The Ignite Fund will provide ten $6,000 grants for community centered, public-facing visual arts projects that represent experimental, unconventional, and accessible practices by Chicago-area artists and artist-led collectives.
Donor Name: Ignite Fund
State: Illinois
County: Cook County (IL), DuPage County (IL), Kane County (IL), Lake County (IL), McHenry County (IL), Will County (IL)
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 05/29/2024
Size of the Grant: $1000 to $10,000
Grant Duration: 1 Year
Details:
The Ignite Fund prioritizes projects that are:
- Rooted in the visual arts in form and content
- Collaborative
- Inclusive of one’s community, or others, in process, creation, and presentation
- Based in the Chicago metropolitan area
- Accessible for all members of the intended audience
Project Eligibility
- Projects must center contemporary visual arts practice as the primary root and impulse. Interdisciplinary or multimedia arts are eligible if the overall core element of the project is visual arts.
- Projects that can be completed within a one-year grant term.
- Projects that have clear public-facing and robust community engagement components.
Here are some examples of past projects funded through the Ignite Fund:
- A locally touring public installation
- Experimental film and community screening and dialogue events
- A community specific visual arts skill-sharing program
- A series of archival publications and radio conversations
- Socially engaged public installations
- A gathering that showcases public visual art
- A series of art making workshops
- An exhibition, event, and zine
- A visual arts-based fashion show
Eligibility Criteria
Individual artists and artist-led collectives (up to 6 people) are eligible to apply for Ignite Fund grants. Throughout the application process, individual applicants and the main contact for an artist-led collective will be referred to as the “Lead Applicant”.
All Lead Applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Visual artists or artists with a history of presenting their work in visual art contexts. Performance, film, text, and sound artists are eligible if their proposed projects include a core element that centers the visual arts.
- Visual artists with an active artistic practice that can demonstrate recent work.
- Current residents of the Chicago metropolitan area (Cook, DuPage, Kane, McHenry, Lake, and Will counties).
- 18 years or older.
- Must legally be able to receive taxable income in the United States. Citizens, permanent residents, or anyone who can provide a W9 and a Social Security Number (SSN) or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) are eligible.
- Not currently enrolled in a full-time degree-granting program.
Selection Criteria
Successful applicants will excel in the following:
- Artistic Vision & Creative Strength
- The application demonstrates a compelling artistic vision and a creative approach to both process and presentation. The applicant describes with clarity how the project represents an experimental, imaginative, innovative, and/or unconventional shift in their work, and how it may advance their practice in meaningful ways.
- Collaboration
- The project engages multiple artists, thinkers, or community members in the development and presentation processes. If the project references any necessary partners or external stakeholders, the applicant has also indicated how they will create or deepen relationships with those groups to ensure success.
- Community Engagement
- The project will be designed for audiences in the Chicago metro area. The applicant clearly describes with specificity the local audience or community for whom the project is intended and why/how the project may be relevant to that intended audience.
- Accessibility:
- The project includes at least one presentation open to the general public. The applicant has thoughtfully considered accessibility, including Deaf and/or disabled audience members, as well as any barriers that may prevent audiences from having access to their work.
- Feasibility
- The applicant demonstrates that they have the readiness and experience needed to complete the proposed project within the one-year grant period. The budget and timeline are appropriate to the scope of work proposed.
For more information, visit Ignite Fund.
