We’re offering bursaries of £500 to £1,500 to artists at every stage of their career. Apply now for the opportunity to develop new skills and networks to take your work to the next level.
Who can apply: Current a-n Artist members
What: Bursaries of £500 to £1,500
Applications open: Wednesday 18 September 2024, 12 noon
Deadline for applications: Thursday 31 October 2024, 12 noon
How to apply
Submit your application via our online form. You must be logged in to your a-n membership to access the form. Only current Artist members can apply.
Please download and read our application guidance before filling out the online form. Our application guidance is a helpful step-by-step guide that outlines all the information we’ll ask you to provide. It’s a good idea to write your application offline first, before transferring your answers to the online form. Please save a copy of your application if you’d like to keep it for your records as we won’t send you one.
If you have any questions or technical issues, please email us at [email protected]. If you need access support to complete your application, we can cover the costs. Send us an email with the details and we’ll be in touch to arrange this.
FAQs
1. Can I apply?
a-n Artist Bursaries are open to current a-n Artist members at any stage of their career, based in the UK, with a UK bank account.
Check your a-n membership type
Not a member? Join a-n today
We’re unable to accept applications from:
- Arts Organiser or Student members
- Artist members who are studying full time
- Members living outside of the UK
- Members who have completed an undergraduate course within 12 months of applying
2. What activities do you support?
We’re looking for applicants with innovative and ambitious thinking who want to make a step-change in their career. Put together a plan of activities unique to you that will drive your work forward. These might include:
- Learning new skills through professional training, courses or peer-to-peer learning with visual arts or non-arts experts
- Networking with artists, galleries, organisations and other people to progress your work
- Research and development for a new way of working or collaboration
- Visiting national or international exhibitions, events or locations that are relevant to your practice, plus travel, accommodation and subsistence costs
- Developing new markets or audiences for your work
- Portfolio development
- Professional memberships
- Tools for business development in relation to your work
- Residencies that are tailored to your work
You can also apply to cover costs associated with the following, but these can’t individually account for more than 50% of the total amount you request:
- Materials and equipment
- Goods or services e.g. paying a contractor to build a website, mentoring and coaching fees
- Making or finishing new work for exhibition or sale
- Studio rent and/or overheads
- Artists’ fees
We don’t support:
- Applications for project funding or public programming
- Applications for curatorial practice
- Applications that are dependent on other unsecured funding
- Higher education tuition fees and associated costs
- Applications from part time-students (statutory education, further education or higher education) for activities directly linked to their course of study
3. How much can I apply for?
Between £500 and £1,500. The application form will ask for an overview of how you will spend the money.
You may also apply for additional costs of up to £500 to cover disability access requirements. You’ll need to outline what your requirements are and what the costs would be.
4. If I previously received a bursary from a-n, can I apply again?
If you received an a-n bursary through a-n Artists Bursaries 2022–23, you are not eligible to apply.
5. Can I also make an application to the Freelands Foundation Artists’ Bursaries 2024–25?
You can only make one application to either a-n Artists Bursaries 2024–25 or Freelands Foundation Artists’ Bursaries 2024–25.
6. What is the selection process?
Bursaries are awarded by a panel made up of a-n staff, a-n Artists Council members, artists and curators. First, our team will check all applications to make sure they meet the criteria. The panel will then score them and make final decisions in a group meeting. We’ll let you know the decision on your application by 31 January 2025.
7. Will I receive feedback?
Yes. If your application is not successful, brief feedback will be provided in your notification email.
8. If I’m awarded a bursary, what do I need to provide?
We’d like to hear about your experience, so we ask bursary recipients to:
- Give feedback on our application process
- Complete a short Bursary Update Form when the bursary activity is completed, no later than 31 January 2026. We’d like to know how things went; if your plans have changed, that’s ok.
- Credit a-n if you share your bursary activities publicly e.g. on your Instagram or website
9. Other things you need to know
- Bursary recipients must be a-n Artist members for the duration of their bursary activity
- We may feature your name on our website and marketing materials
Top tips for preparing your bursary application
Friday 4 October 2024, 12.30–1.30pm
Online via Zoom
Join our Head of Programmes, Wing-Sie Chan, for a webinar packed with everything you need to know about applying for our bursaries.
Wing-Sie will introduce our Artists’ Bursaries 2024–25 and Freelands Foundation Artists’ Bursaries 2024–25, guide you step by step through the application process, and share expert tips to help you craft your application.