News & Events
VELOCITY FUND 2022
The Velocity Fund awards a total of $60,000 in grants to 12 Philadelphia-based art projects in its fifth year of re-granting!
For 2022, The Velocity Fund is proud to announce the results of its fifth year of re-granting. Twelve new Philadelphia-based art projects will be awarded $5,000 each.
Chosen from a diverse field of over 155 applicants, this year’s grantees proposed a wide range of projects – a digital community archive by Disabled people, public sculptures exploring Philadelphia’s radical Queer past, a performance art work at a recycling facility, a video synthesis workshop, an immersive theater production, a collaboration with high school students, a storytelling project about Philadelphia’s local fish, an experimental short documentary on the historic Black business corridor in West Philadelphia.
What these projects share is a deep connection to communities throughout Philadelphia, forefronting visual art as a means to address complex histories and critical realities with an emphasis on collaboration and feedback.
The 2022 Velocity Fund grantees* are in alphabetical order:
- Shannon Brooks, UNDUE BURDEN
- Amelia Carter, Spirit on 52nd St
- Maia Chao, Waste Scenes
- Logan Cryer, Invited: Take Care of the Square Footage
- Stephen Foster, The Eyes Beneath the Oak
- Nicolo Gentile, Tough Love
- Noah Jacobson-Carroll, Cathode Ray Tapestries: Memory, Nostalgia & Analog Video Synthesis
- Melissa Langer, In Excess
- Gilletta McGraw, Black In The Days: A Community Building, Multidisciplinary, Interactive Memoir
- Li Sumpter, Blade Runner: Illadelph 2025
- Mat Tomezsko, Revolutionary Philadelphia
- Feini Yin, Our Fishing Log
Established with the support of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, The Velocity Fund is one of numerous Regional Regranting programs launched by the foundation to fund “under-the-radar artistic activity” by partnering with leading cultural institutions in cities across the nation where the level of self-organized artistic activity is the highest. It is administered by Philadelphia Contemporary.
Applications were reviewed by a distinguished panel of arts administrators, curators and artists:
Brittany Webb,Curator of Twentieth-Century Art and the John Rhoden Collection at PAFA, Sarah Bloom, Senior Officer for Exhibitions, Education & Interpretation for Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Pablo Guardiola, Co-director of Beta-Local, a Warhol Regional Regranting partner based in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Connie Yu, Artist and 2019 Velocity Fund Grantee and 2020 Added Velocity Grantee.
As panelist and regranting partner Pablo Guardiola noted “It is impressive the diversity of projects and practices anchored to the experiences of being Philadelphia residents”.
Former grantee and panelist, Connie Yu was “grateful to think through these amazing proposals, for gathering-spaces, for survival and the speculative futures beyond, and for collaborative productions engaging image making and storytelling in bold, kind ways. So much love for Philly artists for doing the most with what they have — I hope to keep working and envisioning like you do.”
Dr. Brittany Webb, Curator of Twentieth Century Art at PAFA, and 2022 panelist reflects: “The applicants applying to the Velocity Fund this year had ambitious and creative approaches to connecting their work to their audiences. I’m impressed by these artists’ willingness to experiment and by the care they have for their communities.”
“The Warhol Foundation’s Regional Regranting Program supports ambitious public-facing projects in communities across the country and could not be done without our partners like Philadelphia Contemporary,” says Khadija N. Adell, Regional Regranting Program Manager at the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, “We are excited to see the dynamic range of artist-led projects in the Philadelphia area come to fruition with support from the Velocity Fund.”
Harry Philbrick, Founding Director and CEO of Philadelphia Contemporary, shares this enthusiasm, “Philadelphia Contemporary is honored to administer the Velocity Fund in support of the amazing creative communities of our City. We are grateful to the Warhol Foundation for their continued support and commitment, and to this year’s panelists, who selected from amongst the largest pool of applicants to date.“
After the success of this year’s Spring 2022 Velocity Festival, we will celebrate this new group of grantees in 2023 in a public reception open to all.
applications are now closed for 2022
Thanks to everyone who has submitted a proposal for this year’s Velocity Fund grant cycle.
Stay tuned for award announcements in August 2022.
Deadline: June 6, 2022
Want to learn more about The Velocity Fund? Register to attend one of our free info sessions. Walk-ins Welcome.
