Foundation for Contemporary Arts
/OVERVIEW: The Foundation for Contemporary Arts supports a wide range of visual artists including, but not limited to, photographers, sculptors and performance artists.
IP TAKE: This accessible funder does not award many grants each year, so grant seekers should expect competition—intensified by the fact that grants here are unrestricted.
FCA awards are not intended to fund specific projects, but to support artists at a pivotal stage in their careers. Recipients may use funds in any way they wish, but are asked to report to the foundation on how the grant was used.
PROFILE: The Foundation for Contemporary Arts (FCA) was founded by artists Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg in the early 1960s. Since those early days, FCA has pursued its mission “to encourage, sponsor, and promote innovative work in the arts created and presented by individuals, groups, and organizations.” The foundation currently offers 11 distinct Grant Programs that provide support to artists working in dance, music/sound, performance art/theater, poetry, and the visual arts.
Grants for Visual Arts
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts’s broadest funding vehicle is its Grants to Artists program, which offers unrestricted grants of $40,000 to artists working in the media of dance, music/sound, performance art/theater, poetry, and the visual arts. The foundation invites select nominators to recommend promising artists, who are then judged by a selection panel based on “the merit and imaginativeness of their work and the effect such recognition and support might have at this point in their careers.” These FCA awards are not intended to fund specific projects but to support artists at a pivotal stage in their careers. Recipients may use funds in any way they wish, but are asked to report to the foundation on how the grant was used.
Within the Grants to Artists program, FCA offers the Robert Rauschenberg Award to visual and performing artists “in recognition of outstanding achievement that reflects the spirit of its namesake.” The Ellsworth Kelly Award supports “museum exhibitions for contemporary artists.” The Roy Lichtenstein Award supports “an individual working and contributing to the creative arts in the wide-ranging and investigative spirit of Roy Lichtenstein.” The Helen Frankenthaler Award for Painting is awarded to an artist “demonstrating Helen Frankenthaler’s passion for innovation and experimentation in painting.” The Dorothea Tanning Award is made through the Grants to Artists program “in celebration of Tanning’s fierce independence and limitless imagination.”
Grants for Writing
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts’s broadest funding vehicle is its Grants to Artists program, which offers unrestricted grants of $40,000 to artists working in the media of dance, music/sound, performance art/theater, poetry, and the visual arts. The foundation invites select nominators to recommend promising artists, who are then judged by a selection panel based on “the merit and imaginativeness of their work and the effect such recognition and support might have at this point in their careers.”
Within the Grants to Artists program, the foundation offers several awards specifically for poets. The Cy Twombly Award for Poetry is awarded through Grants to Artists to support any poet, while the C.D. Wright Award goes to support “a poet over the age of 50 whose work exemplifies Wright's vibrant lyricism, seriousness, and striking originality.” The foundation sometimes supports poets through the Dorothea Tanning Award.
Grants for Music
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts’s broadest funding vehicle is its Grants to Artists program, which offers unrestricted grants of $40,000 to artists working in the media of dance, music/sound, performance art/theater, poetry, and the visual arts. The foundation invites select nominators to recommend promising artists, who are then judged by a selection panel based on “the merit and imaginativeness of their work and the effect such recognition and support might have at this point in their careers.”
Within its Grants to Artists program, FCA offers the John Cage Award for “outstanding achievement in the arts for work that reflects the spirit of John Cage,” in honor of the late composer. Recent grantees include Meredith Monk, Toshi Ichiyangi, and Joan La Barbara.
Grants for Dance
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts’s broadest funding vehicle is its Grants to Artists program, which offers unrestricted grants of $40,000 to artists working in the media of dance, music/sound, performance art/theater, poetry, and the visual arts. The foundation invites select nominators to recommend promising artists, who are then judged by a selection panel based on “the merit and imaginativeness of their work and the effect such recognition and support might have at this point in their careers.”
Within the Grants to Artists program, FCA offers the Merce Cunningham Award for “outstanding achievement in the arts that reflects the creativity and spirit of Merce Cunningham,” whose dance company was one of the foundation’s earliest beneficiaries. The foundation may also support artists whose work involves dance or movement through the Robert Rauschenberg Award and the Dorothea Tanning Award, which is made “in celebration of Tanning’s fierce independence and limitless imagination.”
Grants for Theater
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts’s broadest funding vehicle is its Grants to Artists program, which offers unrestricted grants of $40,000 to artists working in the media of dance, music/sound, performance art/theater, poetry, and the visual arts. The foundation invites select nominators to recommend promising artists, who are then judged by a selection panel based on “the merit and imaginativeness of their work and the effect such recognition and support might have at this point in their careers.”
Within the Grants to Artists program, FCA offers the Merce Cunningham Award for “outstanding achievement in the arts that reflects the creativity and spirit of Merce Cunningham,” whose dance company was one of the foundation’s earliest beneficiaries. The foundation may also support artists whose work involves the performing arts through the Robert Rauschenberg Award or the Dorothea Tanning Award, which is made “in celebration of Tanning’s fierce independence and limitless imagination.”
Other
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts also offers an Emergency Grants program for performing and visual artists who have either “sudden, unanticipated opportunities to present their work to the public when there is insufficient time to seek other sources of funding,” or incurred “unexpected or unbudgeted expenses for projects close to completion with committed exhibition or performance dates.” Emergency grants range from between $200 and $2,500 and the foundation accepts direct applications for this program.
In 2020, the foundation added a COVID-19 Fund to its Emergency Grants Program. This fund is intended to “meet the needs of experimental artists who have been impacted by the economic fallout from postponed or canceled performances and exhibitions.” It is a one-time grant of $2,000 available to artists or artists’ collectives who have lost income from the cancelation of performances or exhibition opportunities.
Important Grant Details:
This funder’s grantmaking takes the form of a one-time unrestricted grant of $40,000. While the majority of its grantees are based in the United States, the foundation frequently awards grants to international artists. To learn more about FCA grantees, explore its grant recipients page, which gives a detailed description of grantees.
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts does not accept applications from artists directly. The foundation invites select anonymous nominators to propose deserving artists, who are then judged by a selection panel based on their career and work.
PEOPLE:
Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).
LINKS:
