Northwest Film Forum's Collective Power Fund Recognizes Radical Artists

The fund rewards "work that's nontraditional, anti-institutional, and also underrepresented."

by Amanda Ong

On June 21, the Northwest Film Forum (NWFF)'s Collective Power Fund announced its 14 newest grant recipients. The fund, currently in its fourth installment, is created in partnership with the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture and presented as a part of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts' Regional Regranting Program. The spring 2023 grants gave a total of $60,000 to support individual, visual-based artists in King County in increments of $10,000 for Artist Team or Arts Collective, $5,000 for New Work/Projects, and $2,000 for Research & Development.

The Collective Power Fund started in 2020 as an emergency relief fund for artists. "We look for work that incites public dialogue, pushes boundaries, explores genre fluidity, speaks its truth through authentic perspective," said Mikayla Nicholson, grants manager at Northwest Film Forum, in an interview with the South Seattle Emerald. "We reward artists' work that's nontraditional, anti-institutional, and also underrepresented. We're looking for folks who may have not historically received funding in the past."

The 14 grant recipients were awarded between the three tiers of funding. In Artist Team or Artist Collective was the Black Drag Show (Koach Crosby and Tana Yasu); in New Works/Projects was Roldy Aguero Ablao, Coco Allred, Alice Gosti, Tiffany Howard, Judy Lee, Sheri Gosho Ng, Hanako O'Leary, Rafael Soldi; and in Research & Development was Adetola Abatan, Marena Domingo, Ari Glass, William Lau, and Meilani Mandery 周秀明.

"With this grant, I can build on my past creative work to show how Blackness and African-ness are much more than stagnant narratives and simplistic ideas of identity," Abatan said in her awardee artist statement. "Through conference presentations, an exhibit catalog and my ongoing 'Portraits of Protest' series, I will examine what it means to hold one's peace and position in the midst of activism and dissent. The first of these works will be featured in the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art's Spotlight exhibit (Summer 2023)."

The NWFF staff recommended the jurors, who included Robert Blackson from the Philadelphia Contemporary museum and local Seattle artists Julie-C, Mariam Kere, and Lauren Du Pree.

Nicholson says she thinks the Collective Power Fund is a unique opportunity not offered by many arthouse cinemas. The NWFF is able to play a unique role in the community by offering the fund to local artists, something that has been meaningful for many of the awardees. Ng, for example, will use the fund award to bring her "Japanese American History Project" to fruition as an exhibit in 2024.

"It is difficult to describe how honored and excited I am to be an awardee," Ng said to the Emerald. "This award means so much to me because as a Sansei third-generation Japanese American artist, direct links to those generations of American citizens, who were unjustly incarcerated during World War II, are slowly dwindling. Raising awareness of this painful, traumatic time in our collective history, my hope is to honor and convey their stories through my mixed-media artwork."

The grant to artists is unrestricted, so artists have the freedom to use it however they like — to pay for supplies, pay for space, pay contributors, or simply pay themselves. Moreover, it gives artists a platform to speak to their art, contextualize their work, and present it in context of why it is important and why they need to keep doing this work for their communities.

"I just hope that [the Collective Power Fund] offers [artists] freedom and [can] maybe alleviate some stress," Nicholson said. "I know, especially nowadays, with COVID and everything going on, it is tough to be a working artist. And I know a lot of artists rely on these grants to live, and I feel privileged that we are even such a small part of that."

Though art is an integral part of our society, during the pandemic, many artists struggled — and continue to struggle — financially. A grant like the Collective Power Fund can mean the difference between lack and livelihood. For Aguero Ablao, the grant has certainly been as impactful as Nicholson might hope.

"To be honest, I was behind on rent when I applied, and as an artist," Aguero Ablao told the Emerald. "So I applied, hoping that maybe this could be a moment to breathe a little, hoping that this could help me recharge and move forward again with a little more ease. And this award definitely has. There is such a lightness I feel now, knowing that all this work isn't in vain, that there is purpose in all of this. This award literally has been a saving grace to me, and for that, I am forever grateful."

Featured Image: A scene from the Black Drag Show, with performer Hot Pink Shade (center). The Black Drag Show is one of the recipients of Northwest Film Forum's Collective Power Fund. (Photo: Susan Fried)