The James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation Grants $500,000 to Oregon Artists Involved in Performing Arts

The Spark Awards, divided among 20 artists, are part of a three-year pilot program.

Laura Allcorn, one of the Miller Foundation's 20 Spark Award recipients for 2024. Photo courtesy of Laura Allcorn.
By Robin Bacior

Twenty Oregon artists are receiving a hefty holiday gift: $25,000.

On Dec. 18, the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation announced its board of directors had approved 20 Oregon artists to receive the first round of Sparks Awards, a new three-year pilot program that will provide a total of $1.5 million ($500,000 per year) of “flexible funding” to individual artists. The Spark Awards’ goal is to support “self-directed pursuit by professional artists of new ideas, opportunities and skills…essential to our state’s cultural vitality,” a press release noted.

This year’s $500,000 pot is divided among 20 midcareer artists spanning the performing arts—music, theater and interdisciplinary performance. A panel of 28 performing arts professionals selected award winners from 299 applicants. Sixty percent of the awardees identify as women or nonbinary, and half of the awardees identify as Indigenous, Black or a person of color.

“We were thrilled with the range and diversity of the applications that we received across all the performing arts disciplines,” said Miller Foundation executive director Carrie Hoops in a press statement. “We are heartened by the reminder of the rich and ambitious artistic work happening in our state, and excited to see the positive impact this funding will have at pivotal moments in these artists’ careers.”

Established in 2002, the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation was created to “enhance the quality of life of Oregonians” through supporting arts education in classrooms, along with performing, visual and literary arts.

“As the Miller Foundation enters its third decade of grantmaking in Oregon, we remain committed to supporting artists and arts organizations as the bedrock of vibrant, creative communities in our state,” said foundation board president Peter Koehler in a statement.

See the full list of 2024 Spark Awards recipients below:

Sara Jean Accuardi, theater

Okaidja Afroso, music

Laura Allcorn, interdisciplinary performance

Marisa Anderson, music

Amber Kay Ball, theater

Adam Eccleston, music

Michelle Fujii, interdisciplinary performance

Ethan Gans-Morse, music

Francisco Garcia, theater

Allie Hankins, dance

Jimmie Herrod, music

Anthony Hudson, interdisciplinary performance

Carlyn Hudson, dance

Hannah Krafcik, dance

Talilo Marfil-Tran, music

Lamiae Naki, music

Jesse J. Sanchez, theater

Rachel Slater, dance

Andrea Stolowitz, theater

Luke Wyland, music

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