Grant applications will be reviewed multiple times throughout the year.
Professional Basics and Education Assistance Grants:
Applications must be received by 11:59PM on October 15th, January 15th, or March 15th and applications will be reviewed in the following weeks.
Creative Projects and Community/Artist Partnership Grants:
Applications must be received by 11:59PM on October 15th or March 15th and applications will be reviewed in the following weeks.
Artists can expect notification within four weeks of the application deadline.
Payment can be issued two weeks after notification of awarded projects.
Projects must happen after the grant application is accepted and within a year of receiving grant funds.
You must be 21 or older to apply for a grant.
Grant recipients must have held at least 12 months of residency in Oklahoma prior to the submission deadline.
If you are awarded a quarterly grant, you must wait one year before reapplying.
Individuals can only only submit one application per cycle.
You may not request a grant to reimburse spent funds.
Recipients of Art 365, Momentum Spotlight, and Thrive are not eligible to apply within one year of their reward disbursement of the stated programs. If you are awarded a Thrive Grant, you are eligible to apply, but your proposed project may not be the same as your Thrive proposal or a new iteration of said project.
Grants for Artists
The purpose of OVAC’s granting program is to foster Oklahoma’s visual artistic creative excellence. The grants committee supports the mission of OVAC and scores submissions based on the merit of each application according to the pertinent grant category and its associated criteria. Grants are open to artists working in visual-based mediums, curation, and art writing.
Slide 1: Erick Perry's exhibition Takes of Village | Creative Projects recipient 2022 | photo courtesy of UCO Photographic Services
Slide 2: Sarah Sullivan Sherrod | Professional Basics recipient 2023 | photo courtesy of the artist
Slide 3: Michael Hoffner's sculpture Movement | Creative Projects recipient 2022 | photo courtesy of the artist
Slide 4: Nicole Emmons | Professional Basics recipient 2022 | photo courtesy of Rosa Anderson 2021
OVAC staff coordinates the program but does not serve on the grant committees. Because of this, the staff is available to answer questions regarding the application process. To ensure accessibility, we created recurring office hours to answer questions or review applications prior to the deadlines. The office hours will take place before each deadline and will have five, thirty-minute sessions. Participants are asked to prepare the application prior to their session for review. If you need assistance with your application or have questions please reach out to ariana@ovac-ok.org
The next office hours will occur October 3rd - 5th. There are five 30-minute time slots available
email ariana@ovac-ok.org to schedule an appointment
OVAC Artist Grants Office Hours
Professional Basics Grant
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Up to $500, no match is required.
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For the essentials of an art practice: quality artwork samples, display/framing, shipping, and website development, travel assistance.
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Evaluated by measuring the quality of the proposed project, ability to complete project, and relevance based on portfolio.
Education Assistance Grant
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Up to $500, no match is required.
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For conferences, residencies, studio workshops, or study trips. Includes travel fees for educational opportunities.
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Evaluated by measuring the quality of educational opportunity, potential impact on practice/career, ability to complete project, and relevance based on portfolio.
Community/Artist Partnership (CAP) Grant
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Up to $1,500, no match is required.
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For initiating community-based projects leading to artwork creation.
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Evaluated based on four things: quality of work, community impact, concept, and ability to complete project.
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Preference will be shown to projects occurring in under-represented regions of OK, involve community collaboration, and/or include BIPOC.
Creative Projects Grant
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Up to $1,500, no match is required.
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For creating new work that will culminate in a public event focused on artist’s own work. Includes travel fees.
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Evaluated based on four items: career altering potential, quality of work, concept, and ability to complete project.
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Preference will be shown to projects occurring in under-represented regions of OK and/or include collaborations with BIPOC.
Eligibility
Timeline
We strongly recommend reviewing grant FAQs and grant writing tips before submitting your application
Click the "Scoring" button under each category below to see the Grant Evaluation Matrix our Grants committee uses to score applications.
The Grants Committee reserves the right to not fund projects if there is a lack of quality applications.