Community Arts Grant 2026

The City of West Hollywood offers the WeHo Community Arts Grant for the calendar year 2026 to support nonprofit arts organizations, individual artists, and artist collectives, particularly those with a history of engaging LGBQ, BIPOC, and/or female artists and audiences. The program seeks to fund art-centered presentations and participatory programs such as workshops that serve and enhance the local community. All applications must be submitted electronically via the City’s official website. The overarching goal of the Community Arts Grant category is to promote cultural equity and expand community access to the arts. The City and selected grantees aim to foster community engagement, increase public access to diverse artistic experiences, recognize and support local cultural resources, stimulate local business partnerships, and celebrate identity and culture through the arts. The total available funding for this category is $30,000, with a maximum award of $6,000 per grantee. Eligibility is restricted to LA County-based applicants—artists, collectives, or nonprofit arts organizations—with at least one year of documented art presentation history and two work samples. Projects must be located within West Hollywood or its immediate vicinity (within five blocks of the city border). Applicants are required to present a marketing and outreach strategy targeting West Hollywood constituents and must not be receiving City funding for the same project from another source. City employees, officials, and their immediate family members are ineligible to apply. Fundraising, capital campaigns, murals, and religious-based programs are also excluded from funding. Applications will undergo an initial eligibility screening followed by a peer review panel evaluation. The review criteria include the cohesiveness of the project proposal, clarity of the timeline and budget, representation of LGBQ, BIPOC, and/or female communities, and the applicant’s history and quality of art presentations. An additional point is awarded to applicants based in West Hollywood. The Arts Division and Arts and Cultural Affairs Commission oversee the program, ensuring alignment with the City’s mission to support inclusive, accessible, and diverse arts and cultural programming. Workshops to guide applicants will be conducted virtually, with recordings made available. Applicants may also submit questions in advance of the sessions. Key dates include the application deadline of July 1, 2025, at 3 p.m., with peer reviews beginning in August. Funding recommendations will proceed through City review processes from September to October. Grantees will be notified in October and are required to attend an orientation on November 13, 2025. Funds will be disbursed no earlier than January 2026, contingent upon meeting contracting requirements. Contact information for inquiries includes Eva Angeloff at (323) 848-6354 or via email at eangeloff@weho.org.