RESEARCH GRANTS

Eligibility and Requirements:

• Applicants must live within the greater Washington area either in DC, Arlington, Alexandria, Fairfax, Montgomery, or Prince George’s counties.
• Applicants must be visual artists, or artists with a history of presenting their work in visual arts contexts/venues (performance, film, text, and sound artists are eligible if their work explicitly engages visual arts discourses).
• Artists can choose to apply for either a Research Grant or Project Grant (not both) depending on which best supports your practice at this time.
• If you are applying as a collective, one person must serve as the Lead Applicant/point person and be responsible for the receipt, management, and distribution of the funds, handle all communications with WPA, and be responsible for grant reporting.
• A minimum of $3,500 of the grant should be set aside as compensation for the time you will spend on research and development (reading, writing, communicating with other artists and/or scholars).
• The remaining $1,500 can be used to pay collaborators or thinking partners and for other research-related expenses (travel, book, or journal purchases, workshops and classes, photocopying from archives, subscriptions, etc.).
• Grants can be used to support new or ongoing research.
• WPA asks that grantees prepare a public-facing presentation of their research to be given in the summer 2023, more information will be provided upon award.
• The remaining $1,500 can be used to pay collaborators or thinking partners and for other research-related expenses (travel, book, or journal purchases, workshops and classes, photocopying from archives, subscriptions, etc.).
• Grants can be used to support new or ongoing research.

Ineligible:

• Full-time undergraduate or graduate student
• 501(c)(3) organizations and for-profit organizations (LLC, corporations, partnerships, etc.)
• Research for already-scheduled exhibitions, performances, or presentations at 501(c)(3) organizations and for-profit organizations

Evaluative Criteria:

Successful applicants will excel in one or more of the following:

• Artistic Impact: The inquiry is experimental, imaginative, innovative, or unconventional, and furthers the applicant's practice in meaningful ways
• Context/Relevance: The research is considerate of its context; it engages with other artists/thinkers in relevant discourses
• Feasibility: The applicant demonstrates the ability to carry out the proposed research within the grant period

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PROJECT GRANTS

Eligibility and Requirements:

• Applicants must live within the greater Washington area either in DC, Arlington, Alexandria, Fairfax, Montgomery, or Prince George’s counties.
• Applicants must be visual artists, or artists with a history of presenting their work in visual arts contexts/venues (performance, film, text, and sound artists are eligible if their work explicitly engages visual arts discourses).
• Projects must be shared publicly during the grant period. These public presentations can take a variety of forms, including but not limited to: in-person or virtual events, exhibitions, performances, publications, interventions, screenings, readings, round-table discussions, installations, lecture series, curated dinners, festivals, and walking tours.
• The project, as described, should have a clear beginning and end date, either or both of which can fall outside of the grant period.
• Projects must take place in DC or in the eligible surrounding counties (Arlington, Alexandria, Fairfax, Montgomery, or Prince George’s counties), or take place virtually.
• Grantees are responsible for organizing and managing their projects as well as finding sites and venues.
• If you are applying as a collective, one person must serve as the Lead Applicant/point person of the project and be responsible for the receipt, management, and distribution of the funds, handle all communications with WPA, and complete grant reporting.
• This $5,000 grant can be used to pay for your time and that of your collaborators, production, and material costs, etc. It can entirely fund a small-scale project or event, or contribute to the funding of a larger project with multiple sources of funding.
• Grantees are required to submit a final report on outcomes and reflections at the end of the grant period.

Ineligible:

• Full-time undergraduate or graduate students
• 501(c)(3) organizations and for-profit organizations (LLC, corporations, partnerships, etc.)
• Projects that will take place in/at 501(c)(3) art organizations or for-profit art organizations (LLC, corporations, partnerships, etc.)

Evaluative Criteria:

Successful applicants will excel in one or more of the following:

• Artistic Impact: The project has a core idea/inquiry/theme and its presentation is experimental, imaginative, innovative, and/or unconventional, and furthers the applicant's practice in meaningful ways
• Context/Relevance: The project ideas are considerate of their context and the project engages artists/thinkers and audiences in relevant discourses and meaningful ways
• Collaboration: The project engages multiple artists and thinkers in the development and presentation processes
• Feasibility: The applicant demonstrates the ability to carry out the proposed research within the grant period
• Accessibility: The applicant has a robust plan to ensure the project is publicly accessible
• Budget: The budget is reflective of the scope of the proposed project