Just as the year was coming to a close, ZER01 received word that $500k in new grants was coming its way. The funding breaks down as follows: $250k from the David & Lucile Packard Foundation, $200k from the James Irvine Foundation and $50k from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The Packard grant builds on the foundation’s commitment to invest in innovative people and organizations that trade in big ideas designed to make a unique and lasting contribution while the Irvine and NEA grants underwrite programming for the 2010 01SJ Biennial with the Irvine grant specifically supporting work by California artists.
During a period when securing funding for non-profits has been particularly challenging, this latest series of grants – on the heels of an earlier Knight Foundation grant – is significant because they validate both the organization’s vision and its plans for execution. All three infusions sustain ZER01’s goal to be regionally responsible yet internationally significant.
ZER01: the Art and Technology Network is the producer of the 01SJ Biennial. Their mission is Inspiring creativity at the intersection of art, technology and digital culture.
The primary enterprise of ZER01 is the 01SJ Biennial a multi-disciplinary, multi-venue event of visual and performing arts, the moving image, public art, and of course, interactive digital media. 01SJ will become the Ars Electronica of North America; the undisputed Sundance and South by Southwest for independent digital media, and a globally recognized biennial of contemporary art on the order of the Liverpool Biennale and the Edinburgh Festival. ZER01 year round signature programming leading to the 01SJ Biennial serves to educate and cultivate audiences, build partnerships, and maintain visibility for the organization through lecture series, artist salons, workshops, and family-oriented special events. In addition to exhibitions at participating museums and galleries including the San Jose Museum of Art and SOFA Galleries, ZER01 envisions presenting innovative forms of interactive and digital art throughout the downtown core and city environs as part of the 3rd 01SJ Biennial and through year-round programming initiatives. ZER01 plans to create a legacy of temporary and permanent works of public art that remain on display throughout the year and support the goal of San Jose/Silicon Valley as a cultural hotspot and destination.
Congratulations ZER01, we’re looking forward to a successful 2010!