Today the National YoungArts Foundation (YoungArts), the non-profit organization that recognizes and nurtures the nation's most talented young artists in the visual, literary, design and performing arts, announced that applications for 2015 will be available online at http://www.youngarts.org/apply from April 22, 2014 through October 17, 2014. Young artists-between the ages of 15 and 18 or in high school grades 10-12 (as of December 1, 2014)-across the nation are encouraged to apply.
This year, students will also have the opportunity to be recognized as a Singer/Songwriter within the Voice discipline. As with other categories of Winners, these Singer/Songwriters will now be able to work closely with and be mentored by renowned leaders in their field and will be exposed to a wide-variety of other field-related experiences meant to encourage them to pursue a career in the arts.
For 33 years, YoungArts has been identifying and supporting the next generation of artists, and contributing to the cultural vitality of the nation by investing in the artistic development of talented young people. By providing promising artists with life-changing experiences with renowned mentors, access to significant scholarships, national recognition, and other opportunities throughout their careers, YoungArts helps ensure that the nation's most outstanding emerging artists are encouraged to pursue careers in the arts.
"Applying to our program is the first step to taking advantage of the unique opportunities YoungArts has to offer and joining an inspiring network of more than 20,000 alumni who understand and support each other's dreams of becoming a professional artist" said Paul T. Lehr, National YoungArts Foundation's President and CEO. "In 2014, these opportunities included the chance to participate in the Emmy-nominated HBO YoungArts MasterClass, exhibit work at New York's Museum of Modern Art, perform at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and New World Center, and be mentored by leaders in their fields at our campus in Miami and around the country. As we look to 2015 we are excited to offer life changing experiences like these to a whole new class of YoungArts Winners."
"We are excited that by adding a Singer/Songwriter subcategory of Voice, we are able to respond to the requests of many of our participants and applicants," said Lisa Leone, National YoungArts Foundation Vice President of Artistic Programs. "While we have always had singers and songwriters in our programs, we are now able to offer them more tailored experiences in order to help them become masters in the field."
To be eligible for recognition by YoungArts, applicants must be between the ages of 15 and 18 or in high school grades 10-12 (as of December 1, 2014), a United States citizen or international student studying on a student visa, and must demonstrate excellence in the visual, literary, performing or design arts. YoungArts Winners are selected annually through a blind adjudication process and are designated into three categories, Finalist, Honorable Mention, and Merit. Finalists and Honorable Mention Winners receive monetary recognition from the National YoungArts Foundation. All Winners are eligible to participate in YoungArts' regional programs-YoungArts Miami, YoungArts Los Angeles and YoungArts New York-space permitting and in the Emmy-nominated HBO series YoungArts MasterClass. YoungArts Winners also receive access to college scholarships, fellowships, and ongoing opportunities to perform and exhibit their work through YoungArts' professional contacts and partnerships with some of the leading arts institutions in the nation, as well as a certificate and medallion of achievement and a recommendation letter.
All applicants have the choice to be added to the YoungArts Student List Service (SLS), a subscription service that provides college, university and conservatory admissions representatives with applicant's basic contact and school information along with links to each student's audition portfolio, providing them with important information about the student's artistic achievements.
Approximately 170 of the year's Finalists from across the nation are invited to YoungArts Week in Miami in January, where they participate in a week of intensive master classes and workshops with internationally renowned artists. Finalists also have the opportunity to share their work each evening in performances, readings, exhibitions and screenings that are open to the public. During YoungArts Week, students are further evaluated and awards of up to $10,000 are determined. Nominations for the 2015 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts, the highest award that can be given to any artistically talented high school senior in the United States, are also made.
Modeled after the transformative experience of YoungArts Week, programs across the country in New York, Los Angeles and Miami, extend recognition, resources and opportunities to YoungArts Winners nationwide. All Winners are eligible to participate in YoungArts regional programs, space permitting. During regional programs, participants are further evaluated and are eligible for special awards up to $5,000.
