The National Endowment for the Arts notified institutions in Maine and across the country Friday that their grants were being terminated, because they were not aligned with the Trump Administration's priorities.
David East, Executive Director at the Watershed Center for the Ceramic Art, said the notification came without warning.
"If they read more closely through our grant information, I think that they would find that it did fit some of the priorities that are being articulated," East said.
East said the Watershed money is used to fund an artist residency that attracts talent from around the world.
NEA grants total more than $300,000 across the state and support arts organizations' work in their communities.
East said his organization receives two NEA grants totaling more than $60,000 one which was terminated Friday and another that has been under review since the federal funding freeze was announced in January.
"Part of the difficulty through this whole time period is the complete lack of transparency or actual quick answers from the NEA," East said.
Whitney Gill, Executive Director for the Maine Crafts Association, said her grants have also been under review and while a craft apprenticeship program continued this year without funding, she's not sure it would be able to in the future without this money.
Both East and Gill said they have reached out to the NEA and have received no meaningful explanation for the delay.
