The Kindling Fund awards project grants ranging from $3,000 – $7,000 (with smaller Research and Development Grants) to Maine-based artists of all career levels, who organize projects that engage audiences and the visual arts in inventive and meaningful ways.
The Kindling Fund values and uplifts artistic collaboration (or collaboration with community in meaningful ways). Applicants seeking support at the $5,500-$7,000 range must have at least one stated core collaborator.
This is the 11th year of grantmaking for the Kindling Fund.
In the context of this grant, the visual arts is defined as broadly as possible and includes: photography, video, non-traditional performance, ceramics, earth works, drawing, bookmaking, weaving, crafts, installations, painting, mail art, printmaking, basketry, sculpture, calligraphy, social engagement, participatory or community driven projects, glass, design, and the alternative spaces, artistic collectives, art writing, and artistic platforms that support that work.
If you are interested in proposing a project that is not listed and you think of it as a form of visual art, please email kindlingfund@space538.org. With a focus on risk and experimentation, successful projects value unconventional engagement, critical dialogue, collaboration, and create new models for presenting artists’ work. The Kindling Fund is administered by SPACE Gallery as part of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts’ Regional Regranting Program.
The application portal is open as of October 9th at 12:00 pm on space538.submittable.com
This year’s deadline is Sunday, November 24th at 11:59 pm.
More info at the Kindling Fund website here.
INFORMATION SESSIONS:
- Saturday, November 2nd at 12pm at Light Manufacturing – In-person information session at Cassidy Point in Portland, Maine | Register here
- Sunday, November 3rd at 12:30pm – Virtual Information Session and Q&A on Zoom | Register here
- Monday, November 4th at 5:30pm – Virtual Information Session and Q&A on Zoom | Register here
- Thursday, November 7th at 5:30pm at Chase’s Daily – In-person information session in Belfast, Maine | Register here
- Info session #3 TBA
- Sunday, November 17th from 1-3pm at SPACE – Peer Review Session, bring a laptop or print out of your application draft for an informal chat with peers and SPACE staff about your proposal. Free street parking on Sundays.
Questions? Email kindlingfund@space538.org. Please submit any eligibility or specific application questions by Monday, November 18th at 5pm to allow time for us to reply to all inquiries.