A note from CAST on COVID-19
Dear Artists, Cultural Workers, and Lovers of the Arts,
We are facing challenging times as we continue sheltering-in-place and staying safer-at-home in a collective effort to flatten the curve of COVID-19 cases and deaths nationally and globally. It is a surreal moment in our lives, where nearly everything has stopped and disrupted our sense of normalcy, comfort, and security. In particular, the COVID-19 pandemic has deeply impacted the arts sector in unimaginable ways, and it is all of you––the creatives––who continue to adapt, create, and innovate, to instill in all of us a sense of hope and humanity during these isolating times. We at CAST, are especially inspired by your sense of community care.
At CAST, we are in the COVID-19 emergency response conversations among artists, funders, arts leaders, and public officials to help us determine how best we can be helpful in the immediate, recovery, and long-term efforts. Below is a list of emergency funding resources for your immediate needs, which we will continue to update based on new grants that become available:
Arts Loan Fund COVID-19 Emergency Loan (opens in new tab)
So Love Can Win Rapid Response Fund
SF Foundation Rapid Response Fund for Movement Building
California Relief Fund for Artists and Cultural Practitioners
UNTITLED, ART Emergency Fund (opens in new tab)
Foundation for Contemporary Arts COVID-19 Relief Fund (opens in new tab)
Arts and Culture Leaders of Color Emergency Fund (opens in new tab)
CERF+ COVID-19 Emergency Grant
Performing Arts Worker Relief Fund
Emergency Funds for Individual Artists Participating in Residencies
The Blues Foundation HART Fund (opens in new tab)
The Actors Fund (opens in new tab) Entertainment Assistance Program (opens in new tab)
For those seeking additional support or services, please check out the arts support groups (opens in new tab) hosted by Intersection for the Arts; the Public Health Awakened and Spirit of 1848 COVID-19 Resources list, which is a national database (opens in new tab)of emergency resources that centers equity, racial justice, collective care, and community and power building; and Community Vision’s free rapid response consulting and webinars (opens in new tab).
In the meantime, CAST staff continues to work from home, Mondays-Fridays, on current real estate projects while engaging in our creative resiliency practices for our well-being.
What kinds of creative resiliency practices are you using for well-being during these unprecedented and unsettling times? Please feel free to share your creative resiliency practice on our social media channels at @CASTSF on Instagram and Twitter or @SFCAST on Facebook. We will continue to post new resources on our social media channels as well.
In community and good health,
