Cross artform

The third round of Wales' Cultural Recovery Fund (CRF) is open, with organisations that have not previously received support eligible to apply.

£15.4m is available in total, though £2.2m has already been awarded to over 88 applicants.

Businesses must prove their turnover fell by at least 50% during the past three months compared to the same period pre-pandemic.  

The Welsh Government's Cultural Recovery Fund is open to all cultural organisations and is separate to Arts Council of Wales' Cultural Recovery Fund, which is available to only arts organisations. 

The previous two rounds provided £93m to organisations and individuals across Wales' cultural sector.

“We are fully aware that these impacted sectors continue to face new pressures,” Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport Dawn Bowden said.

Applications close February 11.

Lewisham’s Borough of Culture programme has begun.

Performances and workshops took place across the South London borough on Friday (January 28), including the projection of film We Are Lewisham in three local areas, plus Piccadilly Circus, in the evening.

Organisers say the year will be full of opportunities to get involved, showcasing local talent and offering young Lewisham residents chances to gain skills in the creative industries.

The official programme promises to celebrate the area’s diverse communities, legacy and history of activism.
    
“It is big and bold, created with local people, and sets the tone for what will be a wonderful, celebratory, inclusive year,” Mayor of Lewisham Damien Egan said.

“Art truly will be everywhere in the borough, showing the very best of what Lewisham has to offer.”

The Art Fund has announced recipients of the second and third wave of its Reimagine grants programme.

More than £1.1m will be split across 40 museums, galleries, historic houses and trusts, after 23 organisations were supported in the first wave of the £2m fund. 

Fifteen grants between £5,000 and £15,000 were handed out alongside 25 grants of £15,000 to £50,000.

The largest grants went to Lancaster's Judges' Lodgings to decolonise and re-interpret its collections, Glasgow's Tramway for public artwork exploring environmentalism, social justice and health, and the Hampshire Cultural Trust for a new interactive insight into Anglo-Saxon Winchester opening in autumn.

Art Fund says it received 185 applications requesting a total of £6.2m, demonstrating the level of need in the sector.

Director Jenny Waldman thanked the generosity of Art Fund’s members and donors.

“The grants will allow even more cultural organisations to deepen their resilience for the future, turning some of the challenges but also learnings of the last two years into even greater resources for their communities."