2022 Velocity Fund Info Sessions
February 2022
Added Velocity—in its Third Year—Announces Grants to Support Five Philadelphia-based Art Projects
Added Velocity will fund five ambitious projects led by Philadelphia-based artists with grants of $15,000 (each) to build on the successes of their initial Velocity Fund initiatives in the coming year. These direct grants to local artists support cross-disciplinary projects that engage with a wide range of Philadelphia communities. Added Velocity—which is administered by Philadelphia Contemporary with generous support from the William Penn Foundation—builds on the momentum of The Velocity Fund by directly supporting five previously funded Velocity Fund grantees who demonstrate a commitment to expanding their initial projects in meaningful and far-reaching ways. Added Velocity provides a unique reinvestment into artist-run projects, serving as a vital next step in socially engaged practices in Philadelphia.
The 2021-2022 Added Velocity projects are:
Alumbra (Ana Cecilia Gonzalez*)
Al Mudhif – A Confluence (Yaroub Al Obaidi*)
The Beardmobile (John Jarboe*)
Choreto (Diente Fo*)
Expanding Sanctuary (Kristal Sotomayor*)
(*denotes lead organizer of the project)
This year’s grantees proposed a wide range of projects – including a mobile performance/protest unit, a documentary impact campaign, a youth focused light installation, a traditional Iraqi reed gathering space, and a system of infrastructure for community abundance—each with the goal of deepening impact within Philadelphia neighborhoods through creative intervention, envisioning new ways to engage.
Added Velocity applications were reviewed by a distinguished panel: Karen Patterson, Director of Exhibitions and Curator at The Fabric Workshop and Museum; Deidre McPherson, Director of Artistic and Community Initiatives for FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art ; Peter Nesbett, Keeper of Imaginative Futures (aka Executive Director) of Washington Project for the Arts. This same panel met in 2020 to decide the initial grants, so the Added Velocity review presents a unique opportunity to revisit the outcome of prior funding. This year, applicants were invited to speak directly with the panel about their concepts.
“I continue to be inspired by what I see in these applications—the love for the city and its people, the desire to be useful, and a palpable belief that artists can make real impact. I am eager to see how each of these very different projects takes further root in the rich cultural soil that makes Philadelphia so special.”
–Peter Nesbett, Keeper of Imaginative Futures (aka Executive Director) of Washington Project for the Arts.
“I was honored and excited to have an opportunity to revisit the work of each Added Velocity applicant and recipient. I really love this group of award recipients and am inspired by the ways that each one has committed to making a meaningful impact on their community.”
– Deidre McPherson, Director of Artistic and Community Initiatives for FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art
“This was such an inspiring experience. Firstly, to be able to see how these projects have grown and changed since the first iteration and to hear where things might head was so motivating. And secondly, it was such a refreshing and supportive panel, we had enlightening conversations and I have learned so much”.
– Karen Patterson, Director of Exhibitions and Curator at The Fabric Workshop and Museum;
“Artists and their organizations have a beautiful way of acting as a connector and convener of communities, providing spaces for healing, self-discovery, and growth,” explained William Penn Foundation’s Director of Creative Communities Judilee Reed. “Through the ‘Added Velocity’ fund, these five awardees can continue to uplift their communities by extending their project’s impact to neighborhoods across Philadelphia and deepening meaningful audience engagement for those who may not have access to the arts otherwise.”
Due to continued health concerns with large gatherings, we will not be holding a public reception to celebrate the 2021 Added Velocity grantees. Stay tuned for a Spring 2022 combined celebration – introducing the grantees together with the 2021 Velocity Fund cohort and a digital reception in the new year.
The Velocity Fund awards grants to 12 Philadelphia-based art projects in its fourth year of re-granting.
For 2021, The Velocity Fund is proud to announce the results of its fourth year of re-granting. Twelve new art projects—conceived by Philadelphia artists—will be awarded $5,000 each.
The 2021 Velocity Fund grantees are:
Wren Rene- The Command Center to Bring Women Home
Marcellus Armstrong, Talking Walls
Sanchel Brown, Wheelz of Life (C)
M. Asli Dukan, Penntrification
Maria Dumlao, Mas Masarap Magkasama (more delicious together)
Rami George, Virtues Vol. 1—Remixed and Reinterpreted
Elena Guzman, Smile4Kime
Wi-Moto Nyoka, Black Women Are Scary
Cesar Viveros, El Terreno: A Community Driven Garden to Table Initiative
Andrea Walls, The Museum of Black Joy (Phase 2)
Lori Waselchuk, Them That Do: Citizens All (working title)
Arien Wilkerson, LOVE8
You can read more about the projects here.
