Arts United San Pedro Awards $45,000 in Community Arts Grants to Fuel Local Creativity

SAN PEDRO — Arts United San Pedro last month announced the 2025 recipients of its Community Engagement RFP, awarding a total of $45,000 to nine projects that exemplify the region’s cultural vitality, diversity, and creative excellence.

Selected from a competitive pool of applicants, the funded proposals include visual arts, performances, public installations, and youth engagement, each one reinforcing San Pedro’s standing as an emerging creative hub for artistic innovation and community-driven storytelling.

“These projects represent the spirit of San Pedro that is bold, imaginative, and deeply connected to the community,” said Amy Eriksen, executive director of Arts United San Pedro. “Through these awards, we are investing in artists at the forefront of culture who inspire connection, dialogue, and discovery.”

2025 Grant Awardees:

• K Knittel / Other Places Art Fair – Expansion of the Workshop Tent at OPaf – $6,000
• Laurie Sumiye / Space Space – MANDALA: An immersive performance at the Majestic – $6,000
• Melody Chan & Faith Spawn – Bilingual marine mammal awareness magazine & workshops – $4,000

• Moral Masuoko – Festival murals as part of Beautify Earth and the Seaweed Festival – $6,000
• Peter Rothe / Feed and Be Fed – Tree of Life public mural installation – $4,000
• Peter Scherrer – solo. gallery exhibitions exploring new thematic work – $4,000
• Rosie Arias with Whimsical Charm & Divine Hug – Launch of a community Fashion

Academy – $3,000

• Synchrony – Movement-based workshops and culminating performance – $6,000
• Yozmit – PRNCX: Through the Gate, a community-led exploration of performance, healing, and creation – $6,000

These projects will unfold throughout late 2025 and early 2026, offering residents and visitors alike new opportunities to engage with the coastal town’s vibrant arts scene through hands-on workshops, visual storytelling, public installations, and immersive performances.