State virus relief helps arts on the North Coast

Mar. 29—As coronavirus vaccines become more available, local arts venues are beginning to decide how to reopen. In April, the Charlene Larsen Center for the Performing Arts is set to host an in-person concert for the North Coast Chorale. The Liberty Theatre will host two livestreamed concerts featuring Blind Pilot.

"(I remember) we thought it'd be two weeks and we couldn't imagine what the theater would do, being closed for two weeks," Jennifer Crockett, the Liberty Theatre's executive director, said. "I hesitate to say it's harder now but it's just as hard because it's a judgment call. How soon is too soon? Will I jump the boat too soon? We don't want to get ahead of comfort zones but want to start showing some things on our stage."

But getting to this point has been the biggest battle for the arts and culture sector. The Oregon Arts Commission recently provided local artists and art organizations virus relief grants after a year of closures and lost revenue.

Artist relief

The arts commission distributed $1.25 million in grants to 646 artists throughout the state, benefiting over a dozen locally. The program's recipients were selected out of 1,158 applicants, who reported more than $18 million in revenue loss.

Local artists selected include Oscar de' Masi, Audrey Long, Gabrielle Macrae, Kirista Trask and Myshkin Warbler, of Astoria; Julie Adams, of Cannon Beach; Lisa Sofia Robinson, of Seaside; James Crowe and Jen Crowe, of Warrenton; M.J. Anderson, Deborah DeWit and Reeva Wortel, of Nehalem; and Julie Yanko, of Manzanita.

The artists received grants between $1,000 and $5,000. The funds will help artists pay for materials and other necessary costs.

"(The award) came at a very dark time," said Patricia de' Masi, co-owner of Oscar de' Masi Art Gallery in Astoria. "The pandemic was like a rug got pulled out from not just us but everybody. (This) was a beacon of hope for us ... It was critical, frankly, in our survival of the pandemic as a gallery but also as an individual artist for Oscar to continue creating and buying art supplies."

A group of 29 panelists reviewed the artist relief fund applications, including Crockett and Jessamyn Grace West, the executive director of the Astoria Arts and Movement Center.

"It was really equal parts heartbreaking and inspiring," Crockett said. "(It was) heartbreaking because these are folks that haven't been able to do their job in a year, do their passion in a year — or they've had to make significant changes or purchase new equipment they weren't planning on."

Artists' efforts to adapt during the pandemic inspired Crockett.

"I always think of musicians and performers as the grass that grows in between the sidewalk. We're used to being scrappy," Crockett said. "There is some grief in not being able to perform in the way that we're used to but there's a lot of adaption. I wasn't surprised by it but it's also heartbreaking because a lot were struggling with paying rents, buying food, getting unemployment. It's kind of a double-edged sword."

West read over 200 applications sent in by dancers and dance organizations.

"There was not a single one that did not move me. I was reading some very personal stories about how artists have been financially, physically impacted by not being able to continue work as an artist, to continue to refine their craft as an artist, not being able to perform," West said.

Operational support

Local recipients for small operating grants include Astoria Arts and Movement Center, Cannon Beach Arts Association, Cascadia Concert Opera/Cascadia Chamber Opera, Hoffman Center for the Arts, North Coast Chorale, Partners for the PAC and Tolovana Arts Colony. Each group received $1,159 and must have an annual budget under $150,000.

The grants are distributed annually and help organizations pay for operating expenses like rent and utilities.

At the Charlene Larsen Center for the Performing Arts, the grant goes directly toward managing the center, said Bereniece Jones-Centeno, the executive director of Partners for the PAC. The money funds advertising, daily operations and making facility improvements and repairs.

"There's so much more expenses than people understand. Often folks think, 'Just get a grant for that.' ... There are a lot of us going after the funds," Jones-Centeno said. "For our tiny town of Astoria, we have five theaters. It's amazing that we even get the support from (Oregon Arts Commission) because they have Portland, Eugene and statewide groups to deal with. We do really have to rely on our neighbors to support us."

Partners for the PAC relies on fundraising events to support its annual operating costs. The center hasn't hosted any events since closing in March 2020.

"Without that source of support, it makes you nervous because that's what keeps the water on, what keeps the building warm," Jones-Centeno said. "We can't do events with a cold building. Support helps us keep the building warm. That support is more important this year."

The Astoria Arts and Movement Center has received a small operating grant annually from the arts commission since 2018.

"For a small operation like ours, funding that can be used for basic expenses like utilities is instrumental in our survival," West said. "A lot of grants are project-based and while that's really wonderful and important, you have a lot of organizations that aren't even able to offer projects if they can't essentially pay for their space."

West said the arts commission "literally can be the difference in how an organization can survive, especially in its early stages."

The Liberty Theatre received an operating support grant of $3,719. The funds mainly cover payroll expenses, Crockett said. The theater furloughed staff after the theater closed in March 2020. Since then, staff have come back to working at the theater. The theater recently hired another full-time employee.

"It helps offset the cost of just the running of the theater. It offsets the cost of the work that we do in the community," Crockett said. "As an economic generator for the area, before COVID, we supported three full-timers and five part-timers. These are local jobs in the area and people that contribute to the economy."