Pacific Jurisdictions Artist Fund Awards 45 Artists Across American Samoa, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

Community-led grant honors Indigenous creativity, cultural leadership, and artistic resilience across the Pacific

DENVER, Sept. 2, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Creative West, a regional arts nonprofit, is proud to announce the culmination of the first ever Pacific Jurisdictions Artist Fund. The fund will provide 45 artists and cultural practitioners from American Samoa, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan, Rota, and Tinian) unrestricted support for their creative and cultural work.

Launched in spring 2025, the Fund is a groundbreaking, trust-based grant designed specifically for artists and culture-bearers in the Pacific Jurisdictions. Despite their rich cultural heritage and distinct contributions to the fabric of the U.S., artists in American Samoa, Guam, and CNMI have historically been excluded from regional funding. The Fund addresses this disparity head-on, offering a model for culturally responsive and liberatory grantmaking that centers the voices and visions of island communities.

Unlike traditional funding models, the Fund was co-designed by local cultural leaders and artists, offering a process rooted in relationship, equity, and respect for Indigenous ways of knowing. The program provides unrestricted awards of up to $6,000 to support creative practice, cultural preservation, rest, healing, or daily needs—however each artist defines it. In the 2024-25 cycle, awards ranged from approximately $700 to $3,000 to ensure that as many artists could be funded as possible. Although Creative West's resources were limited, the organization managed to commit $26,000 in program funding to each jurisdiction. Funds may fluctuate in the future and Creative West seeks to secure additional resources for the Fund.

"It's an amazing privilege to see arts created and inspired by love for culture/values. " said one of the island-based grant application reviewers. "Please know [the Fund] is so empowering for the applicants and the reviewers."

The 45 awardees represent a wide spectrum of artistic expression—from traditional tattooists, weavers, and carvers to poets, musicians, language keepers, and digital storytellers. Each awardee was selected through a community-driven panel review process led by Pacific Island reviewers from across the region.

"Arts funding in the U.S. Pacific Island communities has been inconsistent," said Creative West Grants, Awards and Programs Director Anika Tené. "The Fund does its part to address that — it also centers Indigenous leadership, honors lived experience, and moves at the speed of trust."

In September, the Fund's inaugural awardees will be honored at community celebrations hosted on each island:

American Samoa – September 10, 2025 at the DDW Beach Cafe and Restaurant
Guam – September 15, 2025 at Caffe Cino in the Hilton Hotel
CNMI (Saipan) – September 18, 2025 at the NMI Museum of History and Culture

These celebratory events for the program's inaugural year will include cultural sharing, community meals, and recognition of each artist's contributions. In addition, Creative West will be hosting outreach and community workshops on American Samoa, Guam and Saipan aimed to provide artists essential guidance and resources to strengthen their future applications.

For more information and to learn more about the the Fund artists and resources, visit: https://wearecreativewest.org/introducing-the-2025-pacific-jurisdictions-artist-fund-awardees/ 

About Creative West
Established in 1974 as a nonprofit U.S. Regional Arts Organization (USRAO), we serve a broad and diverse region that stretches from the Arctic Coast to the Desert Southwest and from the Great Plains to the Pacific Islands. We offer direct, practical support to artists, culture bearers, state arts agencies, and creative organizations, aiming to work distributively in support of community-defined goals. Our direct-service work includes funding, programming, leadership development, research, advocacy, technology, and convening to move arts and cultural policy forward. We support goals directly—seeking partnership, not power—knowing that the region contains multitudes.

Contact: Anika Tené | Creative West | [email protected]
Website: www.wearecreativewest.org

Leah Horn
303-629-1166
[email protected]

SOURCE Creative West (formerly WESTAF)