Artist Support Grants

Artist Support Grants are offered by the Arts & Science Council to support professional development and artist development for emerging and established artists. The program is intended to enhance artists' skills and abilities to create work, improve the business operations associated with their artistic practices, and increase their capacity to bring their work to new audiences. Artists working in visual, craft, performing, traditional, and interdisciplinary art forms are encouraged to apply. Applicants are expected to demonstrate a commitment to spending a significant portion of their time on their artistic work. Eligibility is limited geographically to creatives living in Mecklenburg, Cabarrus, Cleveland, Gaston, Lincoln, and Rowan Counties. The opportunity is directed to individual artists rather than organizations. The source also establishes a cycle-specific restriction for prior recipients: FY25 Artist Support Grant recipients, identified as the previous year's 2025 recipients, are not eligible to apply in the current cycle. Those artists will become eligible to apply again in 2027. Artists may request up to $3,000, and applications selected for funding will receive the full award for which they are eligible. Funding must align with one of four stated categories. Completion/Presentation of a New Work may cover resources necessary to complete or present a significant new work, such as art supplies or equipment. Career Promotion supports projects advertising an artist's work or demonstrating the artist's skill level, including websites, portfolios, and audio-visual documentation. Training can cover attendance at an in-person or virtual class or workshop intended to enhance artistic skills or professional development. Travel may cover transportation, lodging, and food associated with training or professional conferences. No required cost share or matching contribution is stated. The source contains two descriptions of the project period that are not identical. The introductory program text states that Artist Support Grants will support projects occurring between January 1, 2027 and December 31, 2027, with all funds expended by June 30, 2028. The Grant Highlights section states that projects must take place between January 1, 2027 and June 30, 2028. Both statements are retained because the supplied source does not resolve the difference. Applicants should follow the controlling period specified by ASC in the application and official grant materials. Applications open August 10, 2026 and are due Sunday, September 6, 2026 at 11:59pm. ASC also offers draft review and coaching. Applicants wishing to receive a draft review must submit their draft by Sunday, August 30 at midnight. ASC can provide one application review per grant offering when materials are received by the draft application review deadline and cannot guarantee capacity for multiple reviews. Applicants may contact Ivan Garnica, Program Officer for Artist Support, at Ivan.Garnica@artsandscience.org to learn how to send a proposal draft or schedule a coaching call to brainstorm and ask questions. Draft review and coaching are support opportunities rather than stated prerequisites for submitting or advancing an application. Selection is conducted by a review panel of approximately 20 to 30 previous Artist Support Grant recipients. Panelists read, score, and provide feedback on applications. ASC staff does not select the recipients. The supplied material does not state the individual scoring criteria or scoring weights used by the panel. Applicants will be notified of approval or decline by Friday, December 4, 2026. The references to the previous year's recipients, the current cycle, and former recipients becoming eligible again in 2027 support treatment of Artist Support Grants as a recurring opportunity, with the next cycle anticipated in 2027.

Align the request clearly with one of the four stated funding categories and explain how it advances artistic skills, professional development, business operations, or audience reach. Demonstrate a significant commitment of time to artistic work. Applicants seeking feedback should submit draft materials by August 30 because ASC offers one application review per grant offering when materials are timely received and cannot guarantee multiple reviews.