(CLOSED) NEA Artworks

Art Works is the National Endowment for the Arts’ principal grants program. Through project-based funding, we support public engagement with, and access to, various forms of excellent art across the nation, the creation of art that meets the highest standards of excellence, learning in the arts at all stages of life, and the integration of the arts into the fabric of community life. Projects may be large or small, existing or new, and may take place in any part of the nation’s 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories.

We encourage applications for artistically excellent projects that:

• Celebrate America’s creativity and cultural heritage.
• Invite a dialogue that fosters a mutual respect for the diverse beliefs and values of all persons and groups.
• Enrich our humanity by broadening our understanding of ourselves as individuals and as a society.

*1965 Enabling Legislation for the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965

Discipline guideline links:

• Arts Education
• Dance
• Folk & Traditional Arts
• Literature
• Local Arts Agencies
• Media Arts
• Museums
• Music
• Musical Theater
• Opera
• Presenting & Multidisciplinary Works
• Theater
• Visual Arts

Award Information:

Grants generally will range from $10,000 to $100,000. No grants will be made below $10,000. Grants of $100,000 or more will be made only in rare instances, and only for projects that we determine demonstrate exceptional national or regional significance and impact. In the past few years, well over half of the agency's grants have been for amounts less than $25,000.

Artworks Fund:

Artworks fund nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3), U.S. organizations; units of state or local government; or federally recognized tribal communities or tribes.

Artworks fund projects only.

• A project may consist of one or more specific events or activities; it may be a part of an applicant's regular season or activities. Organizations that undertake a single short-term project in a year -- a ten-day jazz festival, for example -- could apply for that event, or they could identify certain components (such as the presentation of a key artist and the associated activities) as their project. Describe the activities for which our support is requested, and provide specific information on the artists, productions, venues, distribution plans, etc., that will be involved.
• Organizations may apply for any or all phases of a project, from its planning through its implementation.
• A project does not have to be new. Excellent existing projects can be just as competitive as new activities.
• Projects do not need to be large. We welcome small projects that can make a difference in a community or field.
• Projects may be in all NEA artistic disciplines, for works of all cultures and periods. This includes projects featuring Native American, Alaskan Native, and Native Hawaiian arts.

Grant Amounts, Cost Share, and Matching Funds:

Grants cannot exceed 50% of the total cost of the project. All grants require a nonfederal match of at least 1 to 1. For example, if an organization receives a $10,000 grant, the total eligible project costs must be at least $20,000 and the organization must provide at least $10,000 toward the project from nonfederal sources.

Grants generally will range from $10,000 to $100,000. No grant will be made below $10,000. Grants of $100,000 or more will be made only in rare instances, and only for projects that we determine demonstrate exceptional national or regional significance and impact.

In developing an application, we urge all applicants to consider the level of recent awards and to request a realistic grant amount. Applicants should review the lists of grants on our website to see recent grant award levels and project types. In the past few years, well over half of the agency's grants have been for amounts less than $25,000.

Applicants whose grants are recommended for less than the amount that is requested will have the opportunity to revise the project budget to reflect any necessary changes to the project, based on the recommended funding amount. We reserve the right to limit support of a project to a particular portion(s) or cost(s).

Eligibility Information:

Nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3), U.S. organizations; units of state or local government; or federally recognized tribal communities or tribes may apply. Applicants may be arts organizations, local arts agencies, arts service organizations, local education agencies (school districts), and other organizations that can help advance the goals of the National Endowment for the Arts.

If an organization applies to the Challenge America category, it may not submit another application to the Art Works category.

You may apply to other National Endowment for the Arts funding opportunities, including Our Town, in addition to Art Works. In each case, the request must be for a distinctly different project or a distinctly different phase of the same project, with a different period of performance and costs.

To be eligible, the applicant organization must:

• Meet the National Endowment for the Arts’ "Legal Requirements" including nonprofit, tax-exempt status at the time of application. (All organizations must apply directly on their own behalf. Applications through a fiscal sponsor are not allowed. See more information on fiscal sponsors.)
• Have a three-year history of arts programming prior to the application deadline.
• Have submitted acceptable Final Report packages by the due date(s) for all National Endowment for the Arts grant(s) previously received.

An organization whose primary purpose is to channel resources (financial, human, or other) to an affiliated organization is not eligible to apply if the affiliated organization submits its own application. This prohibition applies even if each organization has its own 501(c)(3) status. For example, the "Friends of ABC Museum" may not apply if the ABC Museum applies.

The designated state and jurisdictional arts agencies (SAAs) and their regional arts organizations (RAOs) are not eligible to apply under the Art Works guidelines. SAAs and RAOs may serve as partners in projects. However, they may not receive NEA funds (except as provided through their designated grant programs), and SAA/RAO costs may not be included as part of the required match. SAAs and RAOs are eligible to apply through the Partnership Agreements guidelines.

Ineligible applications will not be reviewed.

Application Limits:

An organization may submit only one application under these FY 2019 Art Works guidelines, with few exceptions as listed below.

For this category, exceptions to the one-application rule are made only for:

Parent (and Related) Organizations

A parent organization that comprises separately identifiable and independent components (e.g., a university campus that has a presenting organization and a radio station) may submit an application for each such component. In addition, a parent organization also may submit one application on its own behalf for a distinctly different project. The parent organization must meet the eligibility requirements for all applicants. NOTE: A related organization that performs grant administration duties for a parent organization (e.g., a college foundation that administers grants awarded to a college and its components) may submit applications for components and the parent organization in lieu of such applications being submitted by the parent. The related organization must meet the eligibility requirements for all applicants.

An independent component must be a unit that is both programmatically and administratively distinct from the parent organization, have its own staff and budget, and generally have an independent board that has substantial responsibility for oversight and management. To qualify as independent, a component should be equivalent to a stand-alone institution with a separate mission.

The following do not qualify as independent components:

• Academic departments of colleges and universities.
• Programs and projects of organizations.