Stories + News

Building a national community of traditional artists rooted in culture, justice, and care

Gabriel Gonzalez with fellow ACTA Art Breaks In teaching artists open the Justice + Art Jam in Los Angeles in May 2025. Photo: S. Gray/ACTA. On May 24, ACTA proudly joined a dynamic lineup of nonprofits and cultural workers at Freewaves’ Justice + Art Jam…

The Alliance for California Traditional Arts (ACTA) is thrilled to announce the second year of the Taproot Fellowship, a project of ACTA’s Taproot Artists & Community Trust created to uplift culture bearers whose work is more vital than ever in confronting the social…

A recap of the 2025 CA Arts & Culture Summit and Advocacy Day

After years of deep listening, careful collaboration, and creative storytelling, we are thrilled to launch the Sounds of California: Bayview microsite—a new digital collection that brings together community recordings, essays, and archival performances to honor the rich cultural life of Bayview-Hunters Point.

The Alliance for California Traditional Arts (ACTA), the Administering Organization for the California Arts Council’s Folk and Traditional Arts Grant Program, is awarding 68 grants totaling $622,500. With the generous support of the California Arts Council, a state agency,…

Heriberto Jaime Pérez, a truck driver from Visalia, CA, wrote and performed a pandemic-era love song. On Sunday, December 8, the Roosevelt High School Auditorium in Fresno was filled with emotion, memory, and powerful melodies as we gathered for Corridos del San Joaquín. Organized…

We are thrilled to announce that ACTA Co-Founder and Executive Director, Amy Kitchener, has been inducted as a Fellow of the American Folklore Society (AFS), the highest recognition in the field of folklore. Announced at the AFS Annual Meeting, this prestigious honor celebrates Amy’s transformative contributions to public…

Recently, ACTA staff traveled to Albuquerque and Puerto Rico for the American Folklore Society Annual Meeting and NASAA (National Assembly of State Arts Agencies), joining folklorists, artists, and arts administrators from across the country. Read on to see our highlights from an inspiring conference season! “Taproot AF”: Radical…

The Alliance for California Traditional Arts (ACTA) announces its 2024 Apprenticeship Program cohort, investing $110,000 to support 22 mentor-apprentice pairs in preserving and advancing California’s diverse cultural traditions. Now entering its 24th cycle, ACTA’s Apprenticeship Program has supported California’s…