Artists need resources. They also deserve trust.
The California Arts Council’s Individual Artists Fellowship is built around that idea: direct, unrestricted support that allows artists to decide what their creative practice needs most.
This year, 14 artists and culture bearers from across the Central Coast will receive fellowships through the program. They represent six counties and disciplines ranging from literary arts and visual art to theater, music, opera, film/video, curatorial practice, and culture bearing.
Meet the 2026 Central Coast Fellows
Legacy Fellows — $50,000
- Consuelo Alba-Speyer — Curatorial — Santa Cruz County
- Ellen Bass — Literary — Santa Cruz County
- Tammy L. Hall — Music — Monterey County
Established Fellows — $10,000
- Akua Naru — Opera — Santa Cruz County
- Cristal Gonzalez Avila — Theater — San Benito County
- Fernando Salinas — Literary — Ventura County
- Harold Brown — Music — San Luis Obispo County
- Joshua Escobar — Literary — Santa Barbara County
- Kadiri Vaquer Fernandez — Literary — Monterey County
- Marcus Eriksen — Visual Art — Ventura County
Emerging Fellows — $5,000
- Alexandra Rocha-Alvarez — Culture Bearer — Santa Cruz County
- Hossein Zarrat Shoaiee — Film/Video — Santa Cruz County
- Miguel Orozco — Theater — Ventura County
- Renée Pepion — Visual Art — San Luis Obispo County
“This recognition is an affirmation not only of my work, but of the artists, storytellers and communities who have trusted me and inspired me along the way.”
Consuelo Alba-Speyer, 2026 Legacy Fellow
Arts Council Santa Cruz County is proud to administer the fellowship across the Central Coast as one of only eight organizations statewide selected by the California Arts Council to lead this work.
That role means more than running a grant program.
It means working across county lines with our regional partners to make sure artists know about the opportunity, understand the application process, and have access to support along the way. It means building relationships with artists and arts organizations in communities throughout the region. It means celebrating the individual and collective creators who make the Central Coast such a vibrant place to live and work.
During the fellowship term, we’ll also offer professional development opportunities and bring fellows together for two regional gatherings, creating space to connect, share, and celebrate.
The Central Coast’s six counties include Santa Cruz, Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura. Each has its own creative communities, histories, challenges, and opportunities. Through this regional partnership, artists from all six counties were able to apply for fellowships recognizing different stages of their careers:
- Emerging Fellows — $5,000
For artists at the beginning of their public careers. - Established Fellows — $10,000
For artists with a sustained body of work and an ongoing public practice. - Legacy Fellows — $50,000
For artists with significant bodies of work and long-term contributions to their communities and fields.
The funding is unrestricted. That distinction matters.
An artist might use fellowship funds to buy materials, take time away from other work, pursue research, travel, pay studio expenses, develop new work, or simply create more room in their life to make art. There is no single definition of what an artist might require.
“Unrestricted funding gives artists the ability to respond to what their practice actually needs.”
Tamara Liu, Grants Manager, Arts Council Santa Cruz County
For Arts Council Santa Cruz County, this is an important part of what it means to invest in artists. Supporting the arts isn't only about funding projects that the public can see. It’s also about resourcing the people doing the creative work.
That work can be invisible: the hours spent writing, rehearsing, researching, practicing, building, teaching, organizing, mentoring, and creating. It is the work that makes a creative community possible.
And for the artists receiving this support, the recognition itself can carry meaning.
“This fellowship recognizes that artists deserve investment and trust.”
Sally Green, Deputy Director, Arts Council Santa Cruz County
Over the coming weeks, we’ll be sharing more about each fellow and their creative practice. For now, we’re simply celebrating 14 artists whose work is contributing to the cultural life of the Central Coast. This is what investment in artists can look like: bold support, with the freedom to create.
About the Central Coast Regional Partnership
The Individual Artists Fellowship program for the Central Coast was administered by Arts Council Santa Cruz County in collaboration with Arts Council for Monterey County, San Benito County Arts Council, SLO County Arts, Santa Barbara County Office of Arts & Culture, and Ventura County Arts Council. Together, these organizations champion artists and strengthen the creative workforce across the region.