Established with the support of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, The Velocity Fund is one of numerous Regional Regranting programs launched by the foundation to fund “under-the-radar artistic activity” by partnering with leading cultural institutions in cities across the nation where the level of self-organized artistic activity is the highest. It is administered by Philadelphia Contemporary.
Applications were reviewed by a distinguished panel of arts administrators, curators and artists:
James Claiborne, former Director of Programming, African American Museum in Philadelphia, Kyle Dancewicz, Interim Director, Sculpture Center, Long Island City, New York, Kate McNamara, Providence-based Curator, Artist and Educator from The Interlace Grant Fund, and Arielle Julia Brown, Founder and Director of Black Spatial Relics, 2019 Velocity Fund Grantee and 2020 Added Velocity Grantee.
This year’s grantees proposed a wide range of projects – from time-based installation performances to experimental animated films: musicals on roller-skates to interactive nature walks focusing on food heritage. What these projects share is a connection to communities throughout Philadelphia, an ethos of collaboration, and innovative visions of outreach in the midst of on-going change.
As panelist Kate McNamara noted: “I feel honored to have glimpsed the broad spectrum of Philadelphia artists through the Velocity Fund grant cycle, and I am thrilled with the final selection of grantees, whose work reflects some of the hopefulness and re-imagining this critical and historical moment in time calls for.”
James Claiborne reflects on his role in the selection process, “It was a real honor and pleasure to serve as a panelist for this year’s Velocity Fund grants. The work we encountered through this process truly showcased the vibrancy, diversity and resilience of the Philadelphia cultural sector, and reaffirmed the inherent collaborative spirit that so many of us value and uphold through our work and creative pursuits.”
Kyle Dancewicz elaborates, “Collaboration is often portrayed as a value in its own right, but the artists and groups selected to receive Velocity Fund grants this year show that collaboration can and should be a rigorously interrogated dimension of a practice with a range of important outcomes, from discrete artworks and performances, to interdisciplinary learning, to meaningful public engagement.”
“The Foundation is grateful for the hard work its Regional Regranting Program partners put into their efforts to stay attuned to the creative currents in their communities,” says Rachel Bers, Program Director at the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, “The Velocity Fund offers important support to Philadelphia artists as they engage with, intervene into, and push against the boundaries of what is possible in our cultural moment.”
Harry Philbrick, Founding Director and CEO of Philadelphia Contemporary, welcomes this year’s cohort “All of these awarded artists’ projects in unique and inspiring ways discover and deepen the connections between us. It is an honor for all of us at Philadelphia Contemporary to serve and support these artists in realizing their vision through the Velocity Fund. We are grateful to the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts for their generous support.”
Due to continued health guidance prohibiting large gatherings, we will not be holding a public reception to celebrate the 2021 Velocity Fund grantees at this time. Stay tuned for a Spring 2022 celebration.
March 2021
2021 Information Sessions
Join us for a free information session to learn more about eligibility and the application process at any of these scheduled events.
Thursday, April 1, 2021, 6:30-8pm, Join us for Virtual First Thursdays at Venture Cafe
Drop in hours– no pre-registration required
Wednesday, April 7 at 2pm, Information Session with community partner: Philadelphia Folklore Project
On-line Event: Register Here
Tuesday, April 20, at 4pm, Information Session with community partners from the Philadelphia Collaborative Arts Consortium
On-line Event: Register Here
Wednesday, April 28 at 5:30pm, Joint-Session with The Leeway Foundation, with community partner Fleisher Art Memorial
On-line Event: Register Here
Friday, May 7th at 4pm
Information Session with community partners Taller Puertorriqueño and Vox Populi featuring 2019 Velocity Fund grantee Raúl Romero
On-line Event: Register Here
Monday, May 10th at noon
Joint-Session with CFEVA’s Philadelphia Open Studios
On-line Event: Register Here
Wednesday, May 12 at 5pm
Information Session with University of Pennsylvania Stuart Weitzman School of Design
On-line Event: Register Here
Friday, May 14 at 1pm
Information Session at Cherry Street Pier
Outdoor Event: Register Here to attend in-person
Wednesday, May 12 at 5pm
Information Session with University of Pennsylvania Stuart Weitzman School of Design
On-line Event: Register Here
Tuesday, May 18, 2021 at 5:00pm
Velocity Fund Information Session at The Schuylkill Environmental Center with 2020 grantees Diente and Sky Fo and Yaroub Al-Obaidi.
Outdoor Event: Register Here to attend in person
Tuesday, May 25th at 6pm
Instagram Live – featuring FORTUNE, Asian Arts Initiative and Rob Blackson
Wednesday, May 26, 2021 at 5:30pm
CapitalNOW Event: CERF+, Leeway Foundation, and The Velocity Fund come together to share information about their grant programs and upcoming deadlines.
