Culture will offer $1,344 million in stimulus in the form of grants, awards and residencies directed at artists, curators and other agents in the artistic field. The investment for this edition represents the highest allocation of capital in the history of the Ministry of Culture for stimulus directed at the visual arts and it duplicates last year’s budget. Also, in connection to the 2013 offer, the institution this time around will support four more calls this year, like the curatorial research grants offered to the teams entrusted with organizing the group exhibitions for the 15 Regional Salons of Artists, and also offered big news in the form of a call for the organization of personal exhibitions. According to Jaime Cerón, Arts Director of the Dirección de Artes del Ministerio de Cultura, "This category is very important because it will allow artists to participate in the regional salons without having to go through curatorial processes, and it also represents to them the opportunity of presenting a solo show, a chance not often offered in the artistic field."
For more information: Katherine Eslava Otálora Coordinator Programa Nacional de Estímulos Ministry of Culture Phone: 3424100 ext. 1381
Press info: Nubia Velasco Press Office Ministry of Culture