PNC Arts Alive Awards Craft Alliance $40,000 Grant

(CA) is pleased to announce it was recently awarded a $40,000 grant from PNC Arts Alive. PNC Arts Alive is a two-year, $1 million initiative from The PNC Foundation that supports visual and performing arts groups with the goal of increasing arts access and engagement in new and innovative ways.

Seventeen arts organizations in the St. Louis area were selected for bold thinking around increasing arts access and engagement. 

With each session filled to capacity, reaching 220 parents and children, PNC Arts Alive Free Saturdays at Craft Alliance had an incredibly successful first year.

CA is thrilled to offer this free introductory art experience to parents and children for a second year, thanks to the generosity of The PNC Foundation.

Beginning on Saturday, Sept. 29, families will have the opportunity to spend four Saturday mornings in CA’s Grand Center studios, working together on focused art projects, free of charge.

There are five consecutive terms running throughout the school year, ending on Saturday, May 11, 2013.

PNC Arts Alive Free Saturdays give children and parents the opportunity to immerse themselves in hands-on art activities in our specialized studios. For the last eight months CA’s studios in the Kranzberg Arts Center have been teeming with children, teens and their parents on Saturday mornings creating clay masks, fashioning fiber headdresses, pounding metal cuffs, and designing graphic narratives.

In the words of participating mother Karen Flotte, “All of the kids really loved the experience…it engaged them at so many levels and with all of their senses. (My son) left brimming with excitement and wonder and can't wait to go back to Craft Alliance!”

The classes are taught by professional artists, and parents work in the studios alongside children ages 5 – 11 and children 12 – 18 are encouraged to participate as well. 

This rare opportunity for parents and children to share a rich, in-depth art experience builds family relationships and, ultimately, a stronger community.

“The PNC Foundation has a long history of providing grants to organizations that strengthen and enrich the lives of our communities,” said Rick Sems, PNC regional president for Greater St. Louis. “We understand that a rich arts community is a significant driver of our economic success, providing employment, boosting tourism and making the region attractive for businesses, residents and visitors.” 

CA’s PNC Arts Alive Free Saturdays opens the doors to participation in visual art classes to a critically underserved audience that frequently lacks the money to pay for studio art classes.

Register in person or by phone at 314-534-7528 for PNC Arts Alive Free Saturdays beginning Aug. 13. For more information on PNC Arts Alive and the grant recipients, visit www.pncartsalive.com.