Northampton Arts Council, Inc.
The Northampton Arts Council serves over 25,000 diverse residents of Hampshire County annually—including artists, students, families, seniors, immigrants, low-income individuals, and underrepresented cultural groups—ensuring our programming reflects the whole community.
We are deeply rooted in our region, Northampton, as well as Holyoke, Springfield, Greenfield, and the rest of the Valley, and meet eligibility criteria across Franklin, Hampden, and Hampshire counties through:
Local presence: administrative staff and board members live locally, and events are produced within our service region.
Community participation: decisions are guided by residents via surveys, listening sessions, and public forums, especially when designing public art initiatives like the Northampton Public Arts Festival.
Community members lead our work in multiple ways:
Resident-led board: 16 local artists, educators, nonprofit professionals, and community members oversee funding decisions, strategy, and programming priorities.
Grant review process: Our 11-person Local Cultural Council grant panel is peer-led, empowering community applicants to review and decide among local arts and culture projects. It consists of over 55% LGBTQ members and 18% BIPOC,
Direct input: For the 2025 Public Arts Festival, neighborhood feedback called for inclusive public art. As a result, we commissioned two permanent murals by artist Sabrina Dorsainvil that reflect themes of identity, equity, accessibility, and civic care—expressing community voices in a visible way. The new murals will be seen by over 1 million visitors annually.
We operate within a strategic focus of supporting a vibrant local arts and creativity ecosystem and increasing equity and opportunity for regionally underserved communities.
Contact
Brian Foote, Executive Director
arts@northamptonma.gov
413-587-1069
http://www.northamptonartscouncil.org/
Address
240 Main Street
#1
Northampton, MA 01060-3113
Connect on Social
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Application Information
FY26 details to come.
FY25 Funding List
| Name | Project Title | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Allis, Sunny | There's Nothing Wrong With Love | $780 | Available Potential Enterprises, Ltd. | ETERNAL | $1,060 | Ayres, Wylder | The Queer Story Slam | $1,110 | Back Porch Productions LLC | Back Porch Festival | $1,100 | Bettagere Nagendra Prasad, Pranav Swaroop | Project SARANG - Colors of South Asian Music | $500 | Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity, Inc. | Tell Her This Live! | $515 | Chapman, Anna | [RE]tangle:GATHER | $1,001 | Chinese Association of Western Massachusetts, Inc | Chinese Lantern Festival and New Year Celebration | $765 | Ferguson, Carrie | Queer Kids Fest 2025 - Author Presentations | $1,020 | Francis, Indë | Mirror, Mirror | $765 | Gately, Sara | Access to the Arts | $250 | Grow Food Northampton, Inc. | Grow Food Northampton Farmers Markets Music | $900 | King, Matthew | Global Groove Festival | $1,050 | Krosoczka, Gina | Northampton Youth Arts & Lit Fest | $995 | Manselle, Jafar | “West African Drumming Workshop - Come Out to Play” | $250 | Mothers Institute for Collaboration and Art | MICAfest: Mothers in Contemporary Art | $1,070 | Northampton Center for the Arts, Inc. | 2025 Youth Performance Festival | $795 | Northampton Jazz Festival, Inc. | Northampton Jazz Festival | $810 | Northampton Parents Center, Inc. | Weekly Drop-In Music Classes for Families with Young Children | $1,015 | Pedraza, Kit | Queer Curiosities | $400 | Play Incubation Collective Inc | PIC PIPS 2025 | $700 | Queer Joy Collaborative | Creating the Joyful Kids Chorus | $425 | Quinn-Vasic, Paige | Noho Art Club | $800 | Self-Evident Education, Inc. | The Power of Truths Arts & Education Festival | $1,130 | Smith, Ronald | Saturday Jazz Workshop Jam Sessions | $750 | Striving For All | Art Therapy for Foster Children | $1,045 | The Northampton Academy of Music, Inc. | Academy Regional Poetry Slam | $1,045 | Translate Gender, Inc. | CoACT Community Theatre for BIPOC Youth | $1,050 | Valley Arts Mentors | Mentorship Program & Webinar Series | $355 | Valley Light Opera, Inc. | Production of H.M.S. Pinafore | $500 | Westwater Weekes, Naomi | Reclaiming Folk | $500 |
