Collections Grants

By supporting collections projects, we hope to have a long-term impact on histories of American art and institutional practices. We encourage practices that:

• generate new research that contributes to understandings of the full breadth and complexity of American art and history
• encompass a plurality of voices through expansive curatorial methodologies, including intercultural and interdisciplinary perspectives
• engage local communities in collaborative program and content creation
• broaden access through inclusive stories and design, as well as through multilingual materials when feasible and relevant

If you are seeking support for research and planning and/or installation of temporary exhibitions consisting primarily of loans, please see our Exhibition grant program.

Planning Support

Grants to offset research and planning costs for permanent collection reinstallations or temporary exhibitions drawn primarily from an institution’s permanent collection. Funds may be used only for costs associated with:

• short-term positions (e.g. project-specific research fellows or assistants)
• pre-exhibition convenings
• research activities, including travel
• advisory committees
• conservation (up to 25 percent of the grant award)
• direct staff cost (up to 25 percent of the grant award)
• indirect costs (up to 15 percent of the grant award)

Implementation Support

Grants to offset permanent collection reinstallations or temporary exhibitions drawn primarily from an institution’s permanent collection. Funds may be used only for costs associated with:

• research activities, including travel
• interpretation
• signage/labels
• artist fees (excluding commissions)
• shipping, crating, couriers, insurance, and object loan fees
• exhibition design and fabrication, including temporary gallery walls
• conservation, framing, and casework (up to 25 percent of the grant award)
• rental equipment
• programs, convenings, and events
• marketing
• project evaluation
• dissemination of research, whether in digital or print form
• direct staff cost (up to 25 percent of the grant award)
• indirect costs (up to 15 percent of the grant award)

We encourage projects that:

• generate knowledge and interpretive frameworks that collectively reflect the full breadth and complexity of American art and its histories through the artists represented, voices included, and stories told
• engage artists, scholars, and communities who offer a plurality of perspectives and methods, including intercultural and interdisciplinary approaches
• model inclusive practices and expansive histories in the field of American art

All applicants must hold United States 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status or its international equivalent. Grants are not made to individuals.

An organization may receive only one Collections grant per grant cycle. However, an organization that has submitted a grant proposal may also be listed as a co-organizer for a different grant proposal in the same cycle. If both inquiries are selected for funding, the organization will receive funding only for the proposal for which it is the primary organizer.

If an organization has received a Collections planning grant, it may subsequently apply for Collections implementation support for the same project.

Organizations may submit only one grant inquiry for a grant program per grant cycle. An organization with multiple subsidiaries may submit no more than one grant inquiry per grant program for each of its eligible entities. A fiscal sponsor may also apply on behalf of multiple entities, provided that each entity is organizing a separate project.

Currently, we do not accept requests for:

• artwork acquisitions or commissions
• equipment (such as computers, projectors, etc.) or capital expenditures
• projects that are exclusively online
• projects previously opened that are touring to new venues
• projects consisting primarily of loans
• grant inquiries or proposals previously declined through this program

Grant Inquiry Form
Use the Apply Now buttons to submit a grant inquiry form by the deadline listed on this page. After reviewing the inquiry, the foundation may invite you to submit a grant proposal.

Grant Proposal
If invited, prospective applicants submit a grant proposal. Formal proposals and all supplementary materials must be written in English. Grant proposals are reviewed by an external panel made up of curators and arts professionals who reflect a diverse range of backgrounds, perspectives, and approaches.