On-line Event: Register here.
Thursday, June 3rd, 6:30-8pm, Join Us Virtual First Thursdays at Venture Cafe
Drop in hours– no pre-registration required
Friday, June 4, at noon, Velocity Fund Information Session at The Open Kitchen Sculpture Garden with 2020 grantee Pedro Ospina.
Outdoor Event: Advanced registration and mask required.
Anytime! Asynchronous Information Session – view our SlideDeck at your convenience.
Need one-on-one application support? Schedule office-hours with our team by emailing velocity@philadelphiacontemporary.org
Stay tuned as we will continue to update these listings over the next few months.
December 2020
Added Velocity 2020 Announces Grants to Support Five Philadelphia-based Art Projects
Added Velocity will fund five ambitious projects led by Philadelphia-based artists with grants of $15,000 (each) to build on the successes of their initial Velocity Fund initiatives in the coming year. Added Velocity—which is administered by Temple Contemporary at the Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Temple University, with generous support from the William Penn Foundation—builds on the momentum of The Velocity Fund by directly supporting five previously funded Velocity Fund grantees who demonstrate a commitment to expanding their initial projects in meaningful and far-reaching ways in Philadelphia.
The 2020 Added Velocity grantees are:
Black Spatial Relics 2021 Convening (Arielle Julia Brown*)
A PHONEBOOK/ Philadelphia Packaging Company (Érica Mukai Faria*)
Sound Music Collective/ Virtual Sound Museum (Elissa Flute*)
Migrations and Movements (Marissa Johnson-Valenzuela*)
FORTUNE/Many Folds Press (Heidi Ratanavanich*)
(*denotes lead artist)
Read more about the projects here.
This year’s grantees proposed a wide range of projects, from masked dance parties to digital convenings, alternative phonebooks to curated electronic music tutorials—each with the goal of deepening impact within Philadelphia communities through creative intervention, connecting in new ways during this time of social distancing.
The 2020 Added Velocity grantee projects were selected from the 2019 Velocity Fund supported projects. The Velocity Fund is one of the numerous Regional Regranting programs established with the support of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts to fund “under-the-radar artistic activity” by partnering with leading cultural institutions in cities across the nation where the level of self-organized artistic activity is the highest.
Added Velocity applications were reviewed by a distinguished panel of arts administrators and curators: Roya Amirsoleymani, Artistic Director and Curator of Public Engagement at the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art; Meg Onli, Assistant Curator at the Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania; and Laura Phipps, Assistant Curator at the Whitney Museum of American Art. This same panel met in 2019 to decide the initial grants, so this process presents a unique opportunity to revisit the outcome of prior funding.
“I was thrilled to have the opportunity to review the Added Velocity proposals and to revisit some of the incredible projects of the 2019 grantees. It was particularly impressive to see the ways that these proposals reflected on the impact of the existing projects and reconsidered the way that collaborative and community-based work can function in the midst of a pandemic. The expansive and adaptive thinking in these proposals is amazing and a testament to the creativity and tenacity of all of the collaborators.”
– Laura Phipps, Assistant Curator at the Whitney Museum of American Art
“Having had the honor of serving on last year’s Velocity Fund jury panel, and now this first round of Added Velocity funding, I have been afforded a glimpse into the compelling creative practices and deep community engagement of some of Philadelphia’s most committed contemporary artists and cultural workers. In these extraordinarily challenging times, the thoughtfulness and perseverance of the city’s artists is evident and inspiring. I commend all of the applicants and look forward to seeing the grant recipients’ projects evolve. Many thanks to the Velocity Fund team for their robust support of Philadelphia’s local arts landscape, and for inviting me to participate in their selection process. “
– Roya Amirsoleymani, Artistic Director and Curator of Public Engagement at the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art
COVID-19 Artist Emergency Relief Grants applications are now closed.
We will complete the final round of funding in May 2021.
The first drawing was Monday, April 27, 2020; subsequent rounds were held on June 17, August 31, and November 30, 2020.
August 2020
The Velocity Fund awards grants to 12 Philadelphia-based art projects in its 3rd year of re-granting
For 2020, The Velocity Fund is proud to announce the results of its third year of re-granting. Twelve new art projects—conceived by Philadelphia artists—will be awarded $5,000 each.
