4Culture Grants + Calls

Art Projects

Art Projects grants help fuel the experiences that make up the cultural fabric of King County. If you are sharing your work with the public, we can help you bring your ideas to life.  

Update: 2024 Project grants are on hold as we work to disburse federal COVID relief funds and plan for new Doors Open programming.
  • Applications for new Projects will reopen in 2025 with more awards and funding! Find other opportunities on our Grants + Artist Calls, Listings, and Community Resources pages.
  • Current Project grant contracts will continue to be honored.
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Steps to Apply

1 What Art Projects Funds

1 What Art Projects Funds

Artists and arts groups all over King County use Projects grants to create and share their work.

A panel comprised of artists and arts workers from throughout King County, with expertise in one or more creative disciplines, reviews all eligible applications. These panels will select projects for funding based on two kinds of criteria: core and choice.

Criteria

We fund these grants through a competitive process. For this grant, the panel will carefully evaluate your application using the following:

Core Criteria:

  • Project impact and public benefit: Art is the primary component of your project. You have described one or more compelling, feasible public events in King county.
  • Quality and qualifications: Relevant work samples or other documentation that supports your application has been provided. If applying as a group, applicants must demonstrate that they have or will hire artists and/or arts professionals with relevant experience to achieve the project.
  • Feasibility: The budget for your project is feasible and you’ve requested an appropriate amount of funding.
  • Advancing equity: If your project and/or public event is intended to support people or communities historically marginalized in King County or that have been disproportionately impacted by structural racism, you have outlined why and how this will take place. This is not a requirement for funding.

Art Projects also gives you the opportunity to let the panel know how you’d like to have your project evaluated. You must select one of the following three Choice Criteria for the panel to use when they review your application: 

Choice Criteria:

  • Sustained value: your project shows a dedication to artistic discipline and form over an extended period of time, has consistent value, or preserves a creative and/or cultural tradition.
  • Community engagement: your project provides an interactive and educational art experience beyond a public presentation, for the general public or a specific community—geographic, ethnic, youth, senior, etc—which is integral to your project.
  • Artistic development: your project deeply explores or expands your discipline, medium, or concepts in new directions, and/or is a departure from your past or current work.

Public Benefit: Why It Matters

Visitors who stay in hotels and motels in King County pay sales tax. A small part of that tax generates the funds for our grants—our mission is to reinvest those funds into King County communities. Most importantly, in your application you will be asked to state specifically how fellow residents will benefit from the work you do.

Equity Investments

To combat inequities in our grantmaking, 4Culture engages in the practice of making Equity Investments. This practice involves looking at several indicators of structural inequity and applying that knowledge to our peer review panel process. These indicators include but are not limited to: geographic location of applicants, operating budget, communities engaged with and audiences served, and project focus. By prioritizing these factors in our grantmaking decisions and panel review process, we anticipate funds will be distributed to communities that have historically been excluded from cultural funding.

Each of our grant programs utilizes an Equity Investment system tailored to the specific needs of its applicants; please read the After You Submit section of this page for details on how Equity Investments will function for this grant. This organization-wide change—and what we learn about its impact—is an important step towards more equitable funding at 4Culture and throughout the King County cultural sector.

2 Are You and Your Project Eligible?

2 Are You and Your Project Eligible?

You

You can apply for Art Projects as an individual or a group. Please note that you cannot apply in both categories—you must select one.

  • Apply as an individual if you are the sole creator of a project, acting as a curator, or are leading other artists in the creation of your project. In this category, the panel will assess your contribution to the project and your work samples. If selected for an award, you must provide us with your Social Security Number—no fiscal sponsors may be used—to receive payment.
  • Apply as a group if you represent a cooperative, non-profit organization, municipality, or business that creates art projects, or if you are a group of artists who have a history of working together, organized under a group name. In this category, the panel will assess your group’s contribution to your project and project-relevant work samples. You do not need to be a nonprofit, but you must provide an EIN (LLC, S-Corp, General Partnership, Nonprofit, etc.) when you apply—a Social Security Number will not be accepted. If you are awarded a grant, you may then request to reassign your contract to a fiscal sponsor (for example: Allied Arts Foundation, Shunpike, or Fractured Atlas). The King County mailing address of the EIN must match the mailing address used on the W9 Form you submit for payment.

You must meet these requirements in order to be considered for Art Projects grant funding:

  • Individuals must be at least 18 years old and a resident of King County when you apply through completion of your project.
  • Groups must be a King County organization with a core mission dedicated to the arts. If your group is not an arts organization, you must have a written agreement with an artist or arts group with whom you will collaborate.
  • You may submit only one (1) individual OR one (1) group application per year.

In order to be eligible for Art Projects funding you must not:

  • Represent or apply on behalf of a current recipient of 4Culture’s Arts Sustained Support program.
  • Be an individual or group who received a grant through 4Culture’s Art Projects in 2022. These recipients may apply again in 2024.
  • Be a member of an applicant group and also apply as an individual for a group-related project.
  • Have an incomplete project with an open Projects grant contract awarded in or prior to 2020.
  • Have a current, open contract for 4Culture’s Sustained Support, Community 4Culture, or Creative Consultancy programs.
  • Be a school, school district, or religious institution.
  • Serve as a current staff, board, or Arts Advisory Committee member of 4Culture.
  • Be a 2023 Art Projects selection panelist.

