South Arts is pleased to announce the three Local Arts Agencies (LAAs) selected for its Creative Resilience Emergency Preparedness and Sustainability for the Arts initiative: Arts AVL, St. Petersburg Arts Alliance, and Tampa Arts Alliance. Each agency will receive a $100,000 grant over two years to strengthen disaster preparedness, emergency readiness, and long-term resilience for artists and arts organizations in their communities.
In 2026, South Arts developed Creative Resilience as a two-year initiative supporting Local Arts Agencies that serve communities affected by Hurricanes Helene and/or Milton within FEMA-designated disaster areas in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee The three Local Arts Agencies were selected based on their alignment with the initiative’s goals, responsiveness to community needs, organizational capacity, and commitment to fair, accessible engagement.
- Preparedness — ensuring artists and organizations understand disaster risk and have clear plans for emergency response and recovery
- Financial Resilience — helping artists remain stable and adaptable amid economic disruption
- Digital Capacity — enabling continuity of creative and operational work during emergencies
- Wellbeing — prioritizing mental health and support systems in the face of a natural disaster or emergency
- Advocacy — empowering the arts community to secure resources and shape policy before, during, and after disasters
“When we talk about disaster resilience for artists, we mean more than emergency funding after a hurricane. We mean equipping creative communities to build financial stability, strengthen digital capacity, and support artists’ mental health and well-being through any disruption, whether environmental, economic, or otherwise. Creative Resilience reflects South Arts’ commitment to that fuller definition of readiness, and ArtsAVL, St. Petersburg Arts Alliance, and Tampa Arts Alliance will help demonstrate what it looks like in practice,” said Doug Shipman, South Arts’ President and CEO.
Supported by a generous gift from the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, this two-year pilot responds to a growing urgency among the field for artists and arts organizations to be better equipped with the tools, knowledge, and resources to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disruptions, including natural disasters, public health crises, economic instability, and social unrest. As an expansion of South Arts’ Arts Readiness, Relief, and Recovery initiative, Creative Resilience is a testament to the regional arts organization’s continued support for artists in disaster-impacted areas across its region.
“In 1970, Robert Rauschenberg established Change, Inc., a nonprofit foundation to assist professional artists across disciplines in need of emergency medical aid and, later, emergency financial support following unexpected disasters. Today, we are proud to continue this work through our NYFA-administered Rauschenberg Emergency Medical Grants and Emergency Dancer Grants. Partnering with South Arts on this new pilot initiative supporting Local Arts Agencies is a natural progression of Rauschenberg's vision as both an environmentalist and a humanitarian. By ensuring that artists and cultural workers have access to rapid-response resources during periods of natural disaster, we can help them sustain their practices, support their families and communities, and strengthen the resilience of the broader arts ecosystem in the face of environmental, economic, and social change,” said Courtney J. Martin, Executive Director of the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation.
The three Local Arts Agencies were selected based on their alignment with the initiative’s goals, responsiveness to community needs, organizational capacity, and commitment to fair, accessible engagement.
Over the course of the two-year program, each will design and deliver professional development, education, and support services tailored to the specific risks its region faces, moving from broad program goals to sustainable, locally rooted work.
“Hurricane Helene demonstrated both the extraordinary resilience of Western North Carolina’s creative community and the vulnerabilities that artists and creative businesses face when disaster strikes. This investment from South Arts gives ArtsAVL the opportunity to build on what we learned through the immediate response and focus on the systems, relationships, and infrastructure our region needs for long-term recovery. By strengthening communication, regional connectivity, research, and digital infrastructure across Western North Carolina’s craft and music sectors, we can help our creative community not only continue to recover from Helene, but be better prepared and more resilient when the next disruption comes,” said Katie Cornell, Executive Director, ArtsAVL.
“Every past emergency, whether a pandemic, a recession, a downturn in tourism, back-to-back hurricanes, has tested the fragile infrastructure of our arts and culture sector, and our responses have always been built under duress. The Creative Resilience funding from South Arts allows SPAA to work with our community to build a real plan, so we’re prepared before the next event arrives, not scrambling after it,” said Helen French, Executive Director of St. Petersburg Arts Alliance (SPAA).
“Artists are often among the first to help communities process change, foster connection, and imagine what’s possible during times of uncertainty. Yet too often they’re the last to receive the resources and support they need to sustain their own creative practice in an increasingly complex and rapidly changing world. South Arts’ and the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation’s investment allows us to change that. Through the Creative Resiliency Initiative, we’ll create practical resources, strengthen regional partnerships, and empower artists with the knowledge and support they need to thrive. At a time when our world is evolving so rapidly, investing in artists is ultimately an investment in our shared humanity,” said Michele Smith, President & CEO of Tampa Arts Alliance.
For information about additional opportunities from South Arts, please visit southarts.org.
About Arts AVL
Founded in 1953, ArtsAVL (formerly Asheville Area Arts Council) is the designated arts agency for Buncombe County and a regional advocate for Western North Carolina’s creative sector. ArtsAVL strengthens the arts ecosystem through connection, advocacy, and grants—supporting artists, nonprofit arts organizations, and creative businesses. Following Hurricane Helene, ArtsAVL distributed more than $1.4 million in direct relief across 26 counties, and has already secured more than $3.5 million in additional arts recovery funding in 2026 to support long-term stabilization and resilience. Through strategic investment, research, and marketing initiatives such as All Arts. All Ways., ArtsAVL works to ensure the arts remain central to community vitality and economic resilience. Learn more at artsavl.org.
About St. Petersburg Arts Alliance
The St. Petersburg Arts Alliance (SPAA) is the umbrella organization for St. Petersburg’s arts and cultural community. SPAA drives arts-related economic development, advocates for art and artists, and educates at all levels, facilitating the growth of the City of the Arts. Its programs range from the SHINE Mural Festival and the 2nd Saturday ArtWalk to arts education and professional development. For more information, visit StPeteArtsAlliance.org and follow @stpeteartsalliance on social media. About Tampa Arts Alliance Tampa Arts Alliance is the nonprofit local arts agency serving the city of Tampa, dedicated to building the foundational infrastructure that enables the region’s creative ecosystem to thrive. Through strategic investment, advocacy, convening, and cross-sector collaboration, the Alliance expands opportunities for artists and arts organizations, fosters creative commerce, and strengthens Tampa’s cultural economy. Guided by a vision for Tampa to be internationally recognized as a vibrant and dynamic city for the arts, the Alliance is helping shape a more connected, creative, and economically vibrant future. Learn more at tampaartsalliance.org.
About Robert Rauschenberg Foundation
The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation builds on the legacy of artist Robert Rauschenberg, emphasizing his belief that artists can drive social change. Rauschenberg sought to act in the “gap” between art and life, valuing chance and collaboration across disciplines. As such, the Foundation celebrates new and even untested ways of thinking.
About South Arts
South Arts advances Southern vitality through the arts. The nonprofit regional arts organization was founded in 1976 to build on the South’s unique heritage and enhance the public value of the arts. South Arts’ work responds to the arts environment and cultural trends with a regional perspective. South Arts offers an annual portfolio of activities designed to support the success of artists and arts providers in the South, address the needs of Southern communities through impactful arts-based programs, and celebrate the excellence, innovation, value and power of the arts of the South. For more information, visit www.southarts.org.
Press Inquiries
Hilena Haileselassie
Marketing & Communications Manager, South Arts
HHaileselassie@southarts.org
Rachel Roberts
Senior Account Executive, Cultural Counsel
rachel@culturalcounsel.com
Colleen Rodgers
Senior Account Coordinator, Cultural Counsel
colleen@culturalcounsel.com