The 2020 Velocity Fund grantees are:
- Yaroub Alobaidi – Al Mudhif The Traditional Reed Guest House
- Nia Benjamin/Ninth Planet – Honey Honey Community Film Project
- Diente Fo – Gente De Tierra
- Annielille Gavino – De(scribing) Filipinx
- Cecilia Gonzalez Barragan – Alumbra: Placemaking Through Light
- John Jarboe/The Bearded Ladies Cabaret Company – Late Night Snacks Take Out Cabaret
- Daiyon Kpou – JUICE Visual Art Exhibition and Film Showcase
- Pedro Ospina – Reaffirming, Reviving and Reinventing
- Melissa B. Skolnick-Noguera/Timbalona – Rumba en Filadelfia
- Kristal Sotomayor – Expanding Sanctuary
- Lendl Tellington – Philly 76′
- Rashid Zakat – Hold it Down
You can read more about the projects here.
Applications were reviewed by a distinguished panel of arts administrators, curators and artists: Karen Patterson, Curator at The Fabric Workshop and Museum (FWM); Deidre McPherson, Department Director of Public Programs at The Cleveland Museum of Art; Peter Nesbett, Keeper of Imaginative Futures (aka Executive Director) of Washington Project for the Arts; and Raúl Romero, Philadelphia-based artist and 2019 Velocity Fund Grantee.
This year’s grantees proposed a wide range of projects including portable cabarets, audio visual publications, light installations, collaborative sculpture, documentaries and exhibitions—each focused on connection with communities throughout Philadelphia. Many of these dynamic projects envision new forms of outreach during the pandemic. As panelist Peter Nesbett said:
“The pluck and resilience of Philadelphia’s independent cultural producers is inspiring, especially in our current moment. As for the projects we reviewed, many struck me as perpetuating a rich dialogue amongst the normally distinct realms of art, heritage, and folklore. I am excited to see the projects we were able to fund come to fruition.”
Karen Patterson also noticed a theme emerging in the pool of 77 applications for this year’s funding:
“I was struck by the common thread running through the applicants this year. There was an urgent request to move more voices, more ways of seeing the world, into the spotlight. And not just a traditional spotlight of museums or institutions, but into communities, parks, and homes. It is my hope that these requests, these applications, signal a commitment to the creative process as a means of connecting people to their surroundings and to the world at large.”
Raúl Romero added, “I’m excited to see how the Velocity Fund will help amplify the many voices of these artists that are so vital to be heard during these times!”
Due to continued health guidance prohibiting large gatherings, we will not be holding a public reception to celebrate the 2020 Velocity Fund grantees at this time.
Added Velocity—in its Inaugural Year—Announces Grant to Support Five Philadelphia-based Art Projects
Added Velocity will fund five ambitious projects led by Philadelphia-based artists $15,000 (each) to build on the successes of their initial Velocity Fund initiatives. Added Velocity—which is administered by Temple Contemporary at the Tyler School of Art and Architecture with generous support from the William Penn Foundation—builds on the momentum of The Velocity Fund by directly supporting successful previous grantees who demonstrate a commitment to expanding their initial projects in meaningful and far-reaching ways in Philadelphia.
Each of applicants were 2018 Velocity Fund grantees – initially selected from a pool of over 120 proposals.
The 2019 Added Velocity grantees are:
APIARY Magazine (Steven Burns*)
Black Quantum Futurism (Rasheedah Phillips*)
Creative Resilient Youth (CRY) (Andrea Ngan*)
Reentry Think Tank: Reentry Bill of Rights’, (Mark Strandquist*)
Speak Speak, Walk Walk… Listen (Amy Hicks*)
(*denotes lead organizer of the project)
Applications were reviewed by a distinguished panel of arts administrators and curators: Courtney Fink, co-founder and executive director of Common Field; Margot Norton, curator at the New Museum in New York City; and Philadelphia-based independent curator Blake Bradford. This same panel met in 2018 to decide the initial grants, so this process presents a unique opportunity to revisit the outcome of prior funding. This year’s grantees proposed a wide range of projects –from walking tours to speculative time portals, magazines to youth-led projects– each with the goal of deepening impact within Philadelphia communities through the creative intervention.
Rob Blackson, director of exhibitions and public programs, Temple Contemporary, Tyler School of Art and Architecture, says of the process: “This year’s inaugural Added Velocity grantees are a testament to the necessity of connecting artists with communities throughout Philadelphia. I am so excited to see how each of these creative initiatives will continue to grow thanks to the Velocity Fund and support from the William Penn Foundation and the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.”
You can read more about the 2019 Added Velocity projects here.