Your Project

4Culture values the right to express and experience culture individually and as a community. These grants offer financial support for the creation of art projects that offer some community access to art or the artmaking process. Access can be formal or informal and can include events such as readings, screenings, exhibitions, performances, workshops, discussions, festivals, activities, and more.

You may apply to fund the portions of a project that begin after July 1, 2023. The public benefit/project impact portion of your project must be completed by July 1, 2025.

  • Your project may include: the development of new work, the interpretation of existing work, the presentation of new work or a collection of works, support for professional development such as workshops, conferences, and residencies, support for renting or purchasing consumable materials that further your project.
  • Your project may not: be fully produced or funded by a 4Culture Sustained Support organization, with a current, open contract. Please contact us if you plan to develop or present your proposed project in partnership with a Sustained Support organization. This may be allowed, but only if 4Culture staff have reviewed the proposed project in advance and given permission for the collaboration to apply. We do not fund tuition and cost-of-living expenses for matriculated students in any degree program, food, beverages or fundraising expenses, permanent public art projects, including murals, general operating support, or capital construction projects.

Have you considered applying for other 4Culture grants? If your project involves multiple disciplines—preservation, heritage, and/or the arts—you may be eligible to submit it for consideration under more than one 4Culture funding program. In your Art Projects application, you must disclose that you have applied or intend to apply to another 4Culture program for the same or related project. Please contact 4Culture to discuss your application if you think it may be eligible for other possible support from 4Culture.

3 Helping You Succeed

3 Helping You Succeed

Workshops

Workshops provide an opportunity for you to meet staff, learn about the process, ask questions, and meet other artists and arts groups. All workshops will be held remotely. Please register via the links provided to receive Zoom meeting information. Take advantage of this opportunity to strengthen your application!

This grant is currently closed. Workshops will be posted 6-8 weeks before the next deadline date.

Application Guide and Worksheet

Watch this step-by-step application guide video to assist you in the application process:

As you draft your application, you may choose to work offline in a document. This application worksheet can be used as tool as you work. It includes helpful tips and space to draft your responses.

Click to download the worksheet: Individuals | Groups

Sample Application and Personal Feedback

The application must be filled out through the online application portal. You may find it helpful to read Individual and Groups sample applications that successfully received funding, and view last year’s Individual and Group grant recipients on our Awardees page.

Before you begin or after starting your application, you may have questions or need some personalized feedback on an idea. We are available by email and phone to assist you. Please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Contact

Groups:
Scott Oshima
scott.oshima@4culture.org
(206) 477-8064

Individuals:
Melissa Newbill
melissa.newbill@4culture.org
206-263-1603

Translation and Assistance

The guidelines, a detailed explanation of how to apply, and the application are in English. If this is a barrier that stops you from understanding the grant or applying due to limited English writing ability, visual impairment, or you would like to request assistance to create an application, please contact hello@4culture.org or call (206) 296-7580 or TTY 711, and we will make sure you get the support you need. More ›
 
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4 After You Submit

4 After You Submit

Timeline

The deadline for this grant is March 23, 2023 at 5:00 pm PST. Most 4Culture grants take approximately three months from application deadline to when we announce our funding decisions. We will notify you about the status of your application on or before July 1, 2023.

Panel Process

4Culture staff reviews applications to ensure they are eligible and complete. A panel of artists and arts professionals, working in various disciplines, then evaluates all eligible applications. The composition of the panels changes annually and will include artists and arts specialists who work in artistic disciplines other than your own—keep this in mind as you craft your application.

The panel will use the Core and Choice Criteria to evaluate your application. Before the panelists meet as a group, they will each review your application and work samples. During this time, they may take notes and give your application an initial score.

4Culture staff have made some changes towards advancing equity within this program. We have added a criterion to support panelists in the evaluation of projects intended to serve historically marginalized people or communities in King County. We intend this criterion to elevate these projects through the panelists’ discussion and consideration.

Additionally, staff will apply an Equity Investment. 4Culture recognizes that where one is based or provides services can affect access to resources and opportunities. To take a step towards balancing these disparities, artists and arts groups will be considered for an equity investment during the grant evaluation and selection process. Projects by those who reside outside of Seattle but within King County, or in a Community of Opportunity will receive the highest priority.

The panel, at its discretion, may award less than the requested amount. 4Culture staff facilitates the panel process but does not vote or try to influence the outcome.

Please contact Scott Oshima for Groups or Melissa Newbill for Individuals if you have any questions.

Contracts and Payment

If you are selected to receive an Art Projects grant, your grant manager will work with you to create a contract outlining the scope of your project and a payment schedule. You will be able to receive 50% of your awarded funds after you have completed your contract documents. You can request your final 50% once you have completed the public benefit activity that you describe in your application, which will also become part of your contract.

