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Department of State

New Jersey State Council on the Arts

The Hon. Tahesha Way, Lt. Governor and Secretary of State

On the Next State of the Arts

State of the Arts has been taking you on location with the most creative people in New Jersey and beyond since 1981. The New York and Mid-Atlantic Emmy Award-winning series features documentary shorts about an extraordinary range of artists and visits New Jersey’s best performance spaces. State of the Arts is on the frontlines of the creative and cultural worlds of New Jersey.

State of the Arts is a cornerstone program of NJ PBS, with episodes co-produced by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and Stockton University, in cooperation with PCK Media. The series also airs on WNET and ALL ARTS.

On this week's episode, acclaimed choreographer Lauren Lovette premieres Jewel Box with the New Jersey Ballet. In a solo exhibition at the Newark Museum of Art, Dominican American artist Bony Ramirez uses surrealism to probe the legacies of colonialism and tourism. And Kenneth Leap creates grand public art with stained glass, around the world and in the State House, Boardwalk Hall, and transit centers and other public spaces across New Jersey.

artist blowing glass in studio

Join Us for Our Next Public Meeting

The State Arts Council will convene a public meeting on Tuesday, December 16, 2025 at 11:00 AM ET via Zoom. The event is free and open to the public.

Photo: Artist Tiffany Leps, photo courtesy of WheatonArts

Korean dancers in traditional costume

Folk & Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Project Grant

The application is now open for the FY27 FTAP grant, which provides $10,000 to support an individualized, structured learning opportunity between an Apprentice Artist and one or more Mentor Artists. Application Part 1 is due by January 8, 2026 at 12:00 PM ET.

Mentor Korean Dance Teacher, Eunjoo Kang (rear), and Apprentice Angela Jung (front). Photo: Steph Nerbak.

mural on facade of transit station entrance

Transit Art Project Unveiled at Rahway Rail Station

NJ TRANSIT and the State Arts Council announce the latest installment of the TRANSITional Art Project at the NJ TRANSIT Rahway Rail Station. The exhibition - Arriving Home - features artists Tim Heauser, John Cerra, Wendy Sheridan, and Lauren Reidy, and will be on view until December 2025.

Photo: Steph Nerbak.

teenagers hold trophies next to event banner

Now Open: NJ Poetry Out Loud Registration

NJPOL is a free, national poetry recitation program for students in grades 9 – 12 or grade equivalent. NJPOL can be facilitated in school or homeschool classrooms, after-school programs, community organizations, and libraries. Registration for the 2025-2026 school year opens November 24th!

Photo courtesy of Count Basie Center for the Arts

News & Announcements

Featured Resources

Meetings & Events

Public Meetings

The New Jersey State Council on the Arts meets a minimum of five times annually in open public session at which it acts on matters of policy, funding, and program development. The Council's Annual Meeting, at which it elects officers, adopts a program plan and budget, and approves the majority of grant awards, is traditionally held in late July, in Trenton, New Jersey.

Other meetings are conducted either virtually or at various locations around the state. All are conducted at fully accessible sites and the public is enthusiastically invited to attend. Persons who have sight, hearing or other disabilities are encouraged to notify the Council office two weeks in advance of any meeting so that appropriate accommodations may be arranged. In keeping with the Open Public Meetings Act, notice of each public meeting is shared with the required media outlets, posted in the Office of the Secretary of State, on the Council’s website, and shared via social media.

FY26 Council Public Meeting Dates:

October 21, 2025
December 16, 2025
February 10, 2026
May 19, 2026
July 21, 2026

Information for each meeting will be shared via the Council’s website, newsletters, and social media at least four weeks prior to each meeting date. Please note: Dates and times listed here are subject to change.

Grant Application Workshops

In order to better familiarize prospective applicants with the Council’s various organizational and individual artist grant programs, Council staff annually conduct a battery of technical assistance workshops, webinars, and open office hours to accompany all grant opportunities. Information about the Council’s technical assistance workshops are shared widely in grant guidelines, on the Council website, and via social media. Please visit the Grants page for more information about grant application technical assistance, pending open funding opportunities.


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