The South Arts is pleased to announce the 2026 Emerging Traditional Artists Program (ETAP), a component of the In These Mountains, Central Appalachian Folk Arts and Culture initiative.
Donor Name: South Arts
State: Selected States
County: Selected Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 09/30/2025
Size of the Grant: $1000 to $10,000
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
This program recognizes and supports a new generation of traditional artists that have demonstrated a high level of skill in, commitment to, and leadership in their traditional art form. Artists must reside in an Appalachian Regional Commission-designated County in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, or Tennessee. Awards provide financial support to ETAP participants to ensure the continuation of traditional knowledge and artistic skills within their cultural communities.
The Emerging Traditional Artists Program advances the purpose of the In These Mountains initiative to “provide intergenerational opportunities to share, teach, learn, preserve, document, and carry forward the folk and traditional arts and culture of Central Appalachia.” For emerging traditional artists who have demonstrated a commitment to their artform and community and exhibit a high skill level, this award will provide resources for learning opportunities that would otherwise be inaccessible.
A learning opportunity can take many forms. Here are a few examples:
- Online opportunities for continuing education and collaboration.
- Establishing/growing network by traveling within the Appalachian region or beyond to meet other leaders/potential mentors in your art form.
- Taking courses and purchasing software/hardware needed to build an effective online presence.
Through the series of professional development convenings (one in-person, three virtual) and peer mentorship, ETAP is designed to build long-term relationships between traditional artists across the region, beyond state and local boundaries, through:
- Building a cohort of emerging traditional artists in Central Appalachia who are committed to the advancement of folk and traditional arts.
- Encouraging and equipping artists to be advocates for their traditional art forms and for the traditional culture of their communities.
- Deepening participants’ understanding of the importance of public arts support in the United States.
Funding Information
Connect with your peers, participate in professional development workshops, and receive up to $5,000 supporting your projects.
Eligibility Requirements
Applicants for the Emerging Traditional Artist Program must:
- Be an individual folk or traditional artist.
- Be in the early stages of your career/practice.
- Be at least 18 years of age by the application deadline of September 30, 2025.
- Be a United States citizen, lawfully admitted to the U.S. for permanent residence, or have permission from the Department of Homeland Security to work permanently in the U.S.
- Have been a resident of a county designated by the Appalachian Regional Commission in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, or Tennessee for a period of at least two years immediately before the application deadline.
- Expect to maintain residency in an ARC county during the award period.
- For artists in ARC counties in Kentucky, North Carolina, and Tennessee:
- Practice music, handcrafts/material culture, and/or foodways.
- Interdisciplinary traditional artists are welcome to apply.
- For artists in ARC counties in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, and South Carolina:
- Practice handcrafts/material culture.
- Eligible Counties are:
- Alabama: Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Chilton, Clay, Cleburne, Colbert, Coosa, Cullman, De Kalb, Elmore, Etowah, Fayette, Franklin, Hale, Jackson, Jefferson, Lamar, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Macon, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Morgan, Pickens, Randolph, St. Clair, Shelby, Talladega, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Walker, and Winston
- Georgia: Banks, Barrow, Bartow, Carroll, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee, Dade, Dawson, Douglas, Elbert, Fannin, Floyd, Forsyth, Franklin, Gilmer, Gordon, Gwinnett, Habersham, Hall, Haralson, Hart, Heard, Jackson, Lumpkin, Madison, Murray, Paulding, Pickens, Polk, Rabun, Stephens, Towns, Union, Walker, White, and Whitfield
- Kentucky: Adair, Bath, Bell, Boyd, Breathitt, Carter, Casey, Clark, Clay, Clinton, Cumberland, Edmonson, Elliott, Estill, Fleming, Floyd, Garrard, Green, Greenup, Harlan, Hart, Jackson, Johnson, Knott, Knox, Laurel, Lawrence, Lee, Leslie, Letcher, Lewis, Lincoln, McCreary, Madison, Magoffin, Martin, Menifee, Metcalfe, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Nicholas, Owsley, Perry, Pike, Powell, Pulaski, Robertson, Rockcastle, Rowan, Russell, Wayne, Whitley, and Wolfe
- Mississippi: Alcorn, Benton, Calhoun, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Clay, Itawamba, Kemper, Lee, Lowndes, Marshall, Monroe, Montgomery, Noxubee, Oktibbeha, Panola, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Tippah, Tishomingo, Union, Webster, Winston, and Yalobusha
- North Carolina: Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Cherokee, Clay, Davie, Forsyth, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, McDowell, Macon, Madison, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Stokes, Surry, Swain, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes, Yadkin, and Yancey
- South Carolina: Anderson, Cherokee, Greenville, Oconee, Pickens, Spartanburg, and Union
- Tennessee: Anderson, Bledsoe, Blount, Bradley, Campbell, Cannon, Carter, Claiborne, Clay, Cocke, Coffee, Cumberland, De Kalb, Fentress, Franklin, Grainger, Greene, Grundy, Hamblen, Hamilton, Hancock, Hawkins, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Knox, Lawrence, Lewis, Loudon, McMinn, Macon, Marion, Meigs, Monroe, Morgan, Overton, Pickett, Polk, Putnam, Rhea, Roane, Scott, Sequatchie, Sevier, Smith, Sullivan, Unicoi, Union, Van Buren, Warren, Washington, and White
For more information, visit South Arts.
