The Wyoming Arts Council is offering grants that pair apprentices and master craftsmen in folk and traditional arts mentoring projects. The grants will pay $2,300 to the master craftsman and provides another $700 for materials or travel; the deadline to apply is May 1.

According to a release from the arts council, the projects must take place between July 1 of this year and June 30, 2022 for at least six months.

The applications are made in tandem by the apprentice and the master. The completed applications are viewed by a panel, with up to four projects selected to receive the grant funding. 

In the grant cycle that is ongoing, Crowheart resident Ralphaelita Stump is teaching her daughter, Raphaella, the art of Eastern Shoshone cradleboard-making. Meanwhile, Audra Draper of Riverton is teaching another Riverton resident, Stan Castagno, traditional bladesmithing. Further west, Anita Thatcher of Dubois is teaching Soleiana Abernathy and Annalissa Purdum, both from Lander, to weave wool saddle pads and in Casper, Yong Hui Torske is teaching Jill Wright quilting skills.

The apprentices must be at least 18 years-old but there is no upper age limit. Both the master and the apprentice provide evidence of their skill levels, a little about the art form and an outline of the project and samples of their work. In-family mentorships are acceptable, as there have been multiple recipients who have passed down cultural art forms and heritage to family members. Apprentices have to be marginally experienced in the art form and demonstrate a commitment to continuing to work in the art.

Applications that preserve endangered art forms may be given priority. 

The applicants are notified in June whether they will be funded.

“If the application is not selected, the applicant does have the option of having us automatically ‘renew’ their application for the next year,” said folk and traditional arts specialist Josh Chrysler. “I would reach back out to the applicant and offer suggestions on how to improve the application, based on the feedback the panelists provided when they reviewed the application. But the bulk of the application can just be carried over from the previous year, to keep down on the workload for the applicants.”

For more information, contact Chrysler at joshua.chrysler@wyo.gov or 307-256-2010, or visit the grants tab at www.wyomingartscouncil.org.