Requirements and Appeals

Learn about the legal requirements of grant recipients, and about the process for appeal of a 4Culture award.

5 Apply

5 Apply

Once you’ve started your application, you can save by completing the required fields or by using placeholder text. Your application will be saved as a draft that you can continue to work on up until the deadline. Once you click “Submit,” your application is considered complete and ready for review. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions during the process.

What’s in the Application?

You will need to write about your project idea, past experience, and planning. Additionally, you must submit samples of past or in-process artwork. We strongly recommend assembling these materials before you login and begin your application.

Demographic Information

Your profile in our application portal must provide demographic information for the current year for yourself and, if you are applying as an organization, for your board and staff. We use this information to help us understand how well we are doing in our efforts to reach all communities in King County.

Artistic Discipline

You will need to select one of the following artistic disciplines: Dance, Literature, Music, Media, Theater, or Visual Art. This is used for our organizational purposes only—we do not allocate funds based upon discipline. Choose the discipline that is the best match to your project.

Choice Criteria

Please see Step 1: What Art Projects Funds on this page for information on selecting your Choice Criteria.

Project Narrative

There are four sections in the application where you will need to write about your project. These sections should reflect the Choice Criteria (Sustained Value, Community Engagement, or Artistic Development) you have selected and they include: Project Description, Project Impact, Relevant Expertise/Experience/Accomplishments, and Project Implementation. If awarded, this description will be the basis of your contract; material changes in the proposal that were not evaluated or approved by the panel may not be permitted.

Project Budget

The panel will need to see a simple breakdown of your project expenses and income in the categories provided in the application. You will need to indicate dollar amounts in the categories that best fit your project. In the Project Budget Notes section, we recommend outlining the specific use of the funds you are requesting from 4Culture. These competitive grants can be requested in amounts of $2,000, $4,000, $6,000, $8,000, or $10,000. Additionally, you may provide details of the items in your budget. The total project expense must equal the total project income. In other words, you must demonstrate that your project is financially feasible.

Venue

If you know the name and address of the venue where you plan to present your work, you will need to complete this information. If you don’t know yet, you can skip down to Project Venue Notes to indicate the type of venue(s) you would like to use (park, theater, gallery, library etc.). If you are planning to use more than one venue, indicate that in the Project Venue Notes as well.

Work Sample Description

Please prepare the following information about all of the work samples you submit:

  • Titles (and/or track numbers) of the work(s) submitted in the order in which they are to be reviewed.
  • Date the work(s) were completed or if they are in-progress.
  • Your role (Example: “I was the choreographer and director of this project.”).

If work samples are in the Manuscript Format: identify if the sample(s) are complete works, abstracts, excerpts or a group of works.

If work samples are in the Image Format include: identify the medium, dimensions of the artwork(s), and completion date.

You may elect to write a few brief sentences about each work sample.

Work Samples

You should submit samples of past work that best illustrate your qualifications for your project. We will not accept prints, musical scores, brochures, press-clippings or other supplemental materials. Panelists generally review between 50–150 applications. To ensure a fair process for all who apply, we must limit the volume and duration of work sample review.

Work sample(s) will be reviewed for a cumulative total of no more than five (5) minutes. You may submit samples of a longer duration, but each application’s work sample(s) will not be evaluated for more than five (5) minutes.

We recommend prioritizing your work sample(s), by limiting your selection to sample(s) that are most relevant—in scope, scale, complexity, and/or subject matter—to your proposed project. Please prepare and submit your work sample(s) in up to two (2) of the required format(s):

Audio

Recommended for Music

Maximum of three (3) work samples.

How to Submit

You may submit up to three (3) audio files using SoundCloud. Once you have uploaded your files to SoundCloud that you would like the selection panel to review, indicate the SoundCloud URL (e.g. https://soundcloud.com/m-rodriguez/03-m-rodriguez) in your application, in the order in which you would like the files reviewed. Work samples may not be submitted through other media sharing sites or on personal websites.

Digital Image

Recommended for Visual

You may submit up to ten (10) JPGs in the order in which you would like them to be reviewed. Images must be under 2 MB, at least 1920 pixels on the longest side, and at least 72 dpi. TIFF and other file formats will not be accepted. Images will be presented one at a time during the application review process.

How to Submit

Upload JPGs in the order in which they are to be reviewed, in the required format.

Video

Recommended for Dance, Theater, Media

You may submit up to three (3) video-based work samples.

How to Submit

You may submit up to three (3) videos using Vimeo or YouTube. Once you have uploaded video selections that you would like the selection panel to review, indicate the URL (e.g. https://www.vimeo.com/2992575) in your application, in the order in which you would like the videos reviewed. Work samples may not be submitted through other websites. If your video is private, please provide the private video link. Do not select the password protected option.

Manuscript

Recommended for Theater, Literary, Media
You may submit a writing sample, in English, of no more than ten (10) pages (plus one (1) cover page if desired) with a minimum font size of 12 points. Include your name or group name on each page.

How to Submit
Upload in Portable Document Format (.pdf) or Word (.doc) only.