Scottsdale Arts Receives $137,500 Grant From Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust

Trustees of Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust awarded a $137,500 grant to Scottsdale Arts to assist with impacts it has experienced due to the COVID-19 crisis.

Piper Trust president and CEO Mary Jane Rynd wrote in a letter to Scottsdale Arts, "Trustees and staff of Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust continue to stand by you and Scottsdale Arts as we move into more encouraging times."

It is a privilege to be awarded this grant, which will help counter the pandemic-related challenges that continue to impact Scottsdale Arts across its four branches: Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (SMoCA), Scottsdale Public Art, and Scottsdale Arts Learning & Innovation. Scottsdale Arts has been working closely with the city of Scottsdale on a $30 million renovation project of Scottsdale Civic Center, which kicks off this fall and will include multiple outdoor stages.

"We're honored to be entrusted with these funds in recognition of our work in the community and as an integral part of the Scottsdale experience. We will be dedicated to using these funds to deepen our community investment and continue presenting quality performing and visual arts," said Gerd Wuestemann, president and CEO of Scottsdale Arts.

The Center released its 2021-22 season filled with concerts and performances for a wide range of tastes from eclectic to traditional, from Grammy-winning artists in jazz, American roots, classical and global music to Broadway greats to expressive contemporary dance to laugh-out-loud comedy to a family series for the young and young-at-heart. SMoCA continues to highlight the work of incredibly relevant and timely projects by providing space for artists of color to lead the conversations on where we are and where we want to go from Zineb Sedira to Mimi O Chun to Brad Kahlhamer to Beverly McIver. Scottsdale Public Art's Canal Convergence takes over the Scottsdale Waterfront and the surrounding Old Town Scottsdale area for 10 days of wonder at the free annual confluence of water + art + light, Nov. 5-14, 2021. Additionally, this year Canal Convergence partnered with CODAworx's annual conference CODAsummit. Scottsdale Arts Learning & Innovation presents educational experiences and workshops to build a strong, vibrant community through the arts. Learning & Innovation serves more than 50,000 teachers, students, families, and adults annually through performances, museum programs, hands-on workshops, artist residencies, and workshops.

"We are truly fortunate and incredibly grateful for our long-standing partnership with Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust. The support that Piper Trust has given not just to us, but across the nonprofit sector has been transformative in our communities and often critical to maintain a healthy nonprofit ecosystem in Arizona. We applaud Piper Trust's fine stewardship and Virginia G. Piper's vision and legacy," said Wuestemann.

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