Artists Creative Fund continues to make an impact on Tulsa’s creative scene. Artists, writers, performers and more have gained creative mentorship, professional development opportunities and have shared their work with the world through thought-provoking and dynamic events. Over the past year, grantees hosted 20 public events, ranging from live performances, film screenings, poetry readings, zine-making workshops and more. 

May Yang, an artist, designer, muralist and business owner, found that ACF impacted her artistic journey through indispensable creative support. "ACF helped get me where I wanted to go. In addition to the monetary support, ACF put me in touch with a mentor who was an indispensable resource." Yang was recently featured on the cover of Tulsa People’s “Women’s Issue.” Her ACF project, Wordplay, was a gallery exhibition of five to eight wall-mounted relief paintings and one interactive work, which allowed visitors to create compositions based on Yang’s forms and contribute to a community relief painting. 

Loren Waters had a similarly exciting year as an ACF grantee. Her documentary “Tiger” premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and won the Short Film Jury Award for Directing. In her film, Waters brings a unique and compassionate eye to the history of internationally acclaimed Indigenous artist and elder Dana Tiger and her family’s iconic T-shirt company. 

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In a groundbreaking storytelling event, Carey Flack premiered “Frequencies of Place: Mapping Black Oklahoma,” in which attendees were invited to explore an interactive map showcasing community-submitted stories, watch a short screening featuring a local elder’s reflections and listen to an artist talk on memory, Afro-Oklahoma-ecology and storytelling. 

These are just a few examples of the profound creativity shown by the 2024-2025 ACF grantees. As we prepare for the 2025-2026 cohort, previous grantees reflect on the impact the fund has had not just on their careers, but the greater community. With Artists Creative Fund, Tulsa-based artists now have the opportunity to build their careers at home. 

As musician and member of Bandelier Ryan Allen explains: “Tulsa rests not in the middle of nowhere, but at the crossroads of everywhere — a place shaped by the meeting of cultures and creative spirit. Its greatest strength has always been the resilience and collaboration of its artistic community.” Allen’s ACF project, “Six Stars – Song for the Pawnee," blends folk-rock with chamber music elements and raised money for the Pawnee Nation Learning Center. 

Artists Creative Fund 2025-2026 grantees will be announced this fall. 

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Learn more about ACF of